Gogglebox star Elaine Cooper has revealed she lost her vision while in the car due to an undetected hemorrhagic stroke.
The Channel 4 star, who appeared on the reality series from 2023 to 2024, opened up about the terrifying experience and her symptoms, such as forgetfulness, that she had been experiencing in the lead-up.
‘I struggled to make sense of the world around me,’ the retired music teacher explained in a new interview.
The continued: ‘I was completely shocked and heartbroken. They told me part of my brain had been irreversibly damaged.
‘And as there wasn’t anything they could do, this was just who I was now. At first, it was difficult and I didn’t feel like myself. But I knew I had to keep going and try to make the best of a bad situation.’
In her chat with Need To Know, the TV personality admitted that her vision eventually returned in the car, although everything was blurry and she suffered from a ‘pounding’ headache.
She then recalled that her concerns started to skyrocket when she started forgetting her friends’ names, even when she was meeting up with them,.
The former Channel 4 star felt like she was ‘losing my mind’ for not being able to do ‘the simplest of tasks’ like filling her car.
After a CT scan and MRI in April 2024, it was revealed she had suffered from an undetected hemorrhagic stroke ten weeks before losing her vision, with her symptoms continuing to worsen.
‘I suffer from extreme fatigue that makes me just so tired. I’ve also developed double vision and paralysis on my left side.
‘It’s had such a huge impact on my life,’ she said as she grapples with the symptoms, including memory loss and paralysis.
Cooper must now use a wheelchair for anything longer than ‘short distances’ as well as attending regular MRIs and a weekly rehabilitation day centre, which she described as a ‘real turning point’.
Ultimately, despite her initial fears of ‘isolation’ since she lives in a ‘rural community, she explained that she was ‘slowly but surely getting back to some old version of me’.
‘I hate relying on people for the simplest of things, but acceptance is the biggest barrier,’ she added.
The NHS website describes this ‘uncommon’ type of stroke as ‘a very serious condition and can be fatal’ and is most common in people aged between 45 and 70.
And discussing the outcome, the site added: ‘Although the outlook for subarachnoid haemorrhage has improved in the last few decades, it can be fatal, and people who survive can be left with long-term problems.
‘Recovering after a subarachnoid haemorrhage can also be a slow and frustrating process.’
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