Sally's shock as she suffers stroke at 41

Today Sally spoke of her experience in the hope that others will learn from the warning signs she experienced.

The mother-of-two is supporting the Stroke Association's awareness month, colouring her hair at Middletons Hair Ltd near Church Stretton as part of the charity's Make May Purple campaign.

It was a typical Monday morning at the Jones household in Craven Arms when Sally fell ill. She was busy getting her two children ready for school, while husband Ed had made his customary early start on the family farm.

For anybody suffering from a stroke, the first few minutes are vital to their chances of recovery.

"The sooner somebody who is having a stroke gets urgent medical attention, the better their chances of a good recovery," says the Stroke Association..

The Stroke Association is calling for people across Shropshire to support the Fast Forward campaign by learning the signs of a stroke and sharing the message to help save more lives.

It urges people to use four simple steps to decide whether somebody is need or emergency help:

Face – has their face fallen to one side? Can they smile?

Arms – can they raise both arms, and keep them there?

Speech – is their speech slurred?

Time – if the patient demonstrates any one of these signs, it is time to dial 999.

Elaine Roberts, Director of Life After Stroke Services for the Stroke Association in the region, said: "When it comes to stroke, time lost is brain lost. A stroke is caused by a blockage or a bleed in the brain, which cuts off the brain's flow of oxygen and causes brain cells to die.

"So recognising the symptoms of stroke and calling 999 for an ambulance as quickly as possible is absolutely vital. Acting FAST can help reduce the devastating impact a stroke can have.

Then suddenly, Sally felt as if she was having a panic attack, with an odd sensation going through her body. It was followed by a blinding headache, which stopped her in her tracks, and she asked a neighbour to take the youngsters to school.

A couple of hours later, Ed came in from the field, and immediately noticed that her face had dropped on the one side.

In October last year, Sally, at the age of just 41, became one of the growing number of people in their 40s and 50s who suffer a stroke. While strokes are traditionally associated with the older generation, new figures reveal that 675 people in the West Midlands aged 40 to 54 were admitted to hospital with the illness last year – a 29 per cent increase compared to 2007.

The increase has been particularly acute among women, with admissions in the West Midlands rising by 42 per cent, from 391 in 2007 to 557 in 2014.

Earlier this month, the Shropshire Star revealed the story of Sarah Whitehead, a 36-year-old mother from Telford, whose life was saved when her six-year-old daughter Ava raised the alarm. Sarah, who owns her own financial business, says her experience demonstrates that people can suffer a stroke at any age.

"I've never had poor health before and I'm a fit and healthy person. I just felt really ill," she said. "I went to walk back into the house and I collapsed."

So why are so many comparatively young women being admitted to hospital with a condition more commonly associated with the elderly?

In part, this is thought to be down to changes in hospital admission procedures. And if that means people are being diagnosed more quickly and getting the appropriate treatment, that has to be good news.

However, while this was not the case for Sarah or Sally, experts fear that sedentary occupations and unhealthy lifestyles are also playing a growing role.

Jon Barrick, Stroke Association chief executive, says: "These figures show that stroke can no longer be seen as a disease of older people. There is an alarming increase in the numbers of people having a stroke in working age. This comes at a huge cost, not only to the individual, but also their families and to health and social care services."

After being taken ill in the morning Sally finally went to her doctor in the evening, and was immediately sent to Telford's Princess Royal Hospital. A CT scan proved inconclusive, but doctors concluded from her face that she must have suffered a stroke. After two days she was discharged from hospital, and received physiotherapy and other support while at home, but she has little memory of that time.

"For most of October and November I don't remember anything," says Sally, whose children are aged eight and 13.

Unlike many stroke sufferers, her mobility has not been affected.

"I still don't have much feeling in my one arm, and to begin with I wasn't able to speak very well, but I know I've been lucky," she says.

Sally, who worked part-time as an orthoptist at Hereford Hospital before her stroke, was fortunate to have an understanding employer. She now works four hours a week, having returned to work in March. However, the illness placed a considerable strain on the family finances.

She says: "We rent our farm, and our house comes with our jobs, so we have got to be fit and doing well to stay here.

"Our landlord has been very good, but that was another worry."

A survey carried out to coincide with National Stroke Month, revealed that only one in 20 employers recognised cognitive difficulties as a symptom of stroke. More tellingly, 42 per cent said they would be concerned about a worker's ability to carry out their duties after a stroke. Equally worrying, 50 per cent of employers had not heard of the Government's Access to Work Scheme, which provides practical help for the disabled in the workplace.

Mr Barrick says: "Having a stroke is bad enough, but being written off by your employer through a lack of understanding can be catastrophic. Businesses play a crucial role in helping stroke survivors get back into the workplace and on the road to recovery. That's why we're calling on employers to be aware of the physical and emotional impact of stroke."

He adds that people who are unable to return to work after a stroke can struggle to cope with a fall in income, increased household bills and a benefits system that does not recognise the full impact of stroke. The charity calculates that strokes cost the UK economy around £9 billion a year, with the loss of income due to death and disability from the condition costing more than £1.3 billion nationally.

Brendan Roach, of the Business Disability Forum, says business need to do more to understand the needs of stroke sufferers. He says: "Our experiences show that businesses with an effective and well-publicised process for making disability-related workplace adjustments are best placed to meet the challenge of rising rates of stroke."

Mr Barrick says there is an urgent need to educate people about the dangers of putting oneself at risk from a stroke.

"The simple truth is that we must do more to raise people's awareness of risk factors, to help prevent them from having a stroke," he says. "With many more stroke patients now receiving emergency medical treatment, we also need the right health and social care services available.

"People must have the support they need to make the best possible recovery and avoid having to cope for decades with the disabilities that stroke can bring."