I lost 10st after a stroke so bad I couldn't speak

Health scare spurred mum to turn her lifestyle around

- EMMELINE SAUNDERS

AN OVERWEIGHT mum who was briefly unable to speak after a devastating stroke was spurred on by her health scare to shed 10st in a year.

Nicola Bower had struggled with her weight since childhood and was 41 when then-14-year-old son Ben came home from school to find her unconscious in bed.

She was rushed to hospital and doctors found an undiagnosed hole in her heart had triggered a stroke. Life-saving surgery fixed the hole - but she knew her weight had been a factor in her scare.

Nicola, 50, said: "I was in hospital a week, I couldn't speak and I had no sensation down my right-hand side.

"Although everything went OK with the operation, I knew being overweight had been a contributing factor to the stroke.

"I was horrified that my family had to go through such an ordeal.