Afraid to do whatever you were doing when the bleed happened?

[AS in Ottawa]

How do other people feel about this?

 

My bleed happened after I was bent over looking in my bag for something and then I stood upright again.

 

Since then I have been scared to put my head down..lower than my waist lets say.

 

When I was home from hospital the first time I avoided bending over. I would bend at the knees and keep my head up.

 

Then when I was back in hospital a few weeks later, I had a shower and washed my hair...without thinking about it I put my head down to wrap my wet hair...all of a sudden I was seeing like glow bugs..little flashes of light. I stood back up and they stopped after a minute or two. I didn't feel sick or dizzy. but back to being scared to put my head down.

 

a few weeks later, follow up with my GP...I told her about it and she said "have you tried it since then?"..which I hadn't at that time but did try when I got home and everything was fine...no fireworks in my vision.

 

This morning...a few weeks later again.....I did a light exercise video. My favourite stretch at the end used to be where you bend at the waist and let yourself hang..feels great on the back. But I found myself too scared to do it.  I stretched laying on the floor instead.

 

Are you/ were you afraid to go back to doing whatever it was when the bleed happened?

 

I see the Neuro doc tomorrow. I'll ask him about it. My follow up CT results came and they say everything looks normal. So that's good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Tina]

Hi AS  

 

I was not scared of putting my head down but avoided it as it hurt my head and made me really dizzy. My ruptured Aneurysm happened when i was walking up my drive to my front door. On reflection, thinking back, i was scared to go out of my front door alone.

 

I had double vision and balance problems. I did it one step at a time, a bit further each day as it felt comfortable to do so. Karen who is the founder of this wonderful Forum suggested i used walking sticks. This did help alot and i became more confident.

 

Crazy really how it affects you. I was always a go getting, just do it, independent type of person. I think how you are feeling is perfectly normal after the huge life threatening trauma you have gone through and survived  

 

I hope when you see your Neuro Consultant they can give you peace of mind. Great news your CT results came back normal. Maybe do your exercise with a friend for a while and just take small steps, you are doing so well, be very proud of yourself  xx

 

Take care

Tina xx

[jess]

Hi there I was walking from my mom and dads house when I collapsed. I had already handed in notice for the job and I had moved to Wolverhampton whilst in hospital as I had already given notice on my flat. 

 

I was afraid to walk down that street but after a couple of years I was fine and now walk down it alone hope things improve and the fear eases for you soon xxx 

[Susan]

Hi AS

 

I think it is understandable you are a bit scared of bending over. Mine happened when I was standing upright but I still did not like bending over for months - just did not like the idea, or the feeling, of a rush of blood to the head. You will slowly get more used to it with time and eventually won't even think about it.

 

Mine happened at 1am, stood in front of my bathroom mirror,  just as I was about to clean my teeth before bed. I had been given a brown steroid inhaler by my GP a few days earlier for worsening asthma, and had just taken my second puff and put the inhaler down when my head exploded. I never used the inhaler again.

 

Luckily I did not need it as my wheeze had cleared up while I was recovering in hospital. My asthma got worse again when I first got into my car 5 weeks later and I then realised an air freshener in my car was the cause. I found it scary when I had to use my blue reliever inhaler for the first time after my bleed.

 

Also for a few months I used to feel a general sense of unease when I was stood in the bathroom looking at myself in the mirror late at night before bed.

 

Take things easy. I wish you well in your recovery.

x

[Chris G]

Hi. I had mine while running. I was able to start running again as soon as the doctor cleared it. I think of it this way. The bleed happened for some reason. Whatever that reason was is now gone. Statistically you are no more likely to have it happen again than anyone else. So I view myself as stronger now that I am past it than I was before it with this unknown flaw ticking in my head. I hope this mindset can help. 

[Sallios]

I was driving when I had mine. Sudden pain and strange feeling like there was liquid running inside my head. I carried on driving as there was nowhere to stop and decided not to drive down the back lane and kept going on main road. I even managed to reverse my car on the drive.

 

I don’t know how I managed to get home but I have heard from other people some amazing stories about how they managed to reach safety. Once home everything happened: double vision, vomiting, feeling I was going to die. I remember being pushed up the slope of the ambulance then nothing for three days.

 

Took me ages before I could drive down that road even as a passenger and I still have flashes of memory as I pass the place it started nearly four years later.