'I’m back out there on the dating scene - people can't believe what's happened'

A 34-year-old has shared her incredible recovery journey after suffering from a stroke when she was 33 years old. Melissa Clayton is now back at work and out dating again less than a year after the stroke.

It all started in January this year when Melissa returned home from her job as a PR account director in London and decided to go to bed early as she was feeling feverish and faint. She suffered from a stroke in bed, which she would later learn had been caused by a clot in her lung which had travelled to her brain.

After her flatmate found her and called an ambulance, Melissa was rushed to the Royal London Hospital. There, she began experiencing hallucinations as well as being unable to swallow, speak, or move her right arm and leg.

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Over the next three months Melissa was in hospital being fed through a tube. During her stay she also underwent surgery to remove a bone at the top of her spine in order to relieve pressure on her brain.

She also had a shunt implanted into her brain, a thin hollow tube. It would take another three months of rehabilitation for Melissa's speech to gradually improve.

By August Melissa was able to walk unassisted. Nonetheless, she still has some problems with her balance.

Now, less than a year after her stroke, Melissa is preparing to return to work in January 2025. And she has already been putting herself out there in the dating world as well.

The 34-year-old said that she is open about her stroke on her dating profiles, including on Bumble, Hinge, and Breeze. She told PA Real Life: “Being so young, I literally have the rest of my life ahead of me – there are things I want to do, eat, drink, so I wasn’t going to let the stroke define me or hold me back.

“I wanted to be me again. I’m very transparent with dating matches, and I guess if they like me now, then they might like me even more as I get better! I don’t feel like I can’t date, I’m determined to get back out there.”

Melissa revealed that her only memory from the night she suffered the stroke was a paramedic helping her to sit up. Upon arriving in hospital she went through hallucinations.

“I thought one of my colleagues was a nurse, and I even WhatsApped her saying I saw her in the hospital and she didn’t reply,” she said. “It was very very scary. I was in there for a few months, but it felt like a year.”

“At one point, I thought that I’d never speak again, I’ll never swallow again, I won’t walk. I think that was particularly worrying for my parents because at one point they thought I’d have to live with them. I had no idea what my future was going to be like, it was terrifying.”

She added: “I remember the speech and language therapist doing exercises with me, and one of them was to sing ‘Happy Birthday’, and I couldn’t. I couldn’t pronounce it at all, and I just wanted to burst into tears.”

Singing was one of Melissa's favourite hobbies, and she had even been in a choir. She said: “I can’t sing at all anymore, and it was a huge passion for me – to lose that was really hard.”

Her hospital stay was complicated after she contracted Covid as well as two chest infections. The muscle in her face became so tight that she had to be fed through a tube for three months.

After staying in hospital for three months Melissa was transferred over to a neurological rehabilitation unit at Homerton University Hospital. She would stay there for another three months, receiving daily physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and speech and language therapy.

When she was discharged Melissa moved into her flat by herself, with her parents coming up regularly to help her with the day to day and bills. Melissa also continued with speech and language therapy, as well as a training plan at the gym.

Her hard work paid off, and by August she was able to walk without needing any assistance. In October she got a therapy dog called Maya, a pomeranian mix, who can also help with her recovery.

She said: “She’s helped me create a bit of a routine, but equally, she gets me out walking and meeting other dog owners too. I couldn’t wish for a better temperament for a dog. I’m very lucky.”

Melissa hopes that starting dating again will be a way to add some 'normality' back into her life. She said: “I’ve kind of pre-warned people before going on a date and they are very understanding.

“I mean, there was one where it was absolutely obvious that they were not interested at all. I think they acted like it was okay that I had a stroke before, but when they met me, I could just tell they were not interested.

“That was hard but everyone else has been interested in the stroke and can’t believe what’s happened, and are really understanding. I think they’re quite taken aback with my positivity and what I’ve been through, really, and how much I’ve achieved.”

Describing her life since her stroke, she said: “The experience of having a stroke has been life-changing for good reasons. I’d love to get my speech back to how it was, and I’d love to walk like I did before, but it could be so much worse. I just appreciate things so much more now.”