From stroke at 44 to rebuilding my life
My experience of stroke, recovery, discovering a PFO, heart surgery, returning to exercise and eventually facing another challenge: atrial fibrillation and flutter.
I never expected to have a stroke
In January 2018, at 44 years old, I had a stroke.
Until then, I had never really been ill in my life. I was active, exercised regularly and considered myself fit and healthy.
Earlier on the day of my stroke I had taken part in a HIIT class. Nothing about me fitted the picture I had in my head of somebody who was about to have a stroke.
Later that evening, sitting on the sofa before going to bed, I suddenly lost my speech.
My wife called 999
I was on the sofa before bed when my speech disappeared.
My wife recognised that something was seriously wrong and called 999.
I was taken by blue-light ambulance to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield.
In the space of an evening I had gone from normal life to being investigated for a possible stroke.
What followed
- Emergency hospital admission
- CT scan
- MRI scan
- ECG and other tests
- Admission to a hospital ward
The stroke was confirmed
I spent two nights on the ward while investigations were carried out. The diagnosis was confirmed: I had suffered a stroke.
My speech returned, but the experience immediately changed the way I thought about my health.
Until that point, serious illness had always felt like something that happened to somebody else.
The first weeks after stroke
I was off work for around two weeks.
My driving licence was taken away temporarily, removing another part of the independence I had previously taken for granted.
The fatigue during that first week was particularly noticeable. I could feel genuinely exhausted in a way I hadn't experienced before.
Fortunately, in my case it began improving relatively quickly.
Then I got bored
I wasn't somebody who found sitting around easy.
Unable to drive and becoming increasingly frustrated with being at home, I eventually walked to work.
Looking back, that probably says quite a lot about my approach to recovery.
Could I exercise again?
Exercise had always been part of my life, but suddenly it didn't feel straightforward.
My doctor initially stopped me exercising until I'd undergone a cardiac exercise test.
I was put on a treadmill while wired up to monitoring equipment, with the intensity increasing while my response to exercise was assessed.
Eventually I was given the green light to start exercising again.
Learning to trust my body again
Initially, I was very nervous about exercise.
Before my stroke, increasing my heart rate was simply part of training. Afterwards, the same sensation could make me wonder whether something was wrong.
My wife started running with me.
Gradually, I became more confident and returned to a good level of exercise.
I looked at what else I could control
I already considered my diet good before the stroke, but afterwards I became even more conscious of what I ate and how I looked after myself.
Exercise, food and general health stopped being things I simply enjoyed. They also became things I thought about in the context of my future.
But why had I had a stroke?
One of the biggest questions remained unanswered.
I had been relatively young, active and apparently healthy. Doctors continued investigating to try to identify a possible cause.
Heart monitoring
I had a loop recorder implanted so that my heart rhythm could be monitored over a long period.
Heart imaging
I underwent echocardiography and further investigations of the structure and function of my heart.
Bubble & other tests
Further specialist testing was carried out as doctors looked for possible explanations for the stroke.
Then they found a PFO
Investigations identified a patent foramen ovale — usually shortened to PFO.
A PFO is an opening between the upper chambers of the heart that normally closes after birth but remains open in some people.
In my case, the PFO was identified as a potential explanation for why I had suffered a stroke.
It was not something I had known I had. I had lived an active life without being aware of it.
A possible answer
After a long period of wondering why a fit 44-year-old had suffered a stroke, there was finally something tangible for the doctors to consider.
Eventually, the decision was made to close the PFO.
Medication became part of life too
Following the stroke, medication became another part of my health routine.
This included antiplatelet treatment with clopidogrel and cholesterol- lowering treatment with rosuvastatin. Later, as my heart rhythm issues developed, anticoagulation with apixaban became part of the picture.
Being on blood-thinning medication also affected some of the decisions I made around sport and activities where injury or significant contact might be more likely.
My PFO was closed
During the Covid period I travelled to Leeds to have the PFO closure procedure.
It felt like another major stage in the journey.
A potential route associated with the stroke had been identified and was now being addressed.
I continued looking forward and, naturally for me, that meant getting back to exercise.
