Sandy Dale

Date of stroke: 1st August 1998

In my 30s, I was training as a medical researcher, interviewing medical professionals and patients. I'd been working as a registered nurse and was ready for a new career with a medical leaning. Being recently divorced and living with my mother, I was also in the middle of sorting out my life. Consequently I was under some stress. I was able to deal with the stress until my aunt died. I was then caught up in sorting out her funeral and her will, helping my mother and having more stress. I had a headache that lasted for a week. When I saw my GP, he thought I was under a lot of stress and therefore had a stress headache. Then on 1st August, I was in the bathroom having a wash and I collapsed. My mother found me as I was making a noise to get her attention. She had to break in as I'd locked the door. She immediately called an ambulance and I was taken straight to hospital. The doctors were convinced I had a urinary tract infection and didn't investigate the head problem until I started projectile vomiting (I'd been in Accident and Emergency for 10 hours by then). The brain scan showed I'd had a subarachnoid haemorrhage, so I was immediately transferred to Charing Cross Hospital in London and taken into Intensive Care. I was there for eight weeks, spending 10 days on a ventilator and had surgery to clip my aneurysm. I developed hydrocephalus and therefore had a ventriculo-peritoneal shunt inserted, after which I started to improve.

After eight weeks (which I don't remember), I was moved back to my original hospital for three week's rehabilitation. I've got some memories of that time - mostly of daft things like being stuck on the toilet and unable to stand as my right side was affected. I saw the speech therapist and had physiotherapy, saw lots of other therapists who wanted to help me. I was determined to go home as I thought I would recover faster when I was out of the hospital. I had a couple of visits home to see how I coped and I was fine as I was able to walk and tackle stairs (slowly). My mother was happy to care for me, so I was sent home after three weeks.

The first thing I did was sleep. I was being disturbed so much in hospital that I needed to sleep to heal. I'd got a great new bed at home and really enjoyed sleeping there! I was sleeping for 12 hours every night for the first couple of weeks at home. I then started to recover properly continuing physiotherapy and speech therapy. I went back to work in January 1999, but wasn't able to interview as I wasn't able to say what I wanted to say. My employers were good and allowed me to work part-time and to do other work, mostly on the computer. I was left with only a slight limp when I get tired and my right arm isn't very strong. Fortunately I'm left-handed, so I was able to write (although rubbish to start with!). Speech is better than it was, but not as good as it used to be - very frustrating not able to express what I want to without a verbal struggle.

Emotionally, I've had lots of problems with anger. I never had a really bad temper, but I've got one now. I've got a huge punch bag in my garage to have a go at when the anger gets to me. Some of it from frustration (speech and the fact that I'm now really clumsy) and from people who anger me with their behaviour. However, I've also been a lot happier as I appreciate being alive.

This haemorrhage had an amazing effect on me as I've now got a new life from it. As I was recovering, my mother was getting cancer back (from worrying about me probably) which eventually killed her in September 1999. I was made redundant at work in October 1999, so I decided to change my life completely (my father had died in 1986 and I was an only child, so I was alone). I'd always loved Cornwall, so I went and had a look round. I found a perfect bungalow close to the sea, which I moved into in January 2000. I got a part-time job as a sales assistant in the local general shop where I met all the locals and have a chat with all of them. I've made lots of friends in Cornwall having become involved in voluntary work, joined a social club, got involved in the local village and generally enjoy myself. My motto was always "Life is never a rehearsal", and that certainly applies now. I'm still recovering after 3 years and am now training as an IT systems engineer and doing other courses to give me lots of new skills. A new life - perfect.

Thanks to Sandy for sending in her profile. Anyone else who would like to share their story can send it along with a photograph (if you're not shy!)

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