rince

Hi Molly! Welcome. Scott

Would be nice to smell anything...... Scott

Hiya Slim, I spent two years seeing my clinical neuro psyc, and if you are anything like me you'll benefit from seeing yours. It's not about labels, and being "brain damaged" certainly is a BIG label because EVERYONE who has had a SAH has been "brain damaged" but then again anyone who has been drunk is also "brain damaged". What you'll find out over the period that you see this person is exactly what areas you have problems in, exactly. Whether it's concentration, memory etc etc and then you'll be told how to work around them but there are no instant cures, if there is such a thing as a cure. The only thing I would suggest is to brush up on American culture, because most of the tests they use come from the "good ol' USA" well at least all of those they ran on me did. Kinda got annoying after a while Scott PS The one thing we did do quite early on was to compare IQs pre and post SAH, and even I only lost ten points on my last test which could well be down to something other than the SAH!

The whole thing about relationships is that they can evolve and change over a period of time, but a SAH means that lots of things have to change at the same time. I went from running a telecoms business to being unemployable, whilst my wife went straight to being the major breadwinner. I went from a part time Dad to being a major part in my sons' everyday lives (wonderful) and my Sarah went from being a social recluse (I was working virtually every hour God sent) to having a varied and active social life. As I've said elsewhere not everything that the SAH has done to us is negative, there are a lot of positives there and we need to be sure that we realise that if we are lucky enough to have a loving partner that we don't forget them. Scott

Hiya Jane, Nice to know that SAH and having a shunt isn't a unique condition!!! Agree about the tiredeness (looking at my post count tonight maybe you won't agree tho). Make or break is what my Neuro Psyc told me about SAH and marriage, but then again you can say that about anything and marriage! If he wasn't willing to support you through this then you are best shot of him. We are a unique and varied bunch we've been told to carry on despite busting on the game of life grab whatever you can during this "free go". Scott

I was completely the other way, and it was only when I asked my wife why she was crying during "Bruce Almighty" that I realised this. That was the first time that I'd laughed since the SAH and that was over a year before. I hadn't realised that but hey I think I'm normal!

We were trying to think of a slogan for a T-Shirt but like with most things we gave up. Strangely enough one of the best moments since I had the SAH was after I had a shunt fitted and it was very obvious that I'd had brain surgery. I know exactly what you mean about people thinking along those lines, my wife was once told (whilst I was stood there I might add) that I couldn't of had a brain haemorraghe as "people don't recover from that". Scott

From a male point of view my SAH had very little to do with sex, although I have a highish sex drive. Restarting "normal" relations was more difficult for my wife than for me as I didn't really associate SAH with sex, difficult for those whose SAH was finally triggered by sex I know. Positions have been the main stumbling point for me as I suffered a "regular" stroke during coiling and although like everyone else you wouldn't know it to look at me I have severe problems with my right hand side. What I will say is that it could be the starting point to "fall" for your partner all over again as you have to re-examine EVERYTHING even down to the basic mechanics. My relationship with my wife has undergone a complete sea change in all departments. I can understand why I hear about so many people having major relationship problems after SAH as EVERYTHING (again with the capitals) changes after...... Then again as we all know you find out who your real friends are afterwards maybe you find out just how strong your relationship is. Cheers Scott

Again the HUGE difference in advice! I was told to abstain from all contact sports. (Still football is fast becoming a non-contact sport)

Marfan's is one of the links that mean it is more likely to be a genetic cause of SAH. Thats all I know about it. Scott

I've heard the same "turn it down" myth myself, and believed it until I found out how the process works. Yes there is a high success level for appeals, because only those who truely have a case will lodge an appeal. The people who really make the difference are the Drs who write the medical reports, and as we all know you can get "good" and "bad" Drs as far as SAH is concerned. There is the real problem for us, educating the medical community about the long term effects of SAH, both physical and mental. Speak to YOUR GP about DLA and does he/she think that you qualify? If you have memory problems tell them, if you have dizzy spells tell them, if you have residual physical problems tell them. Until they actually know what the real life problems we all have then we won't get the benefits that we are qualified for. SAH covers a huge spectrum all the way from those who go back to work within 6 weeks to those who will never work again, and if you can't return to work then you qualify for help. Scott

