Woman who suffered stroke at 24 and given 10% chance to live ‘could sing before speaking’

1 May 2025, 00:43

A woman who suffered a stroke at the age of 24 has described how she was able to sing before she could recognise her own mother during her recovery.

Summer Clarke, now 26, was given a 10% chance to live, with her family told to 'say their goodbyes' when she suffered a spontaneous brain haemorrhage.

Ms Clarke from Denton, Manchester, survived after being put into an induced coma, but had severe complications including needing to read and walk again.

But she could sing her favourite songs, word for word, before she could even recognise her own mother.

Ms Clarke is not alone, a new poll by the Stroke Association has revealed 35% of stroke survivors are able to sing better than speak in the weeks and months after their stroke.

The survey of 1,000 people who have had a stroke found 33% lost the ability to speak after a stroke.

Some 26% said they could sing or hum before they could talk at all.

And 61% said music helped improve their communication skills after their stroke, with half (51%) saying it helped their memory.

The Stroke Association said research suggests singing can enhance communication and speech for people with aphasia - a language and communication disability, which leaves people struggling to speak, read, write or understand language.

Ms Clarke is backing a new campaign by the charity Sing4Stroke.

Two years ago she was enjoying an afternoon with friends when she experienced severe pains in her head and was violently unwell.

She was rushed to hospital where it was discovered she had a brain haemorrhage and she was put on life support.

He mother Linda Clarke said: "The doctors did a draining procedure but the pressure on her brain was immense. I was told that she might have 48 hours to live and we should maybe say our goodbyes.

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"She was given a 10% chance of survival - it was terrifying."

But two weeks after being put in an induced coma, Ms Clarke started to move a little finger.

She was taken out of a coma and started to breathe again on her own.

But this was just the start of her nine-month stint in hospital and Ms Clarke needed to learn to read and walk again.

"It was like being a baby again, I had to learn everything from scratch," she said.

During the recovery process, it was found Ms Clarke could sing her favourite songs before she could perform many other tasks.

Her mother said: "Summer suffered with so many cognitive problems but singing just came naturally to her. She could sing to music when she came out of the coma. She would start by miming songs and then she could sing anything on her playlist."

She said her daughter's favourite song during recovery was Proud Mary by Tina Turner.

Ms Clarke, who worked as cabin crew for British Airways before her stroke, added: "Anything we played I remembered the lyrics to, even if I didn't recognise my own mum, it was all very strange."

Juliet Bouverie, 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."

The charity has launched a new campaign urging people to raise money by singing.

"There are now over 1.4 million stroke survivors in the UK, and this number is growing," said Ms Bouverie.

"The impact of a stroke can be completely life-altering. We believe everyone deserves to live the best life they can after stroke, but to do this we need your support."