'I felt invincible before I had seven strokes in one night'

After his stroke Ryan Finan was worried he might not sing again

A singer who suffered seven strokes in one night as a teenager has said music aided his recovery.

Ryan Finan, 30, from Hertfordshire, was told by doctors it was a miracle he was still alive after his housemates at Nottingham Trent University rushed him to hospital.

In October 2013 the then 19-year-old went to bed with a migraine and woke up in the early hours of the morning to find he was cold, violently shaking and struggling to stand.

Doctors discovered he had undiagnosed patent foramen ovale, which meant a hole in his heart had caused blood to travel to his brain and cause a blockage.

"I've always loved music, and amongst the many thoughts rushing through my mind in hospital, the one that kept coming back was questioning if I'd ever be able to sing again," he recalled.

The teenager was rushed to hospital where he was told he had suffered seven strokes in the night

During the night Ryan managed to pull himself out of bed, down the stairs and into his housemate's room, where he woke him up by crashing into a wardrobe.

His friends immediately drove him to A&E, which doctors said saved his life.

"When I woke up the doctors told me I suffered multiple strokes. It was the shock of a lifetime and not something you expect to hear at 19.

"The doctor stated I would've died if nobody was there to pick me up. It was a blessing I had people so close," the singer said.

In the first 48 hours after the stroke, half of Ryan's body was paralysed and he could not walk or speak.

"For someone who had once felt invincible, it was a brutal reality check," he added.

Regaining his ability to sing reignited Ryan's self belief

Ryan returned to his parents' home in Hertfordshire where he learned to speak and move through rehabilitation and therapy.

He later began working with young people at the National Citizen Service, and after a music workshop they asked him to sing.

He recalled: "I didn't think I could do it but felt the pressure to give it a go. For the first time since my stroke, I opened my mouth and sang.

"The room was silent. My voice filled the space. I could sing! In that moment, my belief in myself reignited."

The Stroke Association said singing can be an important tool in stroke recovery

Mr Finan had surgery to close the hole in his heart in the years that followed.

He said: "One thing that's driven me to continue and to keep pushing is that I've always had a dream to be a musician and that's what's kept me going."

Research funded by the Stroke Association found that singing can help stroke survivors overcome communication difficulties.

The charity has encouraged people to sing as part of a fundraising initiative it has launched called Sing4Stroke.

Juliet Bouverie, the chief executive of the Stroke Association, said: "Singing can be a powerful tool in stroke recovery for those who experience communication difficulties.

"Because music and singing are processed in a different part of the brain to spoken language, some people with communication problems find that they can sing easily, even though speaking is difficult."

'It changed everything'

About 100,000 people have a stroke every year in the UK, according to the Stroke Association.

Ryan wants to make more people aware young people can also suffer strokes.

"All I had known before it happened to myself was you associate it with the older generation. It did change everything in my life," he said.

Sara Betsworth, from the Stroke Association in the East of England, said the amount of young people having strokes was increasing.

She explained: "There's no one reason behind the increase in strokes amongst younger people – it's likely to be a combination of factors, many of which may be related to certain lifestyle choices.

"For example, people who eat an unhealthy diet, drink a lot of alcohol, smoke or don't take regular exercise are more likely to have a stroke.

"However, even though the numbers are rising, if you're under 55, your chances of having a stroke are still very low."