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Rory

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Everything posted by Rory

  1. I had a NASAH about 2 years ago, and I also had the back pain radiating down the legs that went on for a couple of weeks. Terrible, but it went away. The headaches took longer to subside, but it all eventually did. I was not on the drug your husband was.
  2. Hello James, I had bad sinus headaches in the week leading up to my NASAH event, so bad that I was on antibiotics as I was diagnosed with a sinus infection (via Zoom--it was Covid time--who knows if I actually had one). Like you, in the forehead and facial areas. I've had sinus headaches on and off for years prior to the NASAH, mostly as a result of allergies. And I continued to get them after the NASAH. So....late last year I was tested for allergies, and was found that I'm off-the-charts allergic to my cat, as well as some trees and grasses. So now I'm getting allergy shots every week to build immunity to these things. I started them in January, and am already noticing an improvement. My unexpert theory on this is that the sinus pressure weakened something, which caused a blood vessel to rupture, which leads me to believe that the root cause of all of this is my allergies.
  3. Welcome, Alan! I'm over a year from my bleed, and still get the occasional headache, but for the most part I'm back to what I was doing. You didn't say anything about the dreaded body pains that often come with blood reabsorption. Hopefully that means it's not happening to you. But if you do start feeling backaches and pain down your legs, rest assured that's likely all part of the recovery process. Mine was gone after a couple of weeks. But maybe you'll dodge that bullet.
  4. I'm surprised a doctor dismissed that this was blood reabsorption along the spinal cord, which I was told by the doctors who cared for me was common and to be expected after a NASAH. That part--the pain along the back, hips, and legs--lasted about 2 weeks for me, then gradually went away. As you heard from others, other symptoms can last longer, months even, which varies from person to person. But for me, 13 months later, things are largely improved so occasionally I still get a bad headache. Everyone's different, but this does get better, especially for folks who are in general good health. Mine happened while cycling up a a pretty steep hill--seems exercise-induced NASAHs are pretty common.
  5. My experience is that my back pain went away after about 2 - 3 weeks, but the headaches stuck around for longer. They, too, have gotten gradually better, but almost a year later I still feel them every now and then. Patience is the key word!
  6. Regarding recovery time, my neurologist said it would be about 8 weeks until I got back to my baseline, but that was really optimistic. That seems to be a pattern. I'm almost 10 months out, and while overall feeling pretty good, I occasionally get one of those unique headaches. But for the most part I'm back doing the things I used to do. As for driving, in the US the doctor just tells you not to, in my case for 6 weeks--our DMV never got involved. In the early days (after the 6 weeks), fast highway driving was really uncomfortable and led to exhaustion and more headache, but driving on the local streets for short jaunts was OK. I can just confirm what everyone here has been saying--be patient, listen to your body, and get rest. It will get better, but it'll probably be a matter of months, not weeks. And I never stopped drinking my usual moderate volume of coffee--in fact they brought it to me while I was in the hospital.
  7. Hello Karissa, yeah, your story is similar to mine. It hit me while I was on one of my routine bike rides in the hills near my home--seems these things tend to happen while exercising. As for the "why," the way I look at it, my body is performing a lot of functions through a lot of different systems all at once, and every now and then something is bound to go wrong. All those blood vessels, and one just happened to have a little rupture. I'm just glad that a NASAH is all that happened. As for building up your exercise again, it's best just to start small and incrementally grow the level of activity. 6 months ago after my discharge I could barely make it up and down the two flights of stairs at my building. I'm now back to the same level of exercise of where I was, but it was a gradual process. And I still get headaches and fatigue--just mild versions of what I used to have. And if you do yoga, don't let your head go upside down for a while! You'll notice a theme on this forum--when you get discharged, they generally tell people they'll be back to normal in no time, but they don't tell you that recovering can be a very slow and frustrating process with lots of headaches, neckaches, and fatigue. Best advice there is to just go with it, listen to your body, and take this time to slow things down as you recover. It does get better, especially if you're fundamentally healthy. And you'll have good days and bad days--healing does not happen in a linear fashion, but in fits and starts.
  8. I got my second Moderna shot a couple of days ago. Getting a bit of brain fog, fatigue, and headaches--kind of what I was already experiencing due to the NASAH! The only new thing is my arm hurts. But other than these things, all of which are to be expected, not experiencing any problems. And very relieved to be fully vaccinated.
  9. I agree with folks that starting with walks is a good thing to do, gradually increasing distance. You might also try some gentle yoga--I was doing an on-line chair yoga class that didn't involve my head going upside down. I'm 3 months in--the first few days I could barely walk a block, but now I can walk or cycle for miles. I'm also now doing more vigorous yoga classes. I'm not yet back to where I was pre-NASAH, but pretty close. But I don't think my case was that severe--for other cases it can all take longer. I think a bit of cardio exercise may be better for your recovery than none at all.
  10. Hello Keyo, I'm almost three months in, and while progress has been slower than I'd like it to be, when I think back to where I was in January, I realize that progress is happening. This is a weird condition--extending the broken leg comparison, you know that you can't put weight on a broken leg because it tells you right away with a sharp pain. With NASAH, though, I never know what caused any particular headache that I have since the feedback loop isn't so immediate. Just rest assured that things do improve. In fits and starts and what seem like setbacks, but they will improve.
  11. Thanks, Subs! The timing of this NASAH is strangely fortuitous, given that we've been in a mandatory shelter-in-place order for almost the last year. Many of the things I used to do that would aggravate my head right now--movies, concerts, happy hours, restaurants, travel--aren't happening. So there's no problem with "FOMO" (or "fear of missing out," in case you hadn't seen that one.) I've actually been enjoying this time with my wife and cats, getting some reading done, watching lots of movies, walking the neighborhood, and listening to music. And, of course, taking naps!
  12. Thank you for all the warm welcomes! I look forward to being part of this very unique community. Seems these things often occur during exercise--a friend of mine told me that you never hear of NASAH happening to people while sitting around watching Netflix. (He was joking, of course.)
  13. Hello, I live in Oakland, California, USA. I had a NASAH on December 23, spent 5 days in the hospital with excellent care, and then sent home with minimal information. I'm so glad I discovered this forum--I'm having on-going symptoms that have freaked me out a bit, but reading through some of these posts, I see it's all to be expected and shared by other NASAH folks. This is also helping manage my expectations in terms of how long they'll go on for--the doctors really made it seem like I'd be back to my baseline within 6 weeks. With me, it's like I improved 75% in the first couple of weeks after discharge, but this last 25% of symptoms--headache and fatigue, mostly-- is just stubbornly sticking around. I'm 59, and pretty healthy. The NASAH occurred when I was riding my bike up a steep hill--something I do -- or at least did -- all the time. I think I'll just ride the flat roads for the time being. From what I'm reading, I seem to have not gotten a terrible case of it--I was back at work a couple of weeks after the incident, though I'm lucky that I have been completely working at home for the last year. I'm taking more Tylenol than I used to, but getting the work done. A follow up MRI from last week didn't reveal any big problems. Anyways, that's it--just wanted to introduce myself, and I look forward to learning more and sharing more NASAH stories with you all!
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