I thought I was going to watch it, but at the last moment decided that I really didn't want to. Scott

Get her to look at "our stories" both on here and at Different Strokes, would give more of an insight. Scott

If you had a shunt inserted you'll probably have to wait 12months if my experience is anything to go by. DVLA said that I had to go a year fit free after brain surgery (which having a shunt inserted is counted as). Still with the conflicting advice we're all getting it might be worth speaking to someone at DVLA and getting them to put it in writing. Scott

Jan, Welcome to the world of SAH! The support on here is superb and Karen does a wonderful job in allowing us to all come together and she's created a resource that is unrivaled for those if us who've had a SAH. The symptons you're suffering are very similar to those that I'm currently having and I'm fairly sure it's just a cold. As with anything make an appointment with you doctor just to be sure tho. I know that soon you'll have a whole string of replies to this post from people far more capable than I of reassuring you! Again Welcome Scott

We asked both the DVLA and our insurance broker, and we were told that there was no reason to tell Norwich Union that I had suffered a SAH. Another case of the "experts" giving conflicting advice.

We were told that we didn't have to notify our insurance company.

Sometimes it can get annoying to hear about what I would of done "before" or how I would react in any given situation. To be honest I don't like the sound of the person that everyone seems to think I was prior to my SAH, and to be even more honest I don't think that person actually exsists at all! I know that having gone through what we've gone through can change us, and yes I am aware of the possible "personality" issues that it can cause BUT I think that sometimes is just an easy out for people to hang another thing on the SAH "hook". People like to have these "hooks" as it can be easier to blame something rather than to try and resolve an issue that confronts them. Yes I have changed, but that has a hell of a lot to do with my lifestyle now as opposed to then and I don't even want to go anywhere near the psy of going through the whole "near death" stuff. Yes we've changed, but then again everything else has but I still feel that I am the same person as before but with a different perspective. Rant over......... Scott

20-30 a day......switched to cigars in an effort to cut down.....ended up smoking 30 cigars a day

It's a strange thing taste and smell...... I have no official sense of taste or smell but I have a memory of how things taste and that's what I taste. I've not had a bad meal since the SAH! We only found out when Headway ran some simple sense tests on me, and I couldn't tell the difference between various tastes and smells without some sort of visual clue. If I have a packet of crisps I can taste the right flavour, but if the crisps are on a plate it's always plain or cheese and onion. Someone tried one of the trick choccies on me but I munched away and only tasted chocolate (instead of chilli) and even asked for another one. Scott

Even now almost four years post-SAH I'm still learning my own limits, and those limits are annoyingly not very far. I can appear "normal" for a long period of time, but the recovery period is a loooonnnnnnggggg one. I take care not to overdo it, but I am always going over my own limits and paying the price by being "ill" afterwards. Scott

Like everyone else I've been told I can fly, but I'm not going to!! Scott

I was told that I couldn't take any blood thining agent and that includes aspirin. I always read the leaflet not with ANY medication just in case after my wife was reading through one for Bonjela (tooth/gum gel) and it actually said if you've had a brain haemorraghe not to use it...... Also there was a study that suggested a common ingredient in cold and flu remedies was directly linked to SAH in women (that ingredient hasn't been used for a number of years). Scott

I suffered from migraines for years pre-SAH, and my lifestyle was one full of stress, alchol, and cigarettes........ so only myself to blame really. One way or another I was destined to have some sort of major health problem. The exercise I used to get was rushing out of a tube station to grab a malborough....... Now tho it's much slower, more family oriented and I'm much happier in myself for it. Scott

I took it for a long time afterwards (had it on a repeat) and my Doc was shocked when I went in for something else and told him I was still taking it! He cancelled it straight away....... Scott