New Member MaryB

[MaryB]

Hi, I hope this is where I am to introduce myself!! I am a 52 year old female, married with 2 grown sons. We have 2 dogs & 2 cats that share our historical home in Indiana. On Sept. 16, 2011, I had my SAH. It was a Friday and I had flown home from a week in California after visiting family that had suffered a tragic loss. I got in late Wednesday evening; Thursday morning I had my back molar pulled (because everyone told me to just have it pulled, not a big deal). I suffer from oral lichen planus so dental procedures push me into a few weeks of mouth sores. I also have fibromyalgia that I have had for about 15 plus years. I manage ok as I am mover and a shaker! I work for a small animal veterinarian office/ hospital as an assistant. I went to work Friday and did not feel very well. I just thought it was my tooth and maybe I was getting a dry socket. I left work mid afternoon to lie down. Around 8:00 I called dentist to check my tooth and it was fine, 9:00 I drove myself to emergency room to get something for nausea as I knew I was going to be sick. Midnight I was lying on my bathroom floor vomiting and I had to hold my head in my hands because I had to try to hold it still. My headache felt electrical and it was like Star Wars fighting with lasers. I was diagnosed with Venous AnginomaI spent the weekend in hospital. Wednesday I was having a severe headache again and went back to ER and they transported me to a bigger hospital and the neurosurgeon was waiting for me when I got there. I was diagnosed with Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in a “rare region” & had blood spill into spinal fluid. I do not recall much about it but my husband kept a diary. That ended up being a really nice thing to have after I came home. During my angiogram I was in terrible pain and they nicked my brain stem. So I hope to never have another one of those EVER!

I was in the hospital for about a week and if I had to have surgery would of had to go to the university hospital and because of the location I would of suffered greater brain damaged. I had scans everyday and the bleeding was slowing down then it stopped. Today I am still trying to cope with my headