Staff who helped a Flintshire stroke survivor get back on his feet again have recalled the 'emotional moment' he was able to walk unaided in order to go home.
On July 12 of last year, talented dancer Dan Parsonage had been at the Hawarden Festival preparing for a performance by members of the Urban Fusion street dance group he had taught, when he collapsed after 'feeling funny'.
He was transported to the Countess of Chester Hospital, where medical staff considered the cerebral haemorrhage caused by elevated blood pressure to be critical with his family told to say 'their final farewells'.
However, after further brain imaging, Dan was transferred to The Walton Centre in Liverpool where a specialist neurosurgical team performed two urgent operations to get the bleed under control and save his life.
Support has come from across North Wales and Liverpool, with local Idle Lies even releasing a Christmas single, with all proceeds going to support The Walton Centre Charity.
Now, 29-year-old Dan's story is being be told via 'Trauma: My Broken Brain' which is available to watch on Channel Four's streaming service.
Dan's life was turned upside down as he went from being an active dancer to being confined to a wheelchair, being barely able to speak following emergency brain surgery.
The series sees film crews visit the Walton Centre for Dan’s cranioplasty, and Clatterbridge Rehabilitation Centre on the Wirral, capturing his milestones, setbacks and small victories of early stroke recovery in unflinching detail.
Every five minutes, someone in the UK has a stroke, and it can strike at any age. Trauma: My Broken Brain is follows three young survivors; Dan, Saskia and Dec through the most frightening days of their lives and the gruelling journey back to independence after stroke.
Dan has since undergone speech therapy to enhance his communication, alongside eight months of physiotherapy at Clatterbridge rehabilitation centre on the Wirral, where he has progressed from being unable to raise himself in bed to manoeuvring a wheelchair and walking with a mobility aid.
Staff at the Wirral University Teaching Hospital's Clatterbridge Rehab Centre looked after Dan as he prepared to return home.
They quite literally helped him get back on his feet and have shared a picture of him being able to walk again.
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They added that Dan made a huge impression on the multi-disciplinary team of physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, nurses, psychologists and support staff who worked alongside him to help him rebuild his skills.
Katy Armstrong, Clinical Lead Physiotherapist who features in the documentary, said: "It was such a privilege for the whole team to be a part of Dan's rehab journey, to support him and to witness the fantastic progress he made during his time with us.
"We hope this documentary will raise awareness of the impacts and challenges a stroke can cause, and the importance of access to multidisciplinary rehabilitation to help rebuild a person’s skills, confidence and life after a stroke".
If you suspect someone is having a stroke, act FAST (Face weakness, Arm weakness, Speech problems, Time to dial 999). Acting FAST will give the person having a stroke the best chance of survival and recovery.
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