Strictly Come Dancing legend reveals emergency surgery ‘saved my life’ as she opens up on terrifying stroke scare
A STRICTLY Come Dancing star has revealed a terrifying stroke scare – and how emergency surgery saved their life.
The Sun previously reported how the TV star, 61, was rushed into hospital and told she was “lucky to be alive.”
Now Susanna Constantine has revealed the very raw detail of her neurological condition which, if not treated speedily, could have resulted in a stroke.
The What Not To Wear expert, who was paired with now Strictly judge Anton Du Beke in 2018, was diagnosed with an arteriovenous malformation which is when the passage of blood and oxygen to the brain is interrupted.
She has now told The Times of its effects pre-surgery and said: “My left arm became weaker.
I got to the point where I couldn’t even change gear in my car and it was very painful
Susanna Constantine
“All the muscles were atrophied, it was withered. I got to the point where I couldn’t even change gear in my car and it was very painful.”
She added: “It was actually the receptionist who looked at the notes, which had been sitting there over a year, and said, ‘You need to see a neurosurgeon immediately.”’
Susanna then added: “Women are very resilient. I’ve learnt just to be accepting of everything and I couldn’t change anything that was out of my control.
‘Being older, you’re just like, ‘OK, it’s done. On to the next thing.’ Things start falling off and there’s nothing we can do about it.
“You just have to be more vigilant and take more responsibility about one’s health.”
“You just have to be more vigilant and take more responsibility about one’s health
Susanna Constantine
Health horror
The Londoner previously said a neurosurgeon informed her she needed immediate surgery – or risk paralysis or a haemorrhage.
She told OK! Magazine: “They said ‘It’s Hobson’s Choice, if you don’t have the operation, you’ve got a one in three chance of having a brain haemorrhage, being paralysed or having a stroke.
“‘If you do have surgery, you’ve got a one in 10 chance of these same things happening during the operation.”
She first gave the indication something was untoward with her health when she posted a picture to social media showing her attached to a drip.
Susanna had also been diagnosed with venous fistula – which is an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein.
For Susanna’s condition, she added to the publication: “I had a health scare and a pretty major operation.
“It was a very rare thing where I had a leak – the arteries were bleeding into the capillaries and trapping the spinal cord, and affecting my brain.”
This explained the pins and needles in her arm – as well as a swollen left eye and tinnitus.
Further worries
Back in 2023, she revealed her devastating hearing loss diagnosis.
Susanna also told of her fear she would be diagnosed with manic depression like her mum.
Meanwhile, she has admitted to The Sun how she “wakes up every day filled with anxiety.”
Talking of her deafness she told us: “The penny dropped when I realised I couldn’t differentiate between the different birds singing.
“I live in the countryside and it’s something I love to listen to, because I wake up in the morning, every morning, filled with anxiety, and I go outside and I listen to the bird song.”
What are the symptoms of stroke?
The FAST method – which stands for Face, Arms, Speech, Time – is the easiest way to remember the most common symptoms of stroke:
F = Face drooping – if one side of a person’s face is dropped or numb then ask them to smile, if it’s uneven then you should seek help.
A = Arm weakness – if one arm is weak or numb then you should ask the person to raise both arms. If one arm drifts downwards then you might need to get help
S = Speech difficulty – if a person’s speech is slurred then this could be a sign of a stroke
T = Time to call 999 – if a person has the signs above then you need to call 999 in the UK or 911 in the US for emergency care.
Other symptoms include:
- sudden weakness or numbness on one side of the body
- difficulty finding words
- sudden blurred vision or loss of sight
- sudden confusion, dizziness or unsteadiness
- a sudden and severe headache
- difficulty understanding what others are saying
- difficulty swallowing