One year ago Carol snuggled into bed ready for a cosy night’s sleep. As she tossed and turned, she had no idea her life would change forever the next morning.
Carol had a stroke in her sleep and didn’t even know it, she knew something was wrong when she woke up feeling like a statue. To her horror, the left side of her body was completely paralysed.
It was a blow to Carol who spent her career on her feet, a performing arts star, she once toured with Michael Bublé and owned a performing arts school in Birmingham. Never mind dance, she wondered if she would ever walk again.
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Carol battled through physiotherapy and had to re-learn the most basic skills, from dressing herself to making a cup of tea. And while she has mostly recovered, her body and life will forever be rocked by the stroke.
Carol Harvey-Barnes, 65, from Stratford-Upon-Avon, remembers that fateful morning in May 2023. She said: “The stroke came out of the blue. I went to bed on Wednesday night feeling tired, I got up for work and couldn’t get out of bed.
Carol Harvey-Barnes sang on tour with Michael Bublé
(Image: Carol Harvey Barnes)
“I couldn’t move my left arm and leg, my left side was numb and I couldn’t move it. My husband saw my face had dropped and recognised the signs of a stroke, he called 999 which saved my life honestly.
“I had no idea I had a stroke until after an operation at Coventry Hospital.”
It was the last thing the stage veteran needed. Carol was a singer, dancer and performer who eventually became Head of Education for Performers College in Digbeth, then promoted to Dean of Performing Arts a month before her stroke.
She ran a performing arts school in Walsall for almost 40 years and sang with Michael Bublé on tour. It’s safe to say she was a busy woman, now her speech was slurred and body immobile.
Strokes occur when blood stops flowing to a part of your brain, which can affect speech and movement. The condition can be life threatening and recovery time can range from weeks to years.
Carol Harvey-Barnes at Circle Rehabilitation
(Image: Carol Harvey Barnes)
Carol was admitted to Circle Rehabilitation Birmingham with one goal in mind; she was going to leave walking again. She said: “It has taken me a long time to come to terms with what happened.
“I knew I couldn’t go back to the person I was. Two weeks after Coventry I went to Circle Health Group and the next day physiotherapy started, it was four hours a day which was tough.
“The first couple of weeks I thought it would kill me, I stayed for four where they taught me how to get into a car, wash, shower, use the toilet, dress myself and make a cup of tea.
“It was all really scary but I thought, I need to get this done. I was very steely.
“My family visited everyday and got me into the wheelchair for walks, when I came home there were new railings put in on stairs and bathrooms. The family took me on holiday to keep some normality in my life.
Carol choreographed a special performance to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You”
(Image: Carol Harvey Barnes)
“I am 95% better. About six months ago I noticed, I went back to work for a year but I can’t do things I did before.
“I can’t travel as much and don’t feel as confident, it will come over time. I gave up my business but I still do a lot of examining work online which is brilliant. I am trying to make the most of every minute I have.”
Carol was encouraged to support the building’s Dancercise classes where she choreographed a special performance to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Most of the patients were in wheelchairs or lost the use of their limbs, yet their final performance moved families to tears.
Carol’s advice for anyone recovering from a stroke is to never give up, she said: “Trust in the professionals and do as much as you can, you won’t cause yourself another stroke or die attempting to work arms and legs.
“Have trust and belief that you have the potential, you have the potential all the time. Your brain will find new pathways to work.”