Living With an Invisible Disability

“I have had a stroke, not a lobotomy.”

With wit, honesty, and striking resilience, one woman shares her story of survival after a devastating brain injury, and the quiet battles that come with living in a world that can’t see your scars.

In Living With an Invisible Disability, a senior civil servant from Guernsey recounts the night that changed everything. One moment, she was preparing for another day of public service; the next, she was being blue-lighted to hospital after suffering a major ischaemic stroke in her sleep.

Her story is one of sheer determination; relearning how to speak, move, and reclaim her identity. Diagnosed with expressive aphasia, she rebuilt her confidence word by painstaking word, challenging the stigma and misunderstanding that often surround brain injury survivors.

But it’s not just a story about survival; it’s about strength, humour, and self-advocacy. From growing up in a funeral home to navigating government corridors, she writes with sharp intelligence and disarming self-awareness about what it means to appear “fine” while still fighting invisible limitations.

Her “handy hints” to colleagues and MPs – from “please don’t patronise me” to “focus on what I can do, not what I can’t” – are both poignant and empowering. They’re a reminder that disability isn’t always visible, but it always deserves understanding.

Living With an Invisible Disability is an unmissable read about recovery, resilience, and the radical act of self-compassion after trauma.

Read the full story in The View 15, where lived experience meets the courage to be seen.

Opinion article by The View.

Order The View 15 here: https://theviewmag.org.uk/product/the-view-magazine-issue-15/