Medics couldn’t believe Lauren had stroke at 25
WHEN Lauren Watson was taken to hospital after struggling to talk and move properly, nurses thought she was on drugs.
But a CT scan confirmed that the previously fit and healthy young woman had suffered a stroke at the age of 25 and needed an urgent operation to remove a blood clot in her brain.
While the procedure was deemed a success, it left Lauren with major speech and mobility problems which she feared would be permanent.
“When I came round from the operation, I was sat in my hospital bed thinking ‘what am I doing here?,’” said Lauren.
“My thinking was completely normal, but the only word I could say was ‘yeah.’ It was unbelievably scary.”
Lauren, from Caerphilly, said her then boyfriend noticed her speech problems on December 6, 2015, and took her to Ysbyty Ystrad Fawr in Ystrad Mynach.
“My dad had a stroke when he was 47 and my former partner thankfully recognised the signs.
“However the staff at the hospital didn’t believe it could be a stroke at only 25. They initially thought I was on drugs. It was only my then-boyfriend’s persistence that made them give me a scan.”
Following a CT scan, Lauren was taken to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff for the operation.
“They went in through my groin, up my body and into my brain to take out the clot,” she added.
“When I woke up I had my mum, dad and ex-partner around me. I wanted to ask them what I was doing here but I couldn’t say it.
“I couldn’t feel the right side of my body either and it took me about four days to walk again.
“I was discharged from hospital just before Christmas 2015, but I didn’t feel festive at all. I felt like I wasn’t supposed to be there and it took me six months to deal with the fact that I’d had a stroke.”
Bilingual Lauren said her Welsh came back first, followed by her English, with the help of speech and language therapists. She also joined her dad in attending the Stroke Association’s support group in Cwmbran.
“I was the youngest person in the group, but it was so good to meet other people who understood how I felt,” added the 28-year-old.
“After spending time with them, my advice to any other stroke survivors would be to keep at it. It can be slow, but in the end your work does mount up.
“I was determined to get fit, so after nearly two years of hard work, I was able to do the Cardiff Half Marathon with my dad and raise money for the Stroke Association.”
Despite having some weakness in her right hand and being unable to write properly, she is back at work as a classroom assistant at Ysgol Gymraeg Caerffili and has just bought a new house.
There are about 7,400 strokes in Wales each year. Stroke continues to be a leading cause of disability and over 80% of stroke survivors require help with daily living such as walking, washing, eating and communicating.
■ To find out more about the Stroke Association and to make a donation to its Christmas Appeal visit stroke.org.uk/iammore