By Tom Coulson
AN Alcester teacher, who suffered a bleed on the brain just over five years ago is giving thanks to the NHS staff who saved her life.
Gemma Beales woke up after a night out thinking she was suffering from a terrible hangover, with pain so crippling she could barely lift her head up.
However, the 33 year old was actually suffering from bleeding on her brain and when Gemma’s mum and dad found her collapsed on the bathroom floor the outlook seemed bleak.
Gemma required a life saving operation and her chances of recovery were slim, however she is now speaking out about her long road to recovery, in the hope it will inspire others who have suffered similar injuries to work towards a full recovery, Gemma said: “’They didn’t know if I’d survive, or what long-term effects the brain injury might have had, but that operation saved my life. Even my consultant said it was a miracle that I’d survived.
“My injury was on the left side of my brain, which controls language. As a teacher, I’d been used to teaching children to read and write, and suddenly I was in the same situation myself.’’
Due to the severity of the injury, Gemma also developed epilepsy, a condition that coupled with her other serious injuries could have easily meant that she never returned to work.
However, she was determined to keep working, and although she couldn’t go back to work full time as a teacher, Gemma got a job as a teaching assistant and now works as a Nursery Nurse Practitioner.
Four years on, Gemma is now married to her husband Mike and, despite the increased risks of pregnancy for women with epilepsy, the pair have recently welcomed a healthy baby boy to their family.
With baby Lewis less than a year old, Gemma climbed the Three Peaks with Mike in September 2016, raising over £1,500 in aid of the teams who had saved her life five years earlier.
She said: “I’ve been helped by so many people at University Hospital, and Mike and I really wanted to give something back.
“I want to do everything I can to make people aware of the outstanding dedication and support that I’ve received from the NHS staff who’ve saved my life.”
