'I suffered a sudden stroke just two weeks before my dream wedding'
A Preston woman was less than two weeks away from her dream wedding day when she suffered a stroke out of the blue.
Carla Maloco was enjoying quiet village life in Much Hoole with her partner Maureen when she suddenly took ill. After 29 years together, the pair were eagerly awaiting their upcoming nuptials before Carla started to feel nauseous.
As she went to tell Maureen she was under the weather, 66-year-old Carla collapsed in the living room.
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Carla said: "I was staggering like I was drunk. The carpet was rising off the floor like waves in the sea, with the dog bed floating on it like a boat.
"I bounced off the sofa and fell into the chair. I was retching into a bucket, my left hand was twitching, and my speech was going weird. It was horrible."
Maureen called 999 as she suspected her partner was suffering from a stroke, with an ambulance arriving within ten minutes. Carla was blue-lighted to Royal Preston Hospital with a blood pressure reading so high it was "off the scale."
A CT scan confirmed a blood clot on Carla's brain and she was subsequently put on medication to stabilise her blood pressure. However, it would be weeks later that she would learn her stroke was also caused by atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat).
Carla said: "All I cared about was Maureen and being at my wedding. I think I was on a high. I kept asking the staff when I could leave hospital, and they would tell me they hadn’t even done their assessments yet!"
After four days, Carla was discharged on September 25, 2023, and thankfully, the couple were able to tie the knot. Once life restarted though, the impact of the stroke began to sink in and Carla noticed her left-hand function was still not right and she felt drained after everyday activities.
Carla said: "I was certain I was going to be alright. But the day after the wedding, the fatigue was so bad it felt like a truck had hit me. Some days are really bad. Just walking the dog or going food shopping leaves me exhausted.
"I’m aware that I’m not the same person I was. My confidence has gone. I get anxious doing things that are not familiar to me. For example, when I drove my new car for the first time, I had a major panic attack and couldn’t even start it up. I felt sick, useless, and just wanted to run away."
Carla and Maureen are working to overcome the challenges presented by the stroke and want others to know that, with support and time, recovery is possible. Carla said: "The stroke has affected Maureen’s life, as well as our relationship.
"We have discussed and read a lot about the life-changing event that stroke is. What keeps us together is the love we have for each other. It’s been a bumpy ride and stroke recovery is not a quick fix but I want people to know they can turn things around for themselves."
Carla's story comes as new statistics emerge from the Stroke Association. Collected in December 2024, the figures show 36% of people who have experience of - and therefore a connection to - a stroke don’t know high blood pressure is the biggest risk factor for the condition.
Awareness levels of the link are even lower amongst people who don’t have such a connection to a stroke, with 43% not knowing that high blood pressure is the leading risk factor. The data also found that a surprisingly low number of people with a connection to stroke knew about the condition’s additional risk factors - 85% didn’t identify eating badly as a major risk factor and 57% didn’t select smoking as a factor most likely to contribute to a stroke.
Around 1.4 million people in the UK are stroke survivors and someone in the UK has a stroke every five minutes, with high blood pressure accounting for around half of those. Stroke survivors are frequently left with physical and mental disabilities including paralysis, problems with vision, difficulties swallowing and a struggle to communicate.
To mark Stroke Prevention Day today, the Stroke Association is encouraging people to have their blood pressure regularly checked. As well as high blood pressure, risk factors of stroke also include poor diet, lack of exercise and smoking. Those with high readings can cut their stroke risk by reducing salt intake, regularly exercising, reviewing alcohol consumption, and smokers should try to quit.