A BASILDON teacher who suffered debilitating vision loss after a stroke is raising awareness of the condition's impact on younger people.
Sarah Young, 47, experienced her first stroke in December 2023, leaving her with significant sight difficulties, extreme sensitivity to lights, and a need for carers.
The special needs teacher also suffers from right-sided weakness and loss of sensation from her head to her foot.
Her two children, aged 12 and 15, have become her lifeline, helping her with daily tasks, including getting washed and dressed and using the kitchen.
Despite her life-altering circumstances, Ms Young is determined to share her story to raise awareness about strokes in young people.
She described the day she had her stroke: "When I got out of the car, I felt funny.
"I thought I was coming down with a bad migraine.
"I couldn’t stand and felt really disoriented, but continued to talk."
Her stroke was initially misdiagnosed as a migraine, and she was sent home without receiving the appropriate care.
Her health deteriorated, and she returned to the hospital the next day.
After two days, doctors confirmed she had three strokes.
Ms Young spent two weeks recovering in hospital, where she also contracted Covid-19.
She said: "Being in hospital was scary and lonely. I missed my boys so much.
"I hated the fact they were so far away from me."
Since her discharge, Ms Young's children have been instrumental in her recovery.
She said: "The boys were great. Overnight, they were thrown into doing tasks for me which no teenage boy wants to do.
"They help me to get in and out of the shower and to get dressed."
In January 2024, doctors discovered she had a patent foramen ovale (PFO), a flap in her heart that is believed to have allowed a clot to reach her brain during her Covid-19 infection.
She credits the Stroke Association’s Stroke Recovery Service in Essex with playing a "vital role" in her recovery.
She added: "The job they do is like no other in the stroke pathway, and yet it’s the puzzle piece to bringing all the steps in recovery together."
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