“ONE punch can change a life.”

That’s the message of a Southampton man whose life was turned upside down after he was punched to the floor by a friend outside a city bar.

James Stevens’s head smashed into the floor where he sustained a serious head injury.

He was rushed to hospital, where doctors broke the news that he had suffered damage to his brain.

The 34-year-old now suffers from shooting pains in his head, acute hypersensitivity to noise and has been left temporarily unable to work due to extreme bouts of fatigue.

Earlier this month James Winner, a former friend of Mr Stevens, was sentenced for the punch, which took place outside the Caskaway Pub in Oxford Street in March.

Winner, 30, was given a suspended sentence after Mr Stevens asked the judge not to send him to jail.

Mr Stevens said he only pressed charges after the seriousness of his injuries came to light and in the hope Winner would learn a lesson from his court experience.

But Mr Stevens, an actor turned lettings agency co-ordinator from Bitterne, Southampton, also hopes others will learn from the life-changing attack

He said: “It has changed my life. I do feel like a different James, I still feel like me but I do feel like a different person in some ways and some people say they notice some differences.

“I do still have memory problems, my short term memory is really bad.

"I have fatigue, hypersensitivity to noise – so sounds like screeching sound really turned up.

“Doing something like my washing for 30 minutes can cause me to sweat.

“I am trying to push the boundaries but it can yo-yo.”

Asked how he felt about the court case, Mr Stevens, who recently worked at lettings firm Your Move prior to the attack said: “I do still find it difficult to understand how someone would do that to someone.

“I didn’t want him to go to prison, but instead I wanted it to hit home and that he could strive to redeem himself and hopefully work on his issues and go in a better direction.

“I also hope other people will realise that there are consequences to acts of violence.

“I don’t think people realise about the repercussions when you punch someone like I was punched.

“It can change that person’s life and yours.”

In Winner’s sentencing hearing at Southampton Crown Court this month, the court heard how the incident happened while the pair were drinking together in Oxford Street on the evening of March 1.

The court heard the pair began arguing and after a verbal dispute in the street, Winner struck Mr Stevens as he was walking away, sending him crashing to the floor where he hit his head.

Winner attended hospital with Mr Stevens, who later pressed charges after the extend of his injuries were revealed.

Winner, of Bodding Avenue, Southampton, pleaded guilty to a charge of grievous bodily harm (GBH), without intent.

In sentencing him to an 18 month sentence, suspended for two years, Recorder Simon Foster said: “More frequently than you can imagine these courts deal with cases were someone loses their temper very drastically while in drink. The consequences, as in this case, can be horrendous.

“You [Winner] need to understand the significance that one blow can lead to horrific injuries and has done here. One punch can have a devastating affect on the life of a victim and your own life.”

Winner was sentenced to 18 months suspended for two years and ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid work and 15 days of rehabilitation activity requirement.