All Survivor Stories

In April 2016 double vision and throbbing headaches forced me to visit an eye specialist. As a technical translator I was permanently working with two computer screens simultaneously. Perhaps I just needed new glasses. Unfortunately, I didn’t get away with it that easily.

My name is Walter. In November 2018 and at just age 45, I was diagnosed with a vertebral artery dissection and a stroke. Two weeks prior to this, I experienced painful headaches that over-the-counter painkillers couldn't relieve.

James shouldn't even be alive, let alone be able to walk and talk, after an accident in a Paris hotel left his brain so crushed that doctors were forced to remove part of his skull and store it in his abdomen to keep the bone marrow healthy.

My name is Breanna, and I am pursuing my MSc in Cognitive Neuroscience and Human Neuroimaging at the University of Sheffield. In 2021, I experienced an ischemic pontine stroke, which completely transformed my life. 

In September 2019, I was a 33-year-old teacher in Canada. I noticed that I was having a difficult time understanding the students when the class was noisy. I thought my ears were clogged. I therefore went to an audiologist. 

My name’s Johnny, and I suffered a life-threatening brainstem bleed/pontine hemorrhage back in the summer of 2021. After, I was put in an induced coma for two weeks with a not-so-great prognosis of survival. My family and children were told to expect the worst: that I may not wake and if I was to come around, I would be in a vegetative state for the rest of my life with just eye movement and slight face or oral movement!

My name is Joan. I’m 49 years old from Sheffield, England. In October 2017, I suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage. I was fit, healthy and had no symptoms. I simply left my workplace as normal at 5pm on a Friday afternoon, climbed into my car and all I remember is a huge clap of thunder in my head. Then, I found myself looking at the car key in my hand and laughing, thinking, “I don’t know what to do with this!”  

My name is Terry and in December of 2020 I had a stroke due to complications with COVID-19. It was diagnosed as an acute ischemic right middle cerebral artery stroke, and was described to me as “you had 5 mini-strokes at one time.” 

My name is Sarah Lacertosa. I am currently Mrs. Monmouth County International 2025. I have an experience to share with you in the hope that it will bring awareness around the often overlooked Vertebral Artery Dissection (VAD), a common cause of strokes in patients under the age of 45.