'I normally decorate the whole house, put up seven Christmas trees ... but I could not do any of that'

JO DAYTON ADORED THE FESTIVE SEASON BEFORE A STROKE LAST YEAR LEFT HER FEELING 'DEFLATED' AND 'UNINVOLVED'

- By DEBORAH HALL

A GRIMSBY stroke survivor has shared her story to help the Stroke Association spread awareness about the impacts of stroke on families at Christmas time.

Mum Jo Dayton, 37, was dubbed "Miss Christmas" by friends and colleagues, such was her love for the festive season.

However, a stroke in October 2024 turned her and her young family's lives upside down.

Christmas parties, family days out and the joy of decorating her house with her seven Christmas trees was replaced by left-sided weakness, extreme fatigue and the devastating psychological and financial impact of stroke.

Jo said she felt "deflated" and "uninvolved" at her favourite time of year.

The Stroke Association's campaign aims to highlight how stroke survivors felt during their first Christmas pre stroke and how they feel this year too.

New research from the charity reveals almost a third of stroke survivors (30 per cent) feel like they are a burden to their family and friends at Christmas time. The study found that almost half of stroke survivors (46 per cent) said they now feel negatively about Christmas time due to the impacts of their stroke.

Of those survivors who had experienced Christmas following their stroke, two thirds (66 per cent) feel frustrated about not being able to do things at Christmas that they could before they had their stroke.

Jo said that after getting up on that fateful day last October, her partner Ian was shocked to notice that her face was slumped on one side.

Jo said: "I just remember him panicking, saying 'oh my god, are you okay? I said I felt fine as I felt normal; no different at all.

"He rang an ambulance. He sat me on the side of the bed and I couldn't sit up so he laid me on the floor and that's when I realised I couldn't feel my leg.