DawnS

Thanks for all the replies! And now for a little update... Although my letter did say MRI, when I got there my notes said MRA on them. The angiogram was done through the canula in my arm, they didn't go near my groin and i didn't have to lay around for hours afterwards! I also didn't see my consultant so am no nearer to solving the issue with the DVLA and I didn't get my results either. I'm told they will write to me 'soon'. I imagine if anything had been wrong something would have been said? It's a 130 mile round trip and I have to confess to feeling slightly robbed Hopefully I can now begin to sleep at night!

Oooh, I didn't think of cancelling! I suppose it's a bit too late now....

Wow, so take a book then!

Many thanks for the reassuring answers! I'm so glad you can't really feel it. Does anyone know how long this will take? It mentions nothing in my letter about lying flat for hours and Radcliffe's are not answering the phone right now! My appointment is at 15:45, I have visions of being there til midnight and it's 65 miles away. Dawn x

Morning I can't believe that 6 months have gone by! This afternoon, I have an appointment at Oxford Radcliffe for an angiogram and MRI. I couldn't sleep last night, my arms were both dead and I just could not get comfortable. Finally nodded off at about 4 am and was up again by 8, I now feel like an absolute zombie! A lot has changed in 6 months, when I left hospital I had virtually no memory span at all and bimbled through each day in a haze. Now I can remember what I did yesterday. I couldn't read at all, but now can read a novel in 2 days like I used to. I can walk further, no longer have taste distortions at all and rarely get headaches. I am looking forward to the changes that the next 6 months might bring I am a bit worried about the angiogram as I will be awake this time, although I have read online that I won't actually be able to feel the catheter going up through my body. I am looking forward to seeing the hospital again, I have virtually no memory of my 3 weeks there and wonder if I will recognise parts of it. Maybe when today is over with, I might start sleeping again. I was doing quite well for a few months but in the last few weeks sleep has become my nemesis I hope you are all well and have had a pleasant weekend, Dawn x

Morning I'm coming to this thread a little late, but only noticed it this morning. I have shoulder/neck pain quite regularly. About 2 weeks ago, my friend bought be a hot stone massage and miraculously, the pain vanished and has only been very vague and slight since. My arms go dead all the time, it's not like pins and needles where if you move your arm into the right position it feels ok, no this stays put and when it starts it goes on and on. I checked with my GP but he wasn't concerned. I can't drink alcohol at all, it's not that I get a bad hangover, it's that it seems to cut the tenuous link I have between my brain and my body, so to me it's just not worth it. Wine is the worst culprit of all. What I do get all the time is an incredibly itchy face. I often can't actually find the itch, like it's my eye that feels itchy but my hand will go to my nose and no matter how hard I try, it will not go to where the itch really is. It drives me insane! Dawn x

Just a little update... Headway came to my flat today for an assessment. They tell me that they can offer me some support, but then said that I would need to be funded. They are getting me a Social Worker, who will refer me officially and this should kick-start the funding issue. I was under the impression that Headway were a charity. Is this not the case? The website says they are a registered charity...I'm confused! Dawn x

Hi Karen, now this is a post I can relate to! I often say I will be glad when the day arrives that I stop discovering things that I can't do anymore! I feel like I am being ungrateful, after all I've survived a serious trauma that not many do. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I'm not grateful to be alive, it's just that I quite liked me as I was. One day I was me and the next time I was consciously aware enough to notice what was going on, I was someone else! Who is this slow, moody (ok, I was always moody!) woman? I ended up having some counselling sessions through a corporate faciltiy provided by work. The guy I spoke to had suffered a brain injury himself many years ago. It has really helped me to calm down. I was feeling quite frantic for a while back there. Is there a facility you can access in a similar way? It might help you come to terms with the changes. He suggested to me that as my bleed was on the left side, making more use of the rest of my brain might bring along some new skills that I did not have before. This isn't guaranteed obviously, but it's the thought that comforts me the most when I'm mourning the losses...maybe one day I'll discover something that I can do now that wasn't there before. What a lovely calming thought that is! I wish you well, have a nice weekend! Dawn x

Morning everyone, here's another of my 'has anyone else had this' questions, if you feel like sharing, i'd love to know! I'm sure this will turn out to be a weird coincidence - my mum died of an sah 9 years ago. Approx 15 years earlier she had a haemorrhage from an undiagnosed fibroid which resulted in a hysterectomy. She lost almost half her blood count and was ill for a long time. I had my sah in August last year and about 13 years ago I had a haemorrhage from my throat after a tonsilectomy became infected. I too lost about half my blood count and was ill for months. Has anyone else experienced something similar? To me, it seems like a trial run for the main event Have a good day! Dawn x

Hi Mary, I don't get headaches very often any more, I read on BTG that lots of water really helps and so I started drinking 2 litres every day without fail. Since then, I rarely get a headache but when I do, it runs from where I had the pressure valve fitted just above my fringe down the front of my forehead to my eye in a straight line. If I have a worse headache than this, right around my head for example, it's a sure sign I've been overdoing it. Mind you, I wee for England now! Dawn x

