AndyH

Hi Rod, Its very early days mate. I have been looking after Heather for 4 years now although these days she is pretty much independent! In the early days, in hospital Heather was incredibly confused. She would overhear other peoples conversations and for a while what she heard would be her reality. She once told one of the nurses that she was a dog called Sally and she lived with a woman called Hazel. Another time she told me that Kurt Cobain was married to her Aunty. As alarming as these incidents were at the time nowadays they are a source of amusement for Heather and I. Nowadays she may be slightly confused but only on occasions when she is extremely tired such as on waking etc. The memory thing in regard to medication was one that we had to deal with as well. We eventually got a pill box with an alarm fitted. If Heather does not take her medication I get a phonecall! It is a service based in Leeds for people with issues like Heathers, its free too! Not sure where you are from or if the service exists in your area but have a chat with the hospital social worker about it. Or even Headway. Things will change and move on. Be patient, recovery takes time even when its just a broken bone, this is the brain we are talking about! Take care Andy

Wow. 4 years! Its been a long road but definitely one worth walking! Its funny I remember the incidents of the day Heathers brain bled but the inbetween bits are becoming hazy now. Am glad that we are no longer defined by the incident that happened to us all that time ago. Thanks to everyone for all the support over the years. Thanks to Karen for chasing up the old forum members and setting up this site. Its been a blessing having this space. Thanks again to you all. Andy

Thanks Holly! Feedback is always appreciated! Andy

Hello everyone. Hope you are all well. Well without further ado, here is our latest endeavour to highlight changes following brain injury and how to cope with them. See ya! Andy http://www.nhs.uk/video/pages/medialibr ... ilter=&Id={D095EF23-B14E-4CA9-A6DB-1490147F68A9}&Tag=&Uri=video%2f2009%2fMay%2fPages%2fPersonalitychangerealstory.aspx

Hi there, Heather, my wife, had her SAH 4 years ago. ince then things have been, erm, interesting! At first things were tough. Then they got tougher. Now though things are coming together. Its a slow process and it takes time and patience. Healing comes in stages, at first the healing comes thick and fast, then it slows down and becames a more gradual process. Heather has gone from having a 2 second memory to having one that functions well with prompting. She still struggles with initiation and needs support in doing some tasks. As for how long you continue this jouney and is this what you should be doing. That will always be up to you. The best things you can do right now for him is to gently guide him. Its a long road but for me every painful hard step has been worth it. Heather and I are still going strong and we are slowly coming to terms with the full extent of what has happened to us. We are both still very much in love and, at long last, the time when we were defined by SAH is passing. Take care Andy

Morning all, Heather still suffers friom fatigue and we are 3.5 years into this. It seems to come in cycles that cover a 2 month period. For 3-4 weeks she will be up and busy with little to no extra sleeping during the day followed by a period of light naps during the day to full blown snore outs on the couch! Hope this is helpful Andy

Am with you on that Scott.

Morning. Heather and I have had excellent results from counselling. We see a guy at Headway. Because Headway is a charity it has been free for us to visit and have sessions. I can definately recommend it. If its unaffordable try Headway or other charities that are out there. See ya. Andy

Hi Scott, Whenever Heather has a drink her inhibitions drop and her higher exec skills disappear. I widh she didnt drink at the moment because she seems to be a year behind when she does. Her memory falls to pieces and on the odd occasion she becomes a danger to herself. We were told by one of the rehab that Heather is roughly 5 pints ahead us even before she has a drink. We also told that for every 1 drink I drink it is equal to 5 for Heather. Sad sorry **** state of affairs!! If you know the word namaste' NAMASTE

Hi Laurie, Long time no speak!!! Hope that you are well, that Michael is recovering and the break did you good. I have been busy with media stuff again and will actually be glad when things die down again. Keep your chin up and I will catch you online soon. Andy

Our heart goes out to you too!! Thanks Diane.

Hi Molly, Recovery takes time and you are early days at the moment. I got most of my info regarding recovery from the net, here, Headway, books etc. I searched everywhere. This place is still my favourite though. The experiences of SAH survivors has been invaluable to us. Welcome to the site. Andy

Good morning Kath, LGI is where my wife had her operation to clip a ruptured aneurysm. Its a good hospital!! The canteen on floor C is actually pretty good too. lol Anyway, welcome to the site! Andy

Morning Mary, Welcome to the site!!

