Karen Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Hi Sue, A warm welcome to behindthegray! Hope to hear from you soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sue Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Hi all, I am so glad that I found this site, when you have had a SAH you don't seem to get much info while you are in hospital as to how you are gonna be when you get home, so reading comments on this site was just so encouraging!!! It reassured me that I was not the only one who felt like I do!!! Well, a bit of background on myself first! I'm Sue, I'm 56 and I have 3 grown up kids and 8 not so grown up grandkids! It was on New Years Eve 2006 when I had the SAH, I got up feelin upset within myself as my uncle had passed away the day before, went to church, really enjoying myself, waving flags, havin an ace time! ( I go to a really lively church!!) Sat down,......then.....it hit me!!! Oh my goodness, as I sat down, this pain in my head hit me so hard!! I went out of the back of the church, I suppose hopin this pain would go away, it did'nt, it got worse, I was sat on the stairs in the foyer, saying "I can't lift my head, a lady was sat on the stairs behind me, praying for me, that is probably my only clear recollection during that time. To cut a long story short, it was actually 4 days before I was admitted to hospital, 4 GP's later!!!! with diagnoses of migraine, sinusitus, chest infection!!! During those 4 days since New Years Eve, when it happened, I was in bed, couldn't keep anything down, couldn't stand any light, it's all a fog to me really!! Anyway come the Thursday after New Year, I could stand no more pain and asked my husband to send for an ambulance, once in hospital, I had a CT scan which showed the brain bleed, was transferred immediately to our neurosurgery unit in Birmingham As soon as I got to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham I knew I was in the right place, soooo peacefull!!!! The morning after I got there I saw my consultant, who explained to me what would be happening, ie: either coiling of the aneurism or an operation by himself. I had my angiogram, which as you will all know, would determine which procedure would be neccessary, next morning my consultant came to me to tell me that I was one of the very rare cases that did not need either prodedure and that I should be rejoicing!!!! I told him I sure was rejoicing!!!!! I have kept in touch with another lady who I met in hospital, since our discharge on 14th January 2007 she had her aneurism coiled, I didn't need that but have been interested to know that the after effects of the haemorrhage have been just the same for both of us., when I found your sight I was so thrilled!! Just to read the comments of others who've had the same is so wonderful, makes you feel so less like you're on your own!!!!x hope to hear from others with the same experience, With love, Suexxxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen Posted February 21, 2007 Author Share Posted February 21, 2007 Hi Sue, Lovely to hear from you and nice to know a little of your background too. Glad that you've found this site helpful....it's good to know that you're not on your own and it makes you feel a bit more reassured when you see others are experiencing the same. There's a few of the guys on here that have had a SAH but didn't have the coiling or clipping procedure. I had an aneurysm coiled, but the recovery from the SAH is basically the same for us all. How's your own recovery been? Most of us here complain about the fatigue still being a major issue, quite a while into recovery...how do you find it? I'm 19 months post SAH, but I still know if I've done too much, as the fatigue kicks back in. Bye for now, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Hi Sue Welcome to the site and your definatly not alone..... Take care Louise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sue Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Hi Louise, thanks for your welcome,Iam just so glad I foundthis site! love Suex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Hi Sue Welcome to the family. This site has definitely been a godsend to me - I honestly don't know how I would have got through the aftermath without it. Take care and speak soon Sami xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Hi Sue Yes I found this site just when I was at my lowest been a god-send Louise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Welcome Sue!!! I am one of your fellow "non-a"s. (no aneurysm) I will be happy to chat with you at any time about our mutual recoveries. My sah was in Oct 2005 so only a few months before yours. I'm 51 years old. Yes, fatigue and stamina are the main bothers as well as short term memory problems and just general fuzzy thinking sometimes. The other frustration is trying to let people know that you are not as strong as you were before without sounding like a crybaby or broken record. Then we all also suffer low times emotionally because of the above. We're happy to have you with us, and look forward to hearing more from you. xo, Annie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sue Posted February 23, 2007 Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Karen, hope i'm doing this right this time! You asked how my recovery is going, I just got back from my GP as I went just for reassurance really after having to go to bed at teatime yesterday with a real bad headache and real exhaustion, think it was the worst headache i've had since the SAH he thinks i'm ok took my blood pressure, looked in my eyes etc. I suppose its the norm really but sometimes it can be a bit scary don't you think? That's why this site is proving to be such a help, reading all the things written by others, makes you realize you're not on your own. I find my memory is bad!!! The time I was in hospital is a real fog, also I've found that when having conversations with my family they will be chatting about something that I apparently know about and it's been totally wiped from my memory. Fatigue is a major thing, although its only 8 weeks Sunday since it happened I suppose I can't expect too much, last week I walked round Asda with my husband, nothing strenuous, got