Thanks for the replies, it's good to know that I'm not alone - even if the symptoms aren't quite the same! I do go to bed, but I can't sleep no matter how tired i am. So I just lie there in the dark. It seems to help, certainly having some silence makes a difference but when I get up again, I still can't do anything and TV is just awful when I feel like that. It's hard to make the time pass. It's only 2 weeks until my 6 month check-up, weirdly I'm looking forward to that! Dawn x

Before I try to explain what I mean, let me just say that I have been to my GP to make sure there is nothing sinister going on and he assures me I'm fine! What I'd like to know is, does anyone else experience it and if so, what do you to when it happens? For the last three weeks, every now and then I will be in the middle of something and my brain just stops. I can actually feel it run out! It is like there is a wall in my head and there is no getting past it. There is, i have found, no point in even trying. When it appears that's it - time for bed no matter what. It's the weirdest feeling! For example, if it happens when I'm eating, i can no longer work out how to lift the fork to my mouth. I regularly do puzzles but when the wall comes, I can't even try to start an easy puzzle. I won't be able to hold a conversation properly. Like I say, I just go to bed. I assume this means I'm doing too much? My GP seemed to agree and was unconcerned. I guess I should be too. To be honest, my recovery so far has been pretty straight forward and I've been very lucky so the wall probably feels worse than it actually is. Any thoughts? Dawn x

Oh my goodness, that poor girl's parents! That certainly puts things into perspective. Dawn x

Thanks for the very kind replies, I thought for a moment there that I was going down in history as the most negative newbie ever! I have just sent an email to my half-sister apologising in case i was a bit short the other day. I've explained about the fatigue and brain-fog, so I'll see what she comes back with. I had no intention of cutting her off over a silly comment, but had to get offline quickly because I could sense that I was going to start responding in a manner that would be less than helpful! I've used some of the ideas in this thread in my email, so thanks everyone! Dawn x

I'm sorry, i didn't mean to set off something negative, I just wondered how others deal with comments. I do grasp that a lot of it comes from a lack of knowledge. Like I said earlier, I'm the third person in my family to have a sah and i knew nothing about them until I had my own. I had another whopper this week from my half-sister who said 'what that? You had that months ago, you must be fine by now'. I explained calmly that it can take years and then got offline as soon as I could. I will in future take some of the ideas given in this thread which have boosted my confidence in being able to execute a calm and nice reply. So, I for one see this thread as a positive one! Dawn x

I am just wondering how to deal with the strange and seemingly thoughtless comments that others come out with? I try not to be irritated or disappointed in front of the person but then go away and fume about it to myself later. I'm sure there must be a better way? A memorable one was 'oh, you're lucky I wish I could get 6 months off work' and the one that irritates me the most is also possibly the most common one - 'well my brain doesn't work properly either so I wouldn't worry yourself'. I realise that people don't know what to say and probably don't know a lot about brain injury, I certainly didn't until now, despite the fact that it appears I am the 3rd person in the family to have (and first to survive) a SAH. I keep telling myself that these littles niggles really aren't important in any way and that people are just trying to be nice. Have you all had experience of this? What do you say when some well-meaning colleague tells you how 'lucky' you are? Dawn x

Than you very much for both the in-depth replies, they have moved the little knot of dread that was forming! I have an appointment to see my GP this morning, I want to speak to him before OH do. It's been a little while since I saw him last because the surgery have a machine where you can check your own blood pressure and then simply hand the reading in. Dawn x

I have just phoned my local Headway. They say that I can self-refer which is great and either I can arrange to visit them with my partner, or they can visit us! Thanks for all the input! Dawn x

As I have been off work for almost 6 months now, my employer needs to involve occupational health. I was really worried about this until yesterday when I had a meeting with my manager and HR. I explained that I am really worried that the OH report will state that I am ok to return to work. I have had seemingly a rather rapid recovery and do well most days, (that said I've just had a hideous week!) to look at and for a very short chat, I appear like nothing is wrong with me. I know that I couldn't cope with the noise and the multi-tasking though. I told HR that this is what worries me and straight away she said she is not expecting me to come near work any time soon and that I've to put it out of my mind. What a relief! I was wondering though, what will be involved in their assesment? Is it mostly an interview or will there be tasks to perform? Any thoughts would be most welcome! Dawn x

Thanks so much for the replies, I'll contact Headway through the week and see what they say. I wanted to see what you all thought first as since the sah, I seem less inclined to just jump in without knowing what's likely to happen first!

Hiya, I've finally gotten round to thinking I might like to meet people who have experienced brain injury and have read on here that Headway would be a good place to start. I've looked at the website and can't find any mention of referrals but a friend told me that she was under the impression I would need a GP referral. Does anyone know if this is the case? I would phone them but my local group doesn't run at the weekend. Dawn x

That's a good idea, at least that way I will know what to expect when I get there. Thanks! Dawn x

Ah brilliant, thanks for the reply - I feel much happier now!

I've been thinking about this one for a few days...Lol, not a few days seeing as the thread was only started yesterday! I too am Scottish and miss alcohol! But it cuts the link between my brain and hands so it's just not worth it...on the plus side, no more hanovers! I miss being able to jump in my car and get out of the village, but on the plus side as I can't drive, work can't hope for me to go back yet. I miss logic! But, I've been told that as I am now having to use my right brain more, I might develop new skills I never had. That would be lovely! Dawn x