Mayor of Newport blames social media for stroke
The Mayor of Newport is recovering well after a "mini stroke", which he has blamed on the pressures of social media.
Councillor Peter Scott thanked people for the hundreds of messages of support he has received in the week since his transient ischaemic attack, which is caused by a disruption in the blood supply to part of the brain.
He said he will still run in the election in May, but will be focussing on his own campaign and ignoring that of others.
"I'm not out of the woods," he said. "I'm okay, but I'm trying to adjust to life so I don't get the pressure.
"I will still carry on as a candidate. Newport means more to me than many can imagine, but I'm not taking any notice of what other people are doing. Once the election is over and if I am lucky enough to get elected, life will go on as normal. The pressure won't be there.
"Where the mini stroke happened, I have a sorenes that won't go away, but that will wear off. I'm just making sure I don't put myself in positions where I am going to feel stress."
Councillor Scott said he had received hundreds of messages of support from people over the last week.
"Thank you to all the people who have been in contact with their support and good wishes," he said,
"The support has come from all sorts of people and has been emotional in some ways. It's great to know people give a damn, and that have really shown me that literally in their hundreds."
He complained to Telford & Wrekin Council about the issues he was having on social media.
"I have complained bitterly to the council," he said. "The bile has got to stop, and for the moment it has.
"That said, I won't let remarks go about me without having something to say about it."
Councillor Scott was taken to Princess Royal Hospital by ambulance last Tuesday (12). He said he had been well looked after by the doctors and nurses there.
"Can't praise our NHS enough," he said. "The staff were brilliant."
Symptoms of a mini-stroke can be very similar to that of a stroke.
The face can drop on one side, they may not be able to lift both arms or they can feel numbness is one arm.
Speech can be slurred or garbled and may not be able to talk at all.
Anybody suffering with any of the symptoms should call 999 immediately.
