Whitehaven-born Blake Rooney’s world flipped upside down when his 28-year-old wife Helen suffered a stroke on both sides of her brain.

What caused this to happen to an otherwise fit and healthy person? The answer was unnerving: an undetected hole in Helen’s heart.

10 months after the terrifying incident, Blake will take on the adidas Manchester Marathon for The British Heart Foundation, whose research helps diagnose and treat conditions like Helen’s. Here he describes the chain-of-events which motivated him to take on the challenge…

“My wife Helen is my best friend. We’ve been together for 11 years and have always helped each other through life’s difficulties, such as the loss of my grandparents and my mental health battles.

However, on the 5th June 2024, our world crumbled when Helen lost her vision and was rushed to hospital.

She’d woken up and from how she explains it: “I felt a headrush and knew that something wasn’t right”. She then either blacked out or fell back asleep, coming around 3 hours later to find her vision seriously impaired.

I rushed back from work to drive to A&E where they carried out tests. We stayed overnight as symptoms didn’t go – 30 hours of total fear and confusion. Eventually, we were sat down and told that Helen had suffered a stroke on both sides of her brain. It was a huge shock. She was 28. Fit and healthy. What had caused this serious health incident – and how could we stop it happening again?

The doctors had the same questions. We were rushed from Whitehaven to Carlisle hospital and a week later a specialist conducted a bubble test and confirmed that Helen had a hole in her heart. The stroke occurred when a blood clot entered and had ben pumped to her brain.

Helen had been lucky to escape with temporary vision loss as the symptom. Despite this, I remember the feeling of complete powerlessness at this time; as a husband, I struggled because I couldn’t make it right. I had no control over anything.

We installed heart monitors at home as Helen underwent procedures for the specialists to decide how best to move forward. She has now had successful heart surgery, and the hole is closed. She is still fatigued and working on building herself back, but we feel so lucky and blessed that she is recovering well. One of the scariest things during this time was the poor eyesight which lasted for weeks. She is now OK to drive, and her peripheral vision hasn’t been affected.

I’m taking on the adidas Manchester Marathon for The British Heart Foundation this year, as heart issues are serious and truly terrifying conditions which can affect people of any age and fitness ability. Seeing my wife go through what she has this year – and how strong she has been in the process – I feel inspired to step up and help make a difference. I’m far from a ‘runner’ but generally fit and motivated by Helen and the great things I’ve heard about the event. I can’t wait to be a part of it.”

Thank you Blake and Helen for sharing your inspiring story!

Support Blake’s on his fundraising mission by donating to his JustGiving page below.