'Hollyoaks' Stewart 'determined to walk'

Kelly-Marie Stewart has said that she is determined to walk again.

The Hollyoaks star was left paralysed from the waist down after contracting Guillain-Barré syndrome three years ago.

Stewart revealed that she had felt a tingling sensation in her feet and was told by doctors that she had a virus. On her third night in hospital, she collapsed on her way back from the toilet and hasn't been able to walk since.

"I didn't feel scared, it was just really weird," she told Fabulous. "I tried and tried to get my legs to move, but they wouldn't. I called for help and two nurses carried me back to my bed.

"Even then I wasn't worried. I just presumed it was a symptom of the virus and that when I got better it would go away."

Stewart was moved to a neurological centre for tests, but said that she managed to stay positive.

"Actually, I felt very lucky in many ways," she explained. "All that time I was in hospital, my mates did their utmost to make sure I never felt alone. I felt very loved and cared for, and I learnt that I share my life with some very special people.

"There were young people in there with no movement or feeling from the neck down. Compared to their problems, mine seemed minor."

Stewart, who met her partner Ian Fox six months after she left hospital, is now pregnant and is due to give birth in March.

"We did the pregnancy test and when it came up positive, we both cried," she said. "I've always dreamed of becoming a mum and I know Ian will be an amazing dad.

"Some people with this condition don't ever get better, but I'm determined I will. And my baby will be the most precious gift - I'm so lucky."

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