Paige Carr, 26 at the time, suddenly started to lose her vision, then the use of her arm and legNeil Shaw Assistant Editor (Money and Lifestyle)07:10, 29 May 2026A 26-year-old mother whose headaches were caused by a blood clot in the brain, triggering a stroke just two weeks after giving birth, has said it “broke (her) heart” not being able to hold her newborn. Paige Carr, now 27, gave birth to her daughter Isla in July 2025 and began experiencing headaches, which she initially thought were because of a sinus infection and “nothing to worry about”.‌Just two weeks later, she said her vision became hazy and she lost all movement in her right arm and leg. Paige, who lives in Merseyside with her partner Jon, 28, said she was rushed to hospital on August 11 2025, where it was revealed she had a pulmonary embolism and had suffered a stroke, caused by a blood clot in her brain.‌Paige regained movement in her right arm and leg just 24 hours later while on a stroke ward, but remained exhausted, unable to hold her newborn daughter. The stroke also caused swelling behind her eyes, and she had emergency surgery in September 2025 to help relieve this – otherwise doctors said she would have gone blind.‌Paige, mother to Lucas, three, Jessica, one, and Isla, 10 months, still suffers with day-to-day fatigue and thinks others often “assume (she) is fine” because she has no physical symptoms – such as a drooped face – of her stroke. Paige, a service desk team leader, told PA Real Life: “The baby was only a couple of weeks old after the stroke, and I didn’t even have the energy to hold her, normally I’d be cuddling her the whole time. It broke my heart, and I’ll never get that time back with her.”After Paige gave birth to her daughter Isla on July 27 2025, she began experiencing mild headaches but did not think “too much of it”.‌The following week, the headaches became more persistent and she assumed she had a sinus infection, so she took painkillers and said the pain began to ease. On August 10 2025, Paige, Jon and some of his family took Isla to Delamere Forest in Cheshire.While there, Paige said her vision deteriorated. She explained: “It almost felt like when you’ve been sat in the sun and then you go inside and everything’s dark and you can’t see properly. But I’d been outside all day so didn’t think much of it – it just felt weird.”‌When she and Jon returned home a few hours later, Paige found herself “bumping into the walls” while walking from the bedroom to the bathroom. Concerned, her mum took her to a walk-in centre later that day, where staff also suspected a sinus infection and prescribed antibiotics.Jon collected the prescription the following morning, but after taking the first dose, Paige said she was “throwing up everywhere”. Her mother, who has a medical background, then took her to A&E at Arrowe Park Hospital in Birkenhead, where she said she was advised to continue with the antibiotics and give them time to “kick in”.After returning home, Paige was exhausted and slept for the rest of the day. She said: “The next day, I got in the shower and felt OK, then when I got out, I couldn’t use my right arm at all – I couldn’t move it, it felt completely numb.”‌Her mum took her back to A&E at Arrowe Park Hospital and, during the walk from the car park to the hospital, Paige said she lost all movement and feeling in her right leg. At hospital, she was assessed by a stroke specialist to rule out anything serious, as she was not displaying some of the more commonly recognised stroke symptoms, such as slurred speech and face drooping.But following a scan, doctors discovered she had suffered a pulmonary embolism – a sudden, life-threatening blockage in a lung artery – and a blood clot in her brain, which had caused a stroke. “I was completely out of it at that point, I just wanted to sleep,” Paige said. I couldn’t really understand that I’d had a stroke.”‌Paige was admitted to the stroke ward, where she believes she was the youngest patient. She said: “I felt like I was in the wrong place – it felt so surreal, and I think age was on my side in terms of the recovery.”On the ward, she said she was treated with blood thinners and painkillers and, after around 24 hours, she began to wiggle her toes and regained some movement in her hands. “They were really happy with the progress I was making and, by the next day, I was walking around with a physio and they discharged me,” she said.When she arrived home, Paige struggled mentally as she was usually a “hands-on mum” and she had to use a wheelchair when “out and about” as her leg was weak. “Lucas was starting pre-school and I was all excited to get his school uniform from M&S, but when we got there, I had to sit there and stay in my wheelchair,” Paige explained.‌“I felt horrendous but I think I was trying to do too much too soon. I just wanted to give all my kids my full attention, but it was so hard.”Around three weeks later, on September 1, Paige attended an appointment with an ophthalmologist, a medical professional who cares for patients with eye conditions. After tests, she was told she could lose her sight because of severe swelling behind her eyes, and she underwent a lumbar puncture – a procedure where a thin needle is inserted into the spine to drain fluid and relieve pressure.‌The procedure was a success, but Paige was “devastated” still to be in hospital on the morning of her daughter Jessica’s first birthday on September 3. She said: “I was just sobbing because I was going to miss it – I was on the phone to Jon telling him where to put the balloons and everything.”Fortunately, she was able to return home later that evening, although Jessica was already asleep. Paige said: “The next day we did her cake with her, and obviously she knew no different, but I think for me it’s something that I’ll always remember and be quite upset about. But obviously my health comes first so I can be there for my kids.”Since then, Paige has attended follow-up appointments and said her condition now appears stable. However, she still finds day-to-day life difficult because the effects of her stroke are not always visible. "People must look at me and think I’m fine, but it’s been really hard mentally,” Paige explained.‌In January 2026, Paige began going to the gym to help herself “feel better” both mentally and physically. “I want to prevent anything bad ever happening to me,” she said. “I want to be the best version of myself for my kids.“There are still some days where I’m just exhausted – I have really bad fatigue since having the stroke. I don’t tend to talk to people about the stroke. I haven’t really sat down with Jon and spoken about how it all feels to me.‌“I’m going to start counselling through work once I go back – my main focus is looking after the kids at the moment and making up for the time I missed with the baby.”Reflecting on her experience, Paige said she feels grateful every day and now “cherishes” her loved ones more than ever. She is taking part in a 5K run to raise funds for the Stroke Association – the charity’s Make May Purple campaign takes place during Stroke Awareness Month this May.It challenges supporters to do something bold, bright and meaningful to support the 1.4 million people affected by strokes in the UK.Article continues belowTo donate to Paige’s fundraiser, visit: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/paige1773756919835.For support and more information, visit: www.stroke.org.uk.