Stroke survivor Jo defies fatigue to raise funds for the Stroke Association

A Sussex woman who was off work for almost a year recovering from a stroke is tackling a 25km hike over the North Downs to help other stroke survivors.

Jo Harper, 56, from Ringmer near Lewes, is raising funds for the Stroke Association, a charity that supports people to rebuild their lives after stroke and which helped her as she battled chronic fatigue.

Jo and the three friends – Di Talbot, Vix Marchant and Sheila Harris who are joining her on the North Downs 50 on Saturday, 27 July, have so far raised £1,000 through their JustGiving page.

Walking had been a passion of Jo’s but she feared she would never be well enough to enjoy it again after her stroke at home in July 2021.

As well as fatigue, Jo’s stroke also left her with memory and eyesight problems, and speech difficulties,

“I was a healthy, energetic 53-year-old,” said Jo. “I was working full time, my youngest child just gone off to Uni, I was singing in choirs, doing lots of walking and regular Pilates.

“I was fairly fit and not overweight but taking meds to keep high blood pressure in check. My work was quite stressful at the time, however, as I was having to make redundancies in my team and I felt really bad about having to leave good staff without jobs.

“I think my stroke happened during the night. Certainly. I woke up on the Saturday morning and a few things were strange. I spilled the cat food when trying to feed the cats and then also spilled my muesli. I was trying to go to my Pilates but could not find my mat.

“In the end, frustrated, I went back to bed. My husband David had been sleeping, but then got up. He went downstairs and saw the ‘devastation’ I had left behind! Concerned, he came back upstairs, where I had fallen back to sleep.

“He looked at me and saw my face was floppy on one side. He made a call to 111 and they diagnosed a possible stroke. They said as my husband could drive me, it would probably be quicker to do that than to ring an ambulance.

“After about six hours in A&E at Princess Royal in Haywards Heath I ended up being transferred to the stroke ward at the Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, where I spent the next five days.

“I was off work for nearly a year and then had a further year of very gradual increase in hours as I regained my endurance levels. My main issues were cognitive and also chronic fatigue – I had two years where I still needed a sleep in the middle of the day to get by.”

Jo praised the support she received from Lewes and Eastbourne where she works as Head of Business Planning and Performance.

“Getting back to full time work has been my primary goal – and achieving that has been really important as I am the main ‘breadwinner’ and therefore not losing my income was critical.”

“I still struggle with word recall when tired and cannot ‘multitask’ in the way I could before. At work I record all my meetings so I can listen back to them afterwards and I have to be careful not to ’over do’ things.

“I had to give up playing the cornet, which I had only taken up during lock down – and was about to play in my first concert – but I have taken up the piano-accordion instead, which I am enjoying.

“I have had to stop singing in amateur opera, as I did before, because I cannot now remember the music, but I have joined a new local choir instead, which requires no memory, and less driving.

“Being able to drive again has been a really important step – and the first time I drove to my daughter’s house in Manchester was a huge achievement of which I was very proud.”

Encouragement

Jo said the Stroke Association’s stroke support helpline and online forum gave her the encouragement and support she needed when things felt really hard for her. Their advice and guidance helped her in many practical ways when she was in recovery.

Six months on from her stroke, the Stroke Association’s East Sussex Post-Stroke Review team contacted her to check on her progress and see what other support she may need.

“When I was in hospital, I found a leaflet in the day room from the Stroke Association. From that time forward it has been a go-to place for me throughout my recovery.

“When massively limited in what else I could do and unable drive, my daily time on the online forum was invaluable. The people I ‘met’ there were encouraging and supportive in ways I could not have imagined.

“The leaflets and advice guides on the website helped me with all aspects of my recovery – in very practical ways – like getting back to work, managing social situations, driving. It helped me to feel less alone and really encouraged.”

Nick O’Donohue, the Stroke Association’s Associate Director for the South East, said: “We’re delighted that we were able to make such a difference to Jo’s recovery and we’re hugely grateful to Jo and her friends for raising funds for our charity.

“Surviving a stroke is just the start of a long and gruelling recovery journey. We support stroke survivors and their families to find the strength and determination they need to find their way back to life.

“But our specialist support, research and campaigning are only possible with the courage and determination of the stroke community and the generosity of our supporters.”

For more information about stroke and the support services for survivors and carers visit www.stroke.org.ukor call the Stroke Support Helpline on 0303 3033 100.