New Member Suzie - Australia

[Suzie]

Hi,

On around the 26th April I woke in the early hours feeling very dizzy as I rolled over, I needed hubby to help me to the toilet, as I was very wobbly. Got back to bed and sleep.

 

Got up ok, just had a bad headache, after 4ish days of the headache hubby took me to hospital, this was on Sunday 1st May 2022. 

 

They did some tests and a CT Scan, to find out I had a bleed on the brain. (SAH) I was rushed to a bigger hospital, lights and sirens to get a angiogram.

 

They fasted me from midnight for the angiogram, Monday around 5.30pm they let me and the nurses know that it's not happening, so I can eat and drink. They fasted me again from midnight for the test Tuesday. Waited all day again, dehydration setting in, which made my headache worse, again sometime in the afternoon they said it wouldn't be happening today, so was allowed to eat and drink, but surprisingly couldn't do much of either.

 

By now my tongue was covered with a white yucky texture. Fasted again from midnight to have the procedure Wednesday, same story, no procedure and fasted from midnight again. Thursday around lunch the nurse or myself (brain a lot foggy by then) was told I didn't even need to fast as it's a local in my arm. Grrrrrrr.

 

Thursday afternoon I finally got the angiogram, than had to wait until the neurological team have their meeting, once a week on Tuesday's. They did tell me I did have spasms around the bleed. So I sat back until Tuesday.

 

When they came in, it didn't really show if there was an aneurysm or not, so will need a MRI Monday, ready for their Tuesday meeting. So that happened Monday, then they could still see spasms, and won't send me home, even though I seemed ok(their words)

 

To cut a long story shorter this continues for a few weeks, the last Monday before I was discharged I had another angiogram in the groin, after that I had to lay down flat on my back for 4 hours, which was torture.

 

I was discharged Wednesday 1st June, I lost the whole of May, had Mother's Day and my birthday in hospital. The next day I had an appointment at the stroke clinic, we walked in and get told "you shouldn't be here yet, your brain hasn't had time to recover" coz they made the appointment when I was admitted, but didn't change it as I was in for so long. The doctors took me off my happy pills(could of caused the bleed) and withheld my RA injection(1 per fortnight) incase as well.

 

So I wasn't feeling the best mood wise, and 4 days after I got home we had to have our 21 month old puppy pts due to NCL5, we lost her brother the year before with the same illness.

 

I'm still not allowed to drive yet, I have an driving assessment appointment on the 15th August. Does anyone know what this involves in Australia? 

[Karen]

Hi Suzie, re: driving assessment - We have a Behind the Gray Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/behindthegray and one of our Australian visitors has kindly offered the following information.

 

"There are time frames dependent upon the brain injury. But if your neurologist says its ok, then its ok. If there is uncertainity, there are specialist occupational therapists who can complete a driving assessment - this is more a test of the cognitive requirements during driving, decision making, reaction times, planning, and then a physical test afterwards"

 

You can click on the link below for a driving fact sheet.

 

https://strokefoundation.org.au/what-we-do/for-survivors-and-carers/stroke-resources-and-fact-sheets/driving-fact-sheet?fbclid=IwAR2VLAWF96l3yo_5CHQ5NbZVX20Tp_uU5p81M5vKy3Ok2Xl2-fvskEPNx5M#:~:text=You must not drive for at least four weeks after,medical clearance from your doctor

 

 

 

[Suzie]

Thanks for the info, it was very helpful.