I suffered a stroke from heading a football: Freak injury of 32-year-old fitness fanatic who now walks with a cane and can no longer play sports 

• Tom Hooper was playing football last summer when the ball whacked his head
• The 32-year-old went to hospital twice in the days following the incident

A man has told how he has been left with life-changing from a stroke he suffered just days after heading a ball during a football match. 

Tom Hooper, from Brighton, was playing football last summer when the ball whacked his head. 

The 32-year-old went to hospital twice in the days following the incident after suffering from speech and memory problems but was sent home. 

It was only when the former school fitness coach woke up with weakness down one side of his body 10 days after the event that he was rushed to hospital and diagnosed with a stroke.

Mr Hooper, who now suffers has ongoing speech difficulties, weakness down his right side and uses a cane to walk, is unsure if he will be able to work again and can no longer go on nights out or play sport.

Tom Hooper, from Brighton, was playing football last summer when the ball whacked his head

The 32-year-old went to hospital twice in the days following the incident after suffering from speech and memory problems but was sent home

Mr Hooper was playing seven-a-side football in Preston Park, Brighton, last August.

He said: ‘The ball got passed into a centre midfielder who went to shoot towards the goal. I headed the ball to clear it but boom — the ball had been pumped up hard.

‘I couldn’t remember anyone’s name. All I could say was left and right, yes and no. I sat down. I tried to get words but nothing would come out.’

Mr Hooper was unable to use his phone but walked to his mother Carol’s home, which was nearby. 

He said: ‘I went down to the Royal Sussex County Hospital for the first time. They sent me home. They told me to read up on what I should do. Rest up.’

What is a stroke?

Strokes are a serious life-threatening medical condition that happens when blood supply to part of the brain is cut off.

It is a medical emergency and those who believe someone could be suffering a stroke should call 999. 

Symptoms include drooping on one side of the face, weakness or numbness in one arm and slurred or garbled speech. 

Nearly nine in 10 cases are caused by a blood clot, while the remainder are triggered by a weakened blood vessel that supplies the brain bursts. 

Strokes are usually treated with medicines that prevent and dissolve blood clots, reduce blood pressure and reduce cholesterol levels. 

Survivors are usually left with long-term problems caused by injury to their brain. 

In the UK, 100,000 people suffer a stroke every year, while the figure is 800,000 in the US. 

People should go to A&E for head injuries if the also have other symptoms, including vomiting, a change in behaviour or problems with memory, according to the NHS.

Those who are sent home with a minor head injury should look after it themselves at home by using an ice pack to bring down swelling, resting and taking painkillers, the health service’s advice states.

Mr Hooper said: ‘I went back again the day after. I didn’t feel well at all. I knew that something was wrong. I drove myself in. I don’t know how I did it. 

‘They sent me for a scan and nothing showed up. I said “I think you need to put me in care”. They sent me back home again.’

Mr Hooper was staying at his mother’s so he could be taken care of.

Around one week later, he woke up to numbness down the right side of his body.

When he got out of bed and tried to walk, he fell over.

His mother called 999 and Mr Hooper was rushed back to Royal Sussex County Hospital, where he was diagnosed with a stroke that had left him unable to speak.

Strokes are a serious life-threatening medical condition that happens when blood supply to part of the brain is cut off.

Nearly nine in 10 cases are caused by a blood clot, while the remainder are triggered when a weakened blood vessel that supplies blood to the brain bursts. 

In rare cases, head injuries can weaken blood vessels and cause clotting problems, both of which can lead to strokes, medics say.

Survivors are usually left with long-term problems caused by injury to their brain. 

In the UK, 100,000 people suffer a stroke every year, while the figure is 800,000 in the US. 

After six weeks of hospital treatment, Mr Hooper received two months of rehab at the Princess Royal at Haywards Heath.

Mr Hooper was initially unable to speak at all but his speech started to return following speech and language therapy (SLT) in the Princess Royal.

However, he still suffers from aphasia — when a person has difficulty with their language or speech.

But his family are now paying £380 a week for Mr Hooper to receive SLT and physio privately.

Mr Hooper, who previously worked as a strength and conditioning coach at Cardinal Newman School, said: ‘It’s affected my social life massively.

‘I don’t go out at night. I’m missing out on sport and the countryside. No car.

‘Work again in the future? I don’t know. People say you could sit and do customer service but I can’t because of my speech. Aphasia has limited my words.

‘The right side of my body is weak. I can grip something but I can’t let go. I can type and move the mouse with my left hand.

‘I can walk within my house I can walk upstairs but I have to have a rail on my left side. I use a stick when walking and have foot drop.’

Mr Hooper has been supported by the Stroke Association’s stroke recovery service, which helps stroke survivors.

He said: ‘I speak to Marie every week. It’s nice to talk to someone who understands. It means a lot. I speak and she listens.’

Nick O’Donohue, the charity’s associate director for the South East, said: ‘Our research highlights that people still think stroke is a condition that only affects older people. 

‘It’s crucial that we challenge this misconception and make people aware that stroke affects young adults too.

‘After a stroke, life changes in a flash. Two thirds of people who survive a stroke find themselves living with a disability.

‘As a result, young stroke survivors are having important milestones and their planned futures stolen from them, while they have to learn to adapt to their new life affected by stroke.’

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