Young mum suffers stroke at Christmas dinner table but only realises days later
A young mum suffered a stroke while sitting at the table for Christmas dinner, but only realised how serious it was days later.
Casey Singleton's vision blurred and she thought was about to fall off her seat at her family home.
But she only realised it was a stroke some days later when when she visited a physiotherapist and was told to see a doctor immediately.
Casey thought her symptoms were the after-effects of a previous stroke she'd suffered days before her 22nd birthday.
On November 20 she felt tired and tried to go to bed, following her partner who had brought their children upstairs.
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LancsLive reports the 22-year-old struggled to walk and began crawling up the stairs and falling back every time she did.
The couple's two young children, Tommy, one and George, three (Jack Berry)Eventually lying on the floor downstairs, her partner Jack believed she was sound asleep on the sofa.
The morning after, Jack noticed Casey was "staring into space" and had no movement whatsoever.
He called 999 and was on hold to the ambulance service for 15 minutes, before one quickly came and rushed her to hospital.
Casey said: "I thought everything had only happened over the timeframe of an hour, but in reality it was from 11pm to 9am the next day,
"In the morning, I thought I was talking normally and telling Jack to go to work."
Once the ambulance arrived and took the couple to hospital, Jack recalls his partner being "hooked up" to machines and not knowing what was going on.
Casey does not remember any of the events for the next four days, while recovering from what wad described as a "major stroke."
From their home in Blackpool, Casey was taken to nearby Blackpool Victoria Hospital, before then being rushed to Royal Preston Hospital.
They were told stroke victims need to be operated on within four hours of the condition occurring, or it could be fatal for the patient.
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The surgeons, therefore refused to operate on Casey, with significant time having already passed.
Jack,25, said: "Casey was in Preston hospital for the next three days, they were checking for the pressure on her brain - seeing if she got any worse basically.
"The only thing I remember was the ambulance back to Blackpool Vic and I thought everything was OK," Casey added. "I felt happy, but that was the only feeling I could feel.
"I only had one feeling, my others were ruined." Once the couple had returned home, their attention was put on Casey's recuperation, but also on looking after their two young children, Tommy, one and George, three.
Casey continued: "My two boys need their mum, I'm fighting for them. I can't hold Tommy anymore though.
"I've got no feeling in my right arm and I get scared of holding him. His birthday was on December 10 too, whilst I was going through this."
Not only has she had to focus on recovering from her first stroke in November, but was also hit with a second one on Christmas Day - but had no idea it was happening.
Three days before, on December 22, her vision started to blur, but as they had not been told about symptoms to look out for, the couple initially put it down to the aftermath of the first stroke.
She said: "I was sat on the table on Christmas Day and I felt like I was falling off my chair.
"I was losing my balance and going weak and blurry.
"I see my physio every week and I sat with them a few days later and they just went 'woah woah, you need to go to the hospital', I didn't know."
On December 28, an MRI scan confirmed she had experienced a second stroke three days earlier.
Now, with the left side of her brain being affected, Casey has no feeling in the right side of her body and struggles to stand.
She has to be in a wheelchair for long distances, only permitted to leave her bed for the toilet.
Casey continued: "I put 100% of my weight onto my left leg and it needs to be 50/50. I just struggle, if I stand up, I fall back down."
The Doctors have no idea why Casey had a stroke at such a young age, with the mum stating she was perfectly healthy before it happened.
She also says she now has to take four medications per day, before she was on none.
Another big issue the couple face is mobility and she is unable to drive and Jack having not yet started his driving lessons. The home with no real way of getting around.
Jack has also had to quit his job working in a pharmacy in Blackpool, in order to become a carer to Casey.
Casey said: "I need to go to my appointments and there's no one to drive. I get help from family, but we have to do it around them and Jack's always here with me.
"I need a lot of help, so it will really help if Jack gets driving."
The mum is seen by physiotherapists, speech therapists and other healthcare professionals all the time, but says it's their presence she doesn't like, claiming it's proof she needs them to get better.
Casey added: "I don't like being poorly, I'm in these four walls all the time, I don't go outside.
"I can't go to the park because we've got the kids.
"The kids know, they've been told but Tommy goes straight to Jack and George goes to my dad. I feel like I've lost my bond with them.
"I'm fighting for my kids and I'm praying that I can walk somehow."
Visit here to donate to Casey and Jack's GoFundMe page.
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