09/04/2026
Before stroke, every person in the room had worked in senior or management-level roles.
This morning, I delivered a breathwork and relaxation session for people living with aphasia after stroke.
Some had very limited speech.
Some were in wheelchairs.
And yet the room was full of intelligence, humour, warmth and presence.
I donāt know why that hit me so hard, but it did.
We spend so much of life wrapped up in work, responsibility, plans, pressure, and who we think we are.
We assume life will carry on roughly as it is.
Until it doesnāt.
A stroke can change speech, mobility, confidence, independence, career, routineā¦ everything.
And still, the person is there.
After the session, I was invited to see some of their artwork at Hatton Gallery in Newcastle, and this piece really stayed with me.
A little house being carried through the sky.
It just felt like such a picture of life sometimes.
How everything can change shape in a moment.
And how weāre all carrying far more than people realise.
A lot of perspective today.
We really donāt know whatās around the corner.
