I've had a number of occipital strokes but was unsuccessful at getting help with these before, during or after. Instead of getting the help that I needed, doctors avoided the issues I complained about, and kept insisting that the numbness in my arms and legs, especially on my right hand side, were caused by a trapped nerve in my neck.
A&e departments at various hospitals refused me help, even at times when my eyes had been rolling around in my head.
I had first sought help in early 2014, then reported having woken to find the right side of my face had dropped, in January 2015, but again was refused help.
Approximately March of 2017, I suffered numerous attacks over a period of about two months, but again a&e refused to help me, my GP told me to go to an optician, the optician told me to go to a&e, and a&e told me to go back to my GP.
I had several refusals to help at other hospitals after that, even though they pointed out to me that it looks as if I've had a stroke.
It was only in February of this year that I finaly got help, after wrtiting long letters to my GP and asking for them to be copied to my medical record.
At this point, the hospital that had refused to help me called me in for a brain scan. At the same time I was referred to Moorefields eye hospital who also requested a brain scan, then tried to discourage me from going back to the hospital that did the previous scan.
They were not aware that I had already been back, to a&e, for an unrelated incident, and that the a&e doctor showed me my results, that I'd had a number of strokes in the left occipital lobe. He also stated that the records had been altered to make it appear that I had been treated there for stroke, which I hadn't.
After this, Moorefields refered me to the first hospital that had refused to help me, back in early 2014. They also did a scan, and asked me loads of questions, it then became apparent that they were only asking me to get their records straight.
Since then I've had no further help.
I appear quite to normal to the outside world, I seem to know what I'm talking about, but the reality is that no one has any idea what's going on inside me.
I do get out and about, but it could take me all day to be able to venture outside the door.
Since the series of strokes in early 2017, my ability to accomplish anything is practically zero, I live in a total mess with bed bugs crawling over me all night. My flat is like a rubbish tip. I've never lived like this before.
Getting help is difficult, especially as doctors continue to palm me off with flippant remarks...i.e. 'doc, I feel so tired all the time, I can't get anything done with my life' response: 'You've suffered from stroke, it's normal'.
I've not been able to work in over 4 years, I've relied on ESA, but was refused PIP because doctors didn't support my claim, putting everything down to a trapped nerve in the neck.
I have recently applied again, this time with full details of everything and how I was constantly denied help. I am waiting for the results, having had the assessment a couple of weeks ago.
But in the meantime, I no longer know how to cope. I lost that ability a long while back, but my living conditions have got so bad that I don't even know how or who to ask for help. Besides, I couldn't bear to let anyone into my home to see the mess I live in.
Just hoping that someone might be able to say something to me that might help.