Then something changed when I ran
On my first run after the PFO procedure, I noticed something I hadn't expected.
I could no longer run up hills in the way I had before.
Something about my exercise tolerance felt different.
That eventually led to another series of questions and more investigations.
Heart rhythm problems entered the story
Atrial fibrillation and flutter were suspected and I underwent further investigation.
Interestingly, the loop recorder that had spent a long time looking for abnormal rhythms eventually recorded a significant high heart rate associated with running.
Its battery reached the end of its life not long afterwards and the recorder was eventually removed.
What had started as a stroke story was increasingly becoming a heart rhythm story too.
I adapted rather than stopped
As my understanding of the rhythm problem developed, I changed the way I exercised.
My tolerance for cardiovascular exercise was no longer what it had been, particularly at higher intensities.
Instead of giving up training, I adapted it.
Strength
Resistance and weight training became an increasingly important part of my routine.
Cardio
I continued cardiovascular exercise but became much more aware of intensity and how my body responded.
Consistency
I continued exercising regularly rather than allowing the diagnosis to remove activity from my life.
Where I am today
Today I exercise around six days a week.
My training is weighted more towards strength and resistance work because my tolerance for harder cardiovascular exercise is lower than it once was.
I have continued trying to improve my diet, maintain my fitness and learn how to work with my body rather than simply wishing it behaved exactly as it did before.
The heart rhythm chapter isn't finished.
In 2026 I am undergoing further assessment to determine the best next course of action for my atrial fibrillation/flutter, including discussion around options such as cardioversion and potentially ablation.
My journey so far
Stroke at 44
Sudden loss of speech at home followed by emergency admission to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital.
Early recovery
Fatigue, temporary loss of my driving licence, return to work and eventually being cleared to exercise again.
Searching for the cause
Heart monitoring, scans and specialist tests followed.
PFO identified
A patent foramen ovale was discovered and considered as a potential explanation for the stroke.
PFO closure
I underwent a procedure in Leeds to close the PFO.
Exercise tolerance changed
Running highlighted a new problem, particularly when trying to run uphill.
AF / flutter
Further investigation increasingly focused on atrial fibrillation and flutter.
Still moving forward
Training regularly while further assessment determines the next stage of managing my heart rhythm.
Why Stroke Health Fitness exists
My experience taught me that recovery isn't simply about surviving the initial stroke.
There are questions afterwards.
Can I exercise? How hard can I push myself? Why am I tired? Can I run again? Can I go back to the gym? Should I be frightened when my heart rate increases? What happens when another health problem complicates the picture?
Those questions can continue years after leaving hospital.
That's the idea behind SHF
Stroke Health Fitness exists to help stroke survivors explore exercise, health, recovery and the process of rebuilding an active life.
It combines lived experience with responsible, evidence-informed information — while recognising that every stroke and every recovery is different.
This isn't a story with a perfect ending
I think that's important.
I recovered extremely well from many of the immediate effects of my stroke, but that didn't mean every health issue disappeared.
There have been new diagnoses, unanswered questions and times when I've had to change the way I exercise.
Recovery, for me, hasn't been a straight line from illness back to the person I was before.
Explore Stroke Health Fitness
Exercise After Stroke
Explore walking, gym training, strength, cardio and becoming active after stroke.
EXPLORE EXERCISERecovery After Stroke
Explore fatigue, confidence, sleep, motivation and everyday independence.
EXPLORE RECOVERYNutrition After Stroke
Explore healthy eating, protein, hydration and nutrition after stroke.
EXPLORE NUTRITIONMy experience, not your medical advice
This is my personal account of stroke, investigation, treatment, exercise and recovery.
Every stroke survivor's circumstances are different. The decisions made about my exercise, medication, PFO and heart rhythm were based on my own medical circumstances and should not be treated as recommendations for somebody else.
Always follow individual advice from your own medical and rehabilitation professionals.
The journey is still going
Eight years after my stroke, I'm still exercising, still adapting and still learning. Stroke Health Fitness is my attempt to turn some of that experience into something useful for other people rebuilding their lives after stroke.
ABOUT STROKE HEALTH FITNESS