home, we put the shopping away then I was just wiped out and spent most of the next 2 days in bed! My tastes have changed a lot, I can't stand the smell of coffee, got really picky with food, a good thing thats happened is that I can't stand the smell of cigarette smoke and up until the SAH I was a 15 to 20 a day smoker! I had 1 on the day and haven't had 1 since. I used to enjoy having a drink of wine but even the taste of that is different now not nearly as enjoyable as before! Do many people have post SAH headaches? Another thing I've wondered is if there are many people on this site who have flown since SAH? I feel a bit wary about it, my GP reckons it should be ok after 3 months but when I think of the dreadful pain I already have when landing, in my ears due to cabin pressure, I don't know if I could risk it. Do other peoples symptoms, ie. memory, getting words mised up etc get worse when they're tired? mine certainly do. Life is certainly different at the moment, I used to be such a busy, dashabout kind of person, at the moment I'm not really frustrated by the fact that I can't do what I used to as I'm too tired. Thats all I can think of at the mo, thanks to everybody who's said hi to me and given me a lovely welcome to the site. speak to you soon, love Suexx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted February 23, 2007 Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Sue In a word to your questions YES. memory, getting words mised up etc get worse when they're tired? mine certainly do YES mines did not as bad now but if I'm stressed & tired then its bad. I used to go to my GP quite a bit in the begining just for simple reassurance dosnt hurt to ask. I dont remember anything about the 5 weeks I spent in the hospital the re-hab hospital is just a blurr. I found you have to explain to your family & friends how it is for you NOW get them to understand think that was one of the hardest things for me which is probably the reason I'm quite blunt about it now. Well think thats all just now hope your having a good Friday take care Louise.x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Posted February 23, 2007 Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Sue, Yes, everything you're experiencing sounds a lot like what most of us go through. I've been lucky on the headache end. I suffered those first few months but it's rare now. It does seem though that when I have one it's a bit worse than I used to have, but that could be my imagination. The fatigue and memory thing are the primary bugaboos with me. tgif! Annie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen Posted February 23, 2007 Author Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Sue, Yes, you did the posting right! Don't worry, us SAH'ers are known to do stuff like that....it's par for the course and things do get better... Sue, what you're experiencing in your recovery and everything that you've said, sounds pretty normal to everybody elses experience on the board. It takes a long while to recognise when you overdo things and the smallest of tasks seem to take a mountain of energy to perform. It can be frustrating, but try not to get too stressed as it tends to make your brain go into shutdown mode. What you're experiencing is normal and if you need to take a sleep, then have one....we all vary as to how much sleep or sofa breaks that we need, to be honest, I think that a lot also depends on your age. Short term memory is a problem still for a lot of us.......I can remember things that I did twenty years ago.....but not what I did two days ago! Again, the memory does improve with recovery, but you just need to keep a sense of humour if you can (not always easy I know! ) A lot of us use visual reminders such as Post-it notes stuck around the house... doing crosswords, word search that type of thing, tends to exercise the brain and keep it going.....even using this site probably helps and remembering who's who........but it takes time. If you're tired, it affects everything....I find that my memory is worse, I can't find the right words and I get grumpy! ....to name but a few....but everything is definetly more exaggerated when tired. You're still in the very early stages of recovery....so only take one day at a time and get through that, without trying to visualise the bigger picture. Trying to take on too much, too early will just set you back. Did you work before the SAH? I'll leave this here, before it turns into mammoth proportions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bogbrush Posted February 23, 2007 Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Sue Memory problems, speech difficulties, tiredness, and headaches are all very common following SAH. I had all of the above. My speech was very hesitant for some weeks following my SAH but it gradually improved and I now talk my usual fluent rubbish 6 months on . My headaches started to ease after about 7 or 8 weeks to the point where I could go for the odd day or two without pain killers. I'm more prone to headaches now than I was before SAH, but it's usually only one every week or two. My memory has also improved, but I can sometimes be a bit forgetful, mostly with trivial things. The tiredness has mostly gone now, although I sometimes have a kip in the daytime (when I'm not at work obviously), but thats no different to before my SAH. My recovery was quite quick compared to some, so take it one day at a time and remember that everyone's recovery from SAH is different. Regards Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slim Posted February 23, 2007 Share Posted February 23, 2007 Hi Sue Welcome to the site. I nearly 4months post SAH. I had a lot of Stuttering initially and real memory problems. I also thought I'd suffered mild brain damage and no one was telling me. Just on the 3 month mark a curtain lifted for me. my brain had been quite foggy and everything seemed much more coherent. I'm still very tired and taking painkillers but I feel a lot more like myself again. As the others say it still is very early days. So hang in there it does get better. Take it easy. Aine xox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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