An Angus man has described the moment he woke in the middle of the night to find himself suffering a massive stroke.
Ian Noble, 57, took what is thought to have been a wake-up stroke last August, while on his own at his home in Forfar.
Medics were initially unsure if he would survive and partner Angie Paton was forced to play an agonising waiting game.
But Ian “miraculously” pulled through – and is now targeting a return to riding his motorbike his year.
Angie, 48, said: “It’s a miracle Ian survived. He was in a very bad way but Ian fought through with the help of the fantastic teams who worked so hard to help him.”
Ian, a civilian worker for Police Scotland at Bell Street, Dundee, says he suffered a wake-up stroke – where a patient wakes with symptoms despite showing no signs before falling asleep.
He said: “I woke up and knew something was wrong. I tried to contact Angie but her phone was on silent.
I’m not sure why but it didn’t occur to me to call 999 for help
Ian Noble
“I also considered going for help to Forfar police station close to my house but I didn’t have any clothes on so I thought I’d better not.
“I’m not sure why but it didn’t occur to me to call 999 for help. Instead I just decided to wait for Angie.”
The pair were not living together at the time, and Angie awoke to 15 missed calls from her partner.
‘It turned both our lives upside down’
Angie – who is also a civilian police worker in Douglas, Dundee, said: “I knew right away that something was seriously wrong.
“What I discovered later that day turned both our lives upside down.”
Ian spent the next four-and-a-half months in hospital before finally being allowed home in November.
His mobility has not been affected but he is able to talk very little, something he is working on improving with the help of therapists.
He said: “My speech is returning and I’m getting better all the time.
“I hope to get back to work in the next four to six weeks but my biggest ambition is to get back on my motorbike within the next three months.
“Right now that’s what I’m aiming for.”
The blockage that caused the stroke was so big that doctors told us it was inoperable
Angie Paton
Angie said: “The first two weeks in ward 33 at Ninewells were awful.
“We didn’t know what was going to happen. The blockage that caused the stroke was so big that doctors told us it was inoperable.
“The staff at Ninewells looked after him, and me, for that time and then he was well enough to be transferred to the brain injury rehabilitation unit at Royal Victoria Hospital.
“He spent four months there with the amazing staff who were basically responsible for keeping Ian alive.
“Once there, Ian’s recovery sped up until finally he was well enough to come home.”
Angie took five months off her work to stay at home with Ian and the couple moved in together in Careston, near Brechin.
She said: “I couldn’t imagine not being there through the night now, in case anything else was to happen.”
Charity skipping challenge
Angie has now decided she wants to repay everyone who helped Ian, by taking part in the Stroke Association’s national fundraising challenge #SkipForStroke2022.
She is skipping 15 minutes every day for the entire month of February.
She has already raised hundreds of pounds, with two weeks still to go.
Angie has also written a poem for all the staff who worked tirelessly to support the couple.
She said: “I knew that chocolates and biscuits just weren’t enough for what they have done for us.
“I put pen to paper to express my feelings and took on the challenge to do something constructive.
“We are so eternally grateful for everything everyone has done for Ian and for me.”
