English woman who woke up with Welsh accent despite never visiting the country says her old dialect has finally returned – a year later

By William On Jul 7, 2024

An English woman who woke up with a Welsh accent despite never having visited the country has her old accent back a year later.

Zoe Coles, 36, from Stamford in Lincolnshire, developed the new accent overnight in June 2023 but thought it would go away over time.

When that didn’t happen, the mother of two was diagnosed with Foreign Accent Syndrome (FAS). The Welsh intonation stuck for over a year, until Zoe woke up on July 2 with her old voice back.

Zoe says she is ‘disoriented’ and doesn’t know whether her English accent – which Zoe describes as ‘Kentish’ – will remain or whether her Welsh accent will return.

She said, ‘It’s been four days. I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the future. [I don’t know] whether the English accent will remain or whether the Welsh will return.

Zoe Coles, 36, from Stamford in Lincolnshire, who woke up with a Welsh accent despite never having visited the country, has her old accent back – a year later

“I think the best word to describe how I feel is disoriented. I really don’t know what to think.

‘It’s really hard to watch videos of me speaking with this new accent, and now it’s even harder to watch myself with a Welsh accent.

“It’s really strange for me. I thought it was a year ago that my accent changed, and that the Welsh accent would be permanent. Who knows what’s going to happen.”

Zoe was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder (FND) in January 2022, a condition where there is a problem with the way the brain sends and receives signals.

This is thought to be the reason for the later change in her accent. Zoe often suffers from tics, memory problems, slurred speech and pain in her legs.

Earlier, before her accent returned, she said, “I was a full-time working mom, I could get up in two hours and clean the house, shower, get ready, go grocery shopping, go to work and come home.

‘Now I need help in the shower, in case my legs give out. I can’t do the housework in two hours, it takes two days.

‘I get tired so quickly, I can go grocery shopping because I can hold the cart, but I can’t do much more. It completely exhausts me.’

Zoe developed the new accent overnight in June 2023, but thought it would eventually go away

Zoe said she is ‘disoriented’ and doesn’t know whether her English accent – which Zoe describes as ‘Kentish’ – will remain or whether her Welsh accent will return

The mother of two was diagnosed with foreign accent syndrome (pictured with her daughter Brooke and son Zak)

Zoe was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder (FND) in January 2022, a condition where there is a problem with the way the brain sends and receives signals (Zoe pictured with her fiancé Lee)

She said: ‘I want to raise awareness and show that this is real life. I’m speaking out because I want people to see that these things are happening.

‘For me this is the reality, as much as I don’t like it. I like the accent and have adapted to it.

‘But it still causes problems for me, I still get headaches and tingling in my face. It’s not just the accent, it’s so hard for me.’

In videos she shared on her TikTok account @zoecoles1she said that she sometimes has chronic pain that prevents her from talking or walking.

FAS is usually the result of a head or brain injury, with strokes being the most common cause. It can also occur after a brain trauma, a brain hemorrhage, or a brain tumor.

Other causes mentioned in medical journals include multiple sclerosis and conversion disorder.

Zoe, who originally developed a German accent but later changed to Welsh, has previously spoken openly about her battle with the disorder.

The Welsh accent stuck for over a year until Zoe woke up on July 2 with her old voice back

In videos she shared on her TikTok account @zoecoles1, she revealed that FND causes her chronic pain and sometimes makes it impossible to talk and walk

Zoe, who is dealing with the changes in her accent, has been to a neurologist and has been told there is nothing they can do for her.

Foreign Accent Syndrome: What Do We Know?

Foreign accent syndrome is a rare condition in which the patient speaks with an accent different from their natural speaking style.

Most often this is the result of head or brain injury. Stroke is the most common cause.

FAS can also occur after brain trauma, a brain hemorrhage, or a brain tumor. Other causes have also been reported, including multiple sclerosis and conversion disorder.

Since its discovery in 1907, the species has been recorded only 150 times worldwide.

Cases of FAS have been identified around the world, including changes in accent from Japanese to Korean, from British English to French, and from Spanish to Hungarian.

It causes people to pronounce vowels differently, move their tongue and jaw differently when speaking, producing a different sound, and even substitute words for ones they don’t normally use.

In some cases, no clear cause has been identified.

Foreign accent syndrome can last for months or years, but sometimes it is even permanent.

In March she said: ‘I struggle with it very much, you’re born with a voice, you grow up and develop a way of speaking and that’s been taken away from me.

‘Although it has boosted my confidence, I would prefer it all to be over and life to go back to normal.’

Zoe has been to a neurologist and was told that there is nothing they can do for her.

She said: ‘I want to raise awareness and show that this is real life. I’m speaking out because I want people to see that these things are happening.

‘For me this is the reality, as much as I don’t like it. I like the accent and have adapted to it.

“But it still gives me problems, I still get headaches and tingling in my face. It’s not just the accent, it’s so hard for me.”