A Scots dog handler has told how she suffered a devastating stroke moments after writing off her symptoms as a case of flu.
Laura Collingwood was only 34, when she realised her ‘flu symptoms’ were a lot more serious and when she started to feel her arms and legs went numb.
Laura from Paisley was able to call 999 and by the time paramedics arrived she found on the stairs unable to move having suffered a stroke.
She was rushed to the Royal Alexandra Hospital where she received a scan that revealed the stroke was caused by an artery dissection in her neck. As Glasgow Live reports she underwent She underwent thrombolysis, a procedure that dissolves blood clots, and then spent a week in hospital.
Now, six months after her ordeal, Laura and a group of her friends tackled Scotland’s highest peak, Ben Nevis, raising more than £1,700 for Chest, Heart & Stroke Scotland.
She said: “I’m very stubborn. I was determined to do something to prove a point, even if that point was only to myself.
“I’ve climbed Ben Nevis before but in summer. It seemed like the kind of tough challenge I should. I’m still recovering and I’m not where I want to be, but that wasn’t going to stop me.
“I know recovery will be ongoing for a long time, but I am still here, and I can still achieve things.
“Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland seemed like the ideal charity for me to support when I asked some friends to help me climb Ben Nevis. I initially thought I’d set a target of £500 but then went for £1,000, and we’ve gone way past that.
“I can’t thank everyone who has supported me enough. It’s a tough time of year to do fundraising, but I have been blown away by how generous everyone is.”
Laura set herself the target of raising £1,000 for the charity and had only a couple of weeks to prepare for the hike in December.
She aims to raise awareness about strokes for young people and the effects they can have. She is now on a phased return to work at the MoD and hopes to be back to normal duties sooner rather than later.
Speaking about the climb, Laura added: “It was brutal! I’ve climbed in summer, and it took about six and a half hours. This took 12 hours. We went up in the dark and came back in the dark.
“We were very well prepared. We had all the right equipment and emergency shelters just in case.
“The toughest part of the climb and descent was battling the fatigue that stroke has left me with. My muscles ached, and my right side is still numb really.
“I’ve always had a very active lifestyle. I don’t do sitting around the house. And I look the same after the stroke, so it’s hard for people to understand that I can’t do what I used to do.
“That’s one of my main motivations for doing the fundraising – raise money but also raise awareness of stroke and what it does to someone, especially someone young like me.”
Louise MacLeod, the community, events and corporate fundraiser at Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland said: “We are immensely thankful for Laura’s incredible gesture taking on this challenge.
“The money raised from this fundraiser goes towards helping us to support the one in five people across the country who are living with chest, heart and stroke conditions and long covid to live their lives to the full.”
You can donate to Laura’s fundraiser online here.
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