How burlesque dancing helped me to recover from a stroke
Life for new mum Anna Smith-higgs changed for ever when she had a stroke at 24. As well as physical disability, she faced a battle against depression. Anna, of Harlow, Essex, tells how she finally bounced back... with sheer determination
Ayoung mum left disabled after a Christmas Day stroke has told how she rebuilt her life with the help of burlesque dancing.
Anna Smith-higgs had to learn to walk again and was left partially sighted following a stroke a month after her son was born.
She was just 24 and spent two years in bed with severe depression before finding the resolve to fight back – and fulfil her dreams.
Anna, now 38, has abseiled down a building, tried fire breathing, taken up boxercise, had tea with a rabbi and signed up for dressmaking sessions.
But her biggest achievement has been burlesque dancing.
She says proudly: “I can twirl my nipple tassels with the best of them – in seven directions.
“I spent two years wasting my life feeling sorry for myself until one day I just thought ‘no more’.
“Since then I’ve done things I’d never imagined. In some ways I’m grateful I had the stroke because I’d never have achieved so much without it. It made me fearless.”
ROUTINE
Anna has perfected a saucy but moving routine which tells the story of her stroke on a big screen behind her as she strips off.
She got a standing ovation when she performed in Burlesque Idol at the London Hippodrome. And she will take to the stage again at a festival in Oslo in August.
Anna, who used to work in sales, fell ill on Christmas Day 2004, weeks after having son Henry, now 13.
She was rushed to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge where an MRI scan detected a stroke. She had lost the use of her right arm and doctors warned she may never walk again.
Stroke risk increases after
having a baby as the blood clots more easily during and after pregnancy. Anna said: “I was looking forward to Henry’s first Christmas at my dad’s, but starting feeling dizzy and a bit odd shortly after dinner. “We’d all had some wine and, since I hadn’t touched a drop during pregnancy, I put it down to the fizz. I was later put to bed with everyone thinking I’d had a bit too much to drink.”
But on Boxing Day Anna still felt dizzy, sick and was stumbling around. Her face had dropped and she couldn’t speak – then doctors confirmed her worst fears.
After five months in hospital, slowly regaining use of her legs and encouraged by supportive partner Craig, Anna managed to walk to her car. But the emotional fallout was harder to deal with. She went on: “I couldn’t accept what I’d become. I’d gone from being a fit 24-year-old with everything to look forward to, to struggling to change my child’s nappy.
“I spent months in bed and was scared to move, terrified that I’d have another stroke. Even going to the toilet became a major mission.
“All the while I was missing huge parts of Henry’s life. But one day I decided enough was enough. I went to see the doctor
and got anti-depressants and had counselling, which helped immensely.”
Anna is naturally righthanded and had to learn to do tasks with her left – even using her foot to help with nappy changing.
She added: “I wanted my life back. I knew it wouldn’t be the one I had before, so decided to challenge myself. I’d always wanted to learn about Judaism, so met a rabbi. I took up boxercise and signed up for dressmaking classes. I wanted to know I could still enjoy life. Then I spotted an ad for a local burlesque class five years ago and thought ‘why not?’”
Anna has never looked back. Her act starts with her sitting in the dark as the words and pictures to her story flash up on a screen. Then she gets to her feet to seductively peel off.
Anna still relies on an electrical stimulation machine to help her walk and uses a wheelchair when tired. But her sheer will to recover is extraordinary and she hopes her stage performances give other stroke victims the courage to live their lives to the fullest.
She said: “It took a long time to come to terms with the fact I am disabled, but as soon as I accepted it, life became a whole lot easier.
“The first time I went on stage it was a bit scary. I was very much aware of my right arm, which just kind of hangs there. But I absolutely love being in front of people now. I can make men cry with my act and I’m raising awareness that young people have strokes.
“I can seriously say that burlesque has changed my life.”
See facebook.com/justAnother-stroke-129173831106893 /Anna is supporting the British Heart Foundation’s Face a Fear challenge.