Omagh nurse left speechless after stroke backs campaign

A nurse from Omagh who had a stroke in her sleep and woke up unable to speak, has called for greater public awareness of this common but lesser-known side effect.

Noreen Oliver is backing a Stroke Association campaign to highlight the communication difficulty known as aphasia, and the impact it can have for stroke survivors.

It comes as new research by the charity revealed more than one in two people have never heard of aphasia, despite it affecting over 350,000 people in the UK.

Noreen (70) had her stroke in September 2021 after an out-of-hours shift as a nursing advisor and was left unable to talk.

Nearly two years on, and with a lot of hard work, support and perseverance, she can communicate but still has problems finding words.

“I went to bed and felt fine after a busy day,” said Noreen. “The next morning, my husband happened to come up into the bedroom and found me on the bed unable to speak. I usually have breakfast with him if I am not in work and he wondered why I was still upstairs.

“The bed had been done and curtains opened so I must have woken earlier and done those usual morning chores but don’t remember it. I just remember lying there and not being able to say a word. ”

Noreen’s family called an ambulance which arrived 30 minutes later and took her to South West Acute Hospital where she had the relevant scans and was seen quickly and efficiently.

“My family guessed that I was having a stroke because of the ‘S’ being speech in FAST (Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time) but I had no other symptoms. The speech was the only thing affected. I had no weakness or face droop but could not say a word. Not even a sound.”

“When I was in the ambulance all I could think was thrombolysis. As a nurse, I knew there was a window of time but it was so frustrating as I couldn’t get across that thrombolysis was what I needed. I was unable to write at the time as well. I had good brain function and knew exactly what was going on which made it even more difficult.”

Noreen did not have thrombolysis because the consultant didn’t know the exact time she had the stroke. The nurse was in hospital for a week and has received speech and language therapy.

“I didn’t say a word for five days and found it so hard but then the speech came gradually back. On the stroke unit, a nurse said she had never seen someone who had a stroke just have aphasia and no other symptoms before and she had worked in the stroke unit for 13 years.”

Noreen worked three jobs including a Covid vaccinator, medical assessor for insurance companies and an out-of-hours nurse advisor. She enjoyed being extremely busy so although grateful that she had no other long lasting effects physically from her stroke, her aphasia has changed her life.

“I am grateful that I don’t have paralysis as I don’t know how I would have coped. But I was so busy and that is what I miss. I enjoyed it thoroughly and then you suddenly wake up and it’s taken away from you. I should have been retired, I thought I would take it easy but I just loved working and being busy so much as it gave me purpose.

“I am thankful to be as well as I am but you may not be able to see my disability; my life changed overnight and the aphasia changes who you are and what you can do straight away.”

Noreen has started working a couple of hours in her local GP surgery to regain her independence and feel a sense of purpose again.

“I didn’t want my stroke to stop me from working and doing what I want too. I work really hard with my speech and language therapist (SLT) and read as much as I can to improve.

“I am really grateful for the SLT’s support as sometimes during my sessions we laughed and cried as I was practicing my talking. I also go to a communications group with other stroke survivors which all helps with my recovery and to rebuild my life.

“Now I have more confidence in meeting people on a one-to-one basis, and I am sure getting back to work helped. I still have problems finding words but I love my work as a nurse and I thought my career of more than 50 years had ended when I had my stroke.”

To help raise awareness of aphasia, the Stroke Association has launched ‘When the Words Away Went’, a documentary about three stroke survivors living with aphasia embarking on their journey to find their voice and rebuild their lives.

The documentary aims to equip people with the knowledge, understanding and confidence to support those living with aphasia. Currently, most people say they lack confidence in recognising its symptoms and less than half would feel confident in communicating with someone with the disorder.

Whilst aphasia does not affect intelligence, a fifth of adults admit that, if they met someone who had problems communicating, they would assume that person had a learning difficulty.

Alasdair O’Hara, the Stroke Association’s associate director for Northern Ireland, said, “Aphasia is very common, affecting over a third of stroke survivors, so it’s disheartening to see such low awareness and knowledge of aphasia amongst the general public.

“Most of us can’t imagine living with aphasia, but it makes everyday tasks like getting on the bus or talking to a friend daunting, made worse by misconceptions that people with aphasia lack intelligence. This can often lead to anxiety and depression, feeling excluded from society and difficulties with personal relationships.

“The Stroke Association is here for everyone affected by aphasia, providing support and an important reminder that there is hope. Aphasia can and does improve, and with the right help people with aphasia can live normal lives.”

Watch the film online at stroke.org.uk/film or stream on Channel 4 from 26 May.

To find out more about aphasia and how you can support those affected, visit www.stroke.org.uk/aphasia