A former rugby player who suffered a stroke after a match against Sutton and Epsom has praised the life-saving emergency treatment she received.

Ellie Edwards, 21, was rushed to St George’s Hospital, in Blackshaw Road, for a thrombectomy intervention when she fell ill.

After visiting Sainsbury’s following the match with Barnes Ladies on February 4, the winger felt “extremely dizzy” and feared she would faint.

Ms Edwards said: “It was really frightening, I didn’t know what was going on. I thought perhaps I was concussed but I hadn’t had any form of injury or head contact during the match, so then I thought I maybe I was dehydrated or having a panic attack.

“I can’t really explain it. I just felt very dizzy and struggled to move or speak.”

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Photo: Ellie Edwards

It was when she was standing in the supermarket's bread aisle and trying walking back to her car that she felt dizzy.

Following frantic calls to family and friends, her housemates helped her get scans at West Middlesex Hospital before she was diagnosed with a blood clot in her brain.

It led the "immediate" operation at St George's Hospital, in time before symptoms could've worsened or become fatal.

This is a surgical procedure to remove the blood clot, which is blocking blood flow, from patients and restore blood flow to the affected area.

Speaking about her tough two-month recovery, she added: "If anything, it knocked my confidence at the beginning.

"About a month after [the operation] I couldn't leave the house, and I certainly couldn't go anywhere for two months on my own, just because I was scared that something was going to happen again."

Her therapy involved improving dexterity in her left hand again, with tasks such as grasping a pen and doing up buttons, while wearing an ankle brace on her left leg.

But now having switched from playing rugby to coaching it, she’s back to working for Gallagher Premiership Rugby club Harlequins.

However, Ms Edwards has praised the medical staff at St George's who "gave her a chance" after being told it was "50-50 chance" she was going to die, as well as Harlequins for their support with positive messages.

She said: "I know I'm not exactly going to go back to who I was, but I'm a new person now and I'm okay with that.

"I would've changed anyway, but because of this I've had to change in away."

The stroke Ms Edwards suffered in February caused weakness in her left side, double vision, slurred speech (dysarthria) and swallowing difficulties (dysphagia).

This meant she required speech, language, and physical rehabilitation, as well as a “modified” diet to enable her so swallow safely.

Dr Joe Leyon, consultant interventional neuroradiologist, who performed Ms Edwards’ emergency procedure, said: “Seeing thrombectomy patients – particularly patients like Ellie – recover keeps me in the job that I do.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to see such remarkable recoveries.”

Dr Val Jones, consultant stroke physician, said: “Ellie’s story is a brilliant example of multiple teams working together to benefit the patient.

“There was involvement from a number of areas – including neurology, speech and language therapy, nursing, theatres and anaesthetics.”