I Didn't Know I'd Had a Stroke—Rare Symptom Affects Less Than 1%

A Rare Stroke Symptom: The Loss of Reading Ability

Gordon Robb was going about his daily routine in his garden when he suffered a stroke—but he had no idea until the next day. At 63, he lives in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, Scotland, and experienced a symptom that affects just one percent of stroke patients: the sudden inability to read.

He recalls the incident in September 2025, when he went into his house for a cup of tea, some music, and to check his emails on his phone. "It was like they were in a foreign language," he said. "I could see them clearly, and I knew who they were from, but the words meant nothing to me."

Robb assumed he was tired after staying up late the night before. He was aware of classic stroke symptoms such as facial weakness, arm or speech issues, but none of these occurred. Unbeknownst to him, he had a brain bleed, which made him reluctant to seek emergency care because he didn't have the usual signs of a stroke.

Instead, he found that words—emails, texts about the Ryder Cup, and even cash machine screens—looked as if they were written in a foreign language.

He said, "When friends were messaging me about the Ryder Cup that evening and I couldn't see the messages, I just gave myself an early night." The next day, after struggling to read instructions on a cash machine, he decided to see his GP. However, his cousin, whose husband had died from a sudden stroke just three weeks earlier, insisted on taking him to A&E, where it was discovered he had a haemorrhagic stroke.

Understanding Stroke and Its Symptoms

Around 100,000 people in the UK suffer a stroke each year, with approximately 38,000 deaths attributed to the condition annually. This makes it the fourth biggest killer in the country and a major cause of disability.

The main symptoms of a stroke can be remembered using the acronym FAST: Face (drooping or inability to smile), Arms (weakness or inability to lift one arm), Speech (slurred or garbled), and Time (to call emergency services immediately). Other lesser-known symptoms include blurred vision, loss of sight in one or both eyes, severe headaches, and feeling sick.

Most strokes are caused by fatty deposits or blood clots blocking arteries supplying the brain—known as ischaemic strokes. These occur due to cardiovascular disease, when blood vessels become narrowed or blocked over time by plaques. These are made of cholesterol, calcium, and other substances that build up in the artery walls in a process known as atherosclerosis.

The other type, as experienced by Mr. Robb, is a haemorrhagic stroke, which occurs when a blood vessel bursts in the brain and starts to leak its contents into the organ. Experts note that difficulty recognizing written words on its own, without any other symptoms, affects fewer than one percent of people at the time of their stroke.

A Unique Experience and Recovery

Mr. Robb described his experience in the stroke ward as strange. "I felt like a fraud because I was no different to how I am normally, except that I suddenly could not read words," he said. "It just shows the importance of paying attention to unusual symptoms, even if they aren’t ones you have heard of before."

If he hadn't gone to the hospital and received prompt treatment, he could have been walking around with a "ticking time-bomb" in his head. While his symptoms are improving, he now takes longer to read and occasionally struggles to find the right word during conversations.

Clinical Trials and Future Treatments

Mr. Robb is participating in a new British Heart Foundation-funded clinical trial led by academics at the University of Edinburgh. The study examines whether clopidogrel or aspirin, drugs that reduce the risk of blood clotting, can prevent future strokes, heart attacks, and premature deaths in people who have had a haemorrhagic stroke.

As a keen cyclist and runner, he is taking clopidogrel as part of the trial, led by Professor Rustam Al-Shahi Salman. The research has overcome initial concerns about the safety of these drugs after a haemorrhagic stroke.

Professor Salman explained, "We were very relieved when our research showed such drugs to be safe after a haemorrhagic stroke. The Aspiring study will gather further evidence to establish if aspirin and clopidogrel can help lower the risk of future strokes and heart attacks."

Mr. Robb feels lucky that he did not suffer more long-term effects from his stroke and is grateful for the chance to contribute to improving treatments.

Expert Advice and Ongoing Research

Dr. Sonya Babu-Narayan, the British Heart Foundation's clinical director, emphasized the importance of recognizing all potential stroke symptoms, including the rare case of losing the ability to read. She said, "If you have a symptom that you feel is not right, however strange or unusual, it is really important to seek help. Every minute matters if you may be having a stroke or other medical emergency."

The BHF continues to fund trials like Aspiring, aiming to test whether antiplatelet drugs could protect more people from future strokes.