Blyth stroke survivor Deb Coxon backs NHS awareness campaign

When Deb Coxon suffered her stroke in November 2018, she had just returned from Christmas shopping and was on video call to her daughter Faye, who was in Los Angeles.

During the call Faye had initially thought the app was frozen, but then noticed that one side of her mother’s face had fallen and she was suddenly talking nonsense.

Thanks to the first aid training required for her job as a flight attendant, Faye recognised her mother was having a stroke and got her dad’s attention so he could call an ambulance.

This quick action meant Deb was scanned and treated within an hour, and out of hospital after only two days.

Despite sometimes struggling with word finding, Deb is already at full health, back to work, looking after her grandchildren and making travel plans, which her doctors put down to Faye’s quick action.

A survey recently found 38% of North East people did not recognise a stroke as a medical emergency requiring attention, despite the importance of a speedy response.

Dr Deb Lowe, the NHS national clinical director for stroke, said: “It is very concerning that so many people might not realise that stroke is a medical emergency.

“That is why we are running this campaign to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of stroke and encourage anyone who notices them not to delay calling 999.”

The Act FAST campaign, run in partnership with the Stroke Association, aims to help more people to recognise the symptoms and act quickly.

The FAST acronym aims to help people remember a person’s face falling on one side (F), arm weakness (A), and slurred speech (S) are indicators of a stroke, and so it is time (T) to call 999.

Stroke Association chief executive Juliet Bouverie said: “Stroke is when a blockage or a bleed stops blood getting to your brain and your brain starts to die.

“We know that despite its debilitating and deadly consequences, strokes are still largely misunderstood. Stroke is a medical emergency and time lost is brain lost.

“This is why it is incredibly important that you act FAST. It is our responsibility to know the signs and be on the lookout for stroke.”