A Cardiff man who brushed off early stroke symptoms as a bad night's sleep was given a terrifying diagnosis after his girlfriend initially thought he was drunk.
"It'll never happen to me": A sudden health crisis
Adam Watkins, a 42-year-old civil servant from Cardiff, lost movement in his left side and struggled to speak after suffering a transient ischemic attack (TIA), commonly known as a mini-stroke, at home last summer. The episode began on a Sunday morning when Adam woke with a numb left arm, which he dismissed as having slept awkwardly.
His partner, Laura Milford, 36, became concerned when his speech began to slur. "She thought I was drunk because I was slurring my words quite a lot," Adam recalled. The situation escalated dramatically while they were in the garden. "I lost all control of my left arm, dropping my cigarette. Laura noticed the left side of my face started to droop, and that's when we decided that I should probably head to hospital."
The dangerous cocktail of smoking and a blood disorder
Rushed to the University Hospital of Wales, Adam was swiftly diagnosed. Doctors informed him that his 25-year smoking habit, costing around £200 a month, combined with an inherited blood disorder called polycythemia, had triggered the health scare.
"I just had this 'it'll never happen to me' attitude - but it did," Adam admitted. He explained the heightened risk: "Smoking is especially dangerous if you have polycythemia because it thickens the blood and reduces oxygen delivery. It increases carbon monoxide levels, causing your body to make even more red blood cells, which raises the risk of blood clots, stroke, and heart attack."
Medical staff emphasised that he was "incredibly young" to be having a stroke.
A life-changing wake-up call and quitting together
The TIA served as the critical "wake up call" Adam needed. He and Laura decided to quit smoking together, seeking support from Help Me Quit, a free NHS-funded smoking cessation service based at his GP surgery.
Cathy Fisher, a smoking cessation practitioner, expressed immense pride in their joint effort. "They had quite a difficult journey... and they have absolutely smashed it," she said. "There's a 67 per cent higher chance of a successful quit as a couple than if you try to quit alone. That was really evident with Adam and Laura as they kept each other balanced."
The benefits of quitting were rapid and profound for Adam. "A couple of weeks after stopping smoking, it felt like I had a third lung," he said. "You can smell things better, you can taste things better and my smoker's cough has gone. Now I've stopped it feels like I've had a pay rise."
Remarkably, his polycythemia has also shown significant improvement. The couple's lifestyle has transformed; they now go for walks more often, something previously difficult for Adam due to leg pain caused by his condition.
Both Adam and Laura now encourage anyone thinking of quitting to explore the support available through Help Me Quit, proving that even a long-term, 30-a-day habit can be overcome with the right help and mutual support.