Hi there, Nice introduction and fantastic attitude. Sounds like you have survivor mentality! Welcome to the site! Andy

Hi there. I went through a lot of the same things as you are going through now. I had a lack of support from Heathers family and struggled a lot. Add me on MSN. My MSN is nearly always on but I work shifts and I am not always there, I will get back to you as and when I can. Its not always going to be difficult, there will be times where you can't see the light and times when you can. Remember always that as time passes things change. For me as time passed it got easier to juggle the new life I am living. It takes time to adjust and you are in the early stages. Things will change. Have you asked at the hospital for any support? Can friends or any other family members help out? I learned early on that its ok to ask for support and that if anyone offers it to grab it with both hands. Any respite, at anytime is to taken as immediatley. Don't waste opportunitys to rest and recharge. Another activity I found helpful was to learn everything I could about the nursing process and the recovery process. For me, knowledge was a comfort. It gave me some power/ control in what was going on around me. I have to go now but feel free to contact me. Andy

Hi Michaels Girl. I am a carer and I want to just reinforce the advice you have been given, eat well, sleep well, focus on the positives, don't bother with guilty feelings, keep researching the illness and how to speed up recovery etc. You are here at this site now and you will find that a lot of your questions can be answered. You will also find this to be a fantastic place to come for support, I know I do. Again, take care and stay strong!! Andy

Hi there. My thoughts are with you at this time and I hope thinks work out for the best. Good luck. Andy

Hi Clare, I remember when Heathers last results came in and they were all clear. Wow you must be feeling a fantastic sense of relief!! I am happy for you!! Andy

Hi Scott. Thanks for the welcome back!! Although, really, I have never been away. I just come by and read usually. Like a voyeur!! lol. At the moment I am pretty caught up in the day to day life at home and as such I feel like I don't have much to contribute. So I read and keep up with whats going on. Hi Kim. I am glad that my words can be of some help. Like I said above, I do come by and I try to keep up with whats going on as much as possible. If you ever need a chat or anything I am never far from a computer!! Anyway, time to get my boy to bed. Take care all. Andy

Wow 'peak at 3 months!!' At 3 months Heather told one of the OTs that she was a dog called Sally and her Aunty was married to Kurt Cobain!! At 6 months Heather sat down and told me that it would be a 'good idea' if she became a prostitute. She could earn lots of money and have sex with lots of men at the same time, thus killing 2 birds with one stone. She said it would be ok as she wouldn't feel emotional at all. Ask her about that now and she remembers with horror the things she said and did back then. Heather cannot believe the things she has said and done since her SAH. Its only now 2 years and 3 months past her 'peak recovery' time that she can look back and see this. Is this not recovery? 2.5 years on and like I said before, her recovery goes on and on. Wishing you and your mum all the best. Andy

Hi Kim, My wife had her SAH in May 2005. I was first told that she wouldn't survive the initial bleeds and that she was going to die. I prepared for the worse. When Heather was still breathing in her coma I was told 'If she survives then she will be so damaged that you will probably be unable to look after her. I prepared for the worse. When they discharged her from the hospital I was told that recovery lasts around 2 years. Here we are 2 1/2 years later. I see signs of recovery weekly. Heather is capable of doing pretty much everything for her self. In hospital I cleaned and bathed her, I fed her, I helped to teach her to walk and use her left side again. I did this because at the time she couldn't do it herself. Have a look at her now. If you want to see her, look at the Andy and Heather tv spot. Its on here. Not bad for a girl that should be dead or disabled enough to be in full time care. Recovery is slow and I have been told many times that it stops after X amount of time by many 'professionals'. I have also been told by survivors of SAH, some of them 40 years into this, that recovery goes on and on. I have read case studies and books that suggest recovery is a lifelong process. The brain never stops healing. It is a remarkable organ and its possibilities are endless. Never stop pushing for support and never stop learning new ways to help your mom. The more you know the better you are prepared for the recovery your mother deserves. Take care Andy

Hi Mark, I know what you mean by emotional turmoil. I have lived through it over the last 2+ years as has probably everyone else on this site. I log on here pretty much everyday to read posts and chip in every now and then. If you want to talk to a fellow 'caregiver' feel free to message me and I will get back to you. Take care my friend. Andy

Hi Ian, Not sure if this is helpful but you could always ask places like Headway for advice. They have answered a lot of questions for me in the past. Good luck. Andy

Morning all!! Heather loves Dr Kawashima games and has now bought both of them (for Louis!!). She isnt sure if it helps her but she loves it. Heather also says that the new one is hard but she is getting used to it. I think it helps her with her memory and some of her thought processes. I love it as I am the best at it although sometimes Heather beats me at some of the games. Its a bit of a challenge for us as prior to the SAH she would have beaten me at more of them. Anyway its time for my daily training!! Andy