Woman Develops Geordie Accent After Migraine

A woman experienced intense fear after waking with an unfamiliar accent overnight. Despite never visiting the North East, Verity Went, originally from the Midlands, found herself speaking in a Geordie accent. Verity, a 27-year-old from Staffordshire, was alarmed as she realized she didn't recognize her own voice. She began to adopt Geordie terms, such as calling her mother "mam" instead of "mum." This is prepared by SSP.

Verity had been suffering from severe migraines that caused blackouts, vomiting, seizures, and temporary paralysis. People often doubt her sincerity, with Verity stating, "People just think I'm faking it. But I'm not. I didn't ask for this to happen." Her diagnosis in 2022 revealed she had functional neurologic disorder (FND), characterized by unexplained symptoms linked to nervous system issues without a physical neurological disease.

Additionally, she received a diagnosis of foreign accent syndrome, a rare condition often emerging after head trauma or stroke. Healthline confirms this occurrence as common following brain injuries.

Since sharing her story online, Verity has experienced widespread attention and aims to raise awareness and dispel misconceptions about her condition. In a TikTok video, she stated: "Tell me something about yourself that nobody believes – I'll go first." She explained the timeline of her speech change: "This isn't actually my original accent; it changed three months ago." Verity added that her brain and nervous system struggle to connect properly due to FND.

Commenters were amazed, sharing relatable experiences. One user, from Newcastle, remarked, "I genuinely thought you were from Newcastle too until I watched the full video." Others noted similar experiences among friends with FND, who also developed unexpected accents.