Stroke of Luck

"I was paralysed at 19, and doctors didn’t know if I’d walk again"

Her world was shattered when she had a stroke - but this woman defied the odds and is inspiring others with disabilities

- Julia Jensen

It’s a glorious sunny day at the beach as Angel Dixon takes a careful step. She grips her husband Scott’s hand tightly and braces before jumping over a wave, with a huge smile on her face. Seven years earlier, it seemed impossible Angel would ever make it to the beach again, let alone walk across the sand and into the ocean to catch a wave, after an unexpected stroke at 19 left her paralysed.

She refused to let her sudden disability define her. Instead, Angel surprised everyone, and amazed her doctors, by learning to walk again. each year on the anniversary of her stroke – a day she calls her “stroke-iversary” – Angel celebrates her ever-increasing mobility by setting herself a goal and achieving it.

“I realised the date could become a negative thing, and I didn’t want that to happen,” says Angel, 26. “We have a pretty adventure-packed life anyway, but we always try to do something I haven’t tried yet.

“It’s fun to challenge myself by setting big physical goals, but it’s just as important for me to take the time to observe my own resilience and how far I’ve come so far.”

Struck Without Warning

On April 10, 2009, Angel woke up to pains in the top of her right leg. “Two hours later I had stabbing pains in my back, too, but I didn’t think much of it at first.”