Wolverhampton stroke survivor says there's 'not enough support' for patients
Sebastian Groes suffered a stroke when he was 39
A stroke survivor from Wolverhampton says there is not enough support for people recovering from the condition.
It comes as The Stroke Association's revealed just over a third of patients in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are getting the recommended levels of support.
"You feel locked in"
Sebastian Groes was on holiday in France when he woke up and 'couldn't really speak'. He said he did not realise he was having a stroke as he was only 39.
He went to hospital the next day and was diagnosed with a stroke.
"It was traumatic not being able to speak. You lose the ability to tell your story and what is going on inside your body and your brain.
"You feel locked in," he said.
"It was hard to be able to express myself"
Sebastian told us it was over a year before he had access to speech and language therapy.
"My GP and my doctors did not think it was necessary to have speech and language therapy because there were much more severe cases around me.
"It was frustrating, it was hard to be able to express myself. It was not helpful to have to wait 18 months for that help," he said
Why is speech and language therapy important after a stroke?
The Stroke Association said that around a third of stroke survivors will suffer aphasia - a language and communication disability, which leaves people struggling to speak, read, write or understand language.
And speech and language therapy is most effective the sooner it is delivered after a stroke, it said.
But according to its easement of the latest data from the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP), the amount of time spent delivering speech and language therapy in hospital has declined by 10% in the last five years.
"Postcode lottery"
Now Sebastian is trialling his own support group called 'Write in the Head'.
He told us it will put an end to the postcode lottery on support: "We want to address this inequality by offering a freely available website.
"People can go online and do these exercises. They can be done with your therapist, friends, family, even on your own.
"On the other hand, our support also helps you to work through this trauma that you experience when you have a stroke to," he said.
What are the government's plans for improving stroke aftercare?
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "We are committed to improving stroke prevention, treatment, and recovery through our 10 Year Health Plan, including making sure we have the right staff in the right place to deliver the care patients need when they need it."
A spokesperson for the Department of Health Northern Ireland added: "The Stroke Action Plan recognises that there are pressures within the stroke service and the stroke workforce, whilst recognising the huge efforts made by all staff to provide high quality care.
"The department is currently progressing a stroke workforce review which is tasked with planning for a stroke workforce of the right size, with the right skills, deployed in the right way to deliver safe, effective and quality stroke services, based on data, evidence and analysis of current and future population health needs."