Thursday 29th October is World Stroke Day.

During lockdown I became aware that David Lloyd UK and Stroke Association had a relationship. David Lloyd were doing some videos of exercises for stroke survivors and were also offering “connect and chat” volunteering opportunities for employees for stroke survivors. The idea of calling survivors who might need to chat but in an informal way which could be really beneficial for their emotional wellbeing and just nice as a way to socialise, connect and catch up, especially if they don’t have many friends and family.

When I saw the above I connected with the staff at David Lloyd head office and Stroke Association who had built the partnership and told them my story.

In August, I was approached by someone from Stroke Association and David Lloyd to see if I’d be interested in doing something for World Stroke Day in connection with DLGiving.

So I said yes, raising money and awareness and sharing my story as it makes it more personal when you know a person who’s been through the very thing that you’re raising money for.

World Stroke Day 2020 DL Harrogate challenge…

We agreed that I’d organise an event on the day which would be a “Spin for Stroke” idea.

On the day we’ll be running 2 challenges;

• 12 hour spinathon – where members and team members will take turns at 30 minutes each to keep the bikes going for the duration of that time.
• Complete a total of 946k (588 miles) (the distance from the furthest northern UK David Lloyd Club (Aberdeen) to the furthest southern UK David Lloyd club (Poole)). 8 of us will complete the distance which is 118.75k or just under 74 miles.

I will be taking part in the distance challenge, which as a non-cyclist is a little worrying but I feel safer in the knowledge that the bike doesn’t move 😆 nonetheless, it’s a big challenge and the biggest I’ve done to test my mental and physical health since my stroke.

Raising awareness of stroke and especially stroke in young people is something I’ve become passionate about. A lot of people still say “but you’re so young and fit”… yes, true, although I’d say moderately fit, but it just shows it can happen to anyone at any time.

Why Stroke Association?

Stroke Association do a lot of work;

We’re here to support people to rebuild their lives after stroke. We believe everyone deserves to live the best life they can after stroke. We provide specialist support, fund critical research and campaign to make sure people affected by stroke get the very best care and support to rebuild their lives.

Stroke Association

A couple of examples;

• S.A. had a huge part in the F.A.S.T campaign we see on TV. Using F.A.S.T is the quickest way to see whether someone is having a stroke and TIME is the most important factor.

• Stroke Association helped fund research for the thrombectomy procedure. A procedure which helps treat patients who have suffered an ischemic stroke (blood clot). Only 1 in 10 people are eligible for it, a relatively small percentage. This is a fairly new procedure, around 3-4 years old and the procedure I had. In 2017, NHS England agreed to fund the procedure. This procedure can significantly reduce the risk of long-term disability after stroke but isn’t as easily as accessible as the clot-busting drugs. A lot of people who qualify for it are still not receiving it because it is a highly-skilled operation. As of 2016 there were only 83 consultants who could do it across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It could be a catalyst for improvements in stroke treatment and care more widely.

The more research that’s done the better, for improving stroke treatment and therefore life after stroke. This is why it’s so important to me, after having a great experience of treatment and recovery, to try to help survivors in the future.

I’ll finish with a few facts from Stroke Association;

Having a stroke was a frightening experience and luckily for me, things have turned out well, but for a lot they don’t, even if it’s happened at a young age. One of the stats above says “stroke is the biggest cause of disability in the UK and almost two thirds of patients leave hospital with a disability”. Sometimes there are people who overcome these, but a lot will be life-long.

If anyone would like to donate, please visit;

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/cazbdavidlloyd

🦋 As always thank you for reading! 🦋