A woman who attributed her migraines to being a busy working mother was left unable to walk and speak after being diagnosed with a common brain condition. Sarah Lewis, 46, from Solihull, initially experienced severe headaches, swallowing difficulties, and heart palpitations, which doctors suggested might be due to anxiety or stress.
The mother of two also blamed her symptoms on her demanding role as an assistant management accountant, alongside studying for accountancy exams and managing family life. The migraines grew more persistent, and the day after her son's eighth birthday, she found she could not walk in a straight line, describing it as "like being drunk," and began having speech problems.
Rushed to Birmingham's Heartlands Hospital on suspicion of a stroke or brain tumour, she underwent a week of tests only to be told again that she was fine and likely overworking. Months later, she was finally diagnosed with functional neurological disorder (FND), a condition where the brain's software malfunctions, disrupting signals between the brain and body.
Sarah now relies on a wheelchair and cannot walk unaided, depending on her mother as her carer at their Solihull home. Despite these challenges, she has transformed her life by launching a successful cake business, Cakey Blinders, with her 17-year-old son Henry.
Sarah's Journey to Diagnosis
Sarah, also mother to Lily, 11, said: "It was a case of my body intervening and saying 'right I think you need to stop now' when I just thought I was tired and overworked. I put myself under so much pressure, feeling like I had got to do everything and I was just taking on too much." The initial issues included swallowing problems, where food would not go down correctly, causing coughing and spluttering. She also felt extremely tired while attending lectures and preparing for accountancy exams alongside full-time work.
"I just put it all down to working too hard and trying to do too much. I'm one of those people who just pushes on and just keeps going but I wasn't listening to my body," she added. Palpitations began, and due to her father's early death from heart disease, she was given a cardiac monitor, which showed no issues. The hospital suggested it might be anxiety or stress.
The migraines became almost daily, forcing her to go to bed instead of having dinner. "It was a very busy and stressful time at work but it became impossible to ignore the symptoms any longer. I was just thinking I'll do something after the next deadline and kept pushing myself at work but it came to the point where my vision and speech started to go too."
The day after her son's birthday, she could barely walk properly, appearing drunk. She returned to her GP, now also experiencing tremors. CT scans, blood tests, and lumbar punctures were performed, with doctors suspecting a brain tumour or stroke. Yet results came back normal, and she was told she was probably overdoing it.
Living with FND
Referred to neurology, Sarah was diagnosed with FND in September 2023. The condition causes involuntary physical symptoms like loss of motor control, speech issues, and sensory and cognitive problems. "But they could still not tell me if I would ever get better or how long this might last - and that is still the case today. It's like a computer where my hardware is all fine but the software isn't," she explained.
Sarah noted that FND often occurs in people with ADHD who work to burnout. "I basically worked until I broke. I was never assessed for ADHD but I think most women my age have it to an extent anyway." She was told by a doctor not to treat her as disabled, but she found herself in a wheelchair, unable to do much independently. "The prognosis is very much it might get better or it might get worse - they still don't know. It has been really awful, there's no sugar coating it, but I was determined to have some quality of life."
Despite relying on a wheelchair and crutches, Sarah launched Cakey Blinders, turning her passion for baking into a family business. "Baking was something I had a passion for so I began making the cakes and it is now a full family affair with everybody helping out - it became a therapy for me." Her mother helps with oven tasks due to tremors and memory issues, her husband handles logistics and deliveries, Henry assists with everything, and Lily contributes ideas.
"In a way it has brought us closer together. Now I finally feel like I have a purpose and a passion and my family come first before a job or money, which wasn't always the case. I think I have a better relationship with them now than I did before, so I'm trying to take away the positives. Sometimes, the most hardest lessons in life can be the most important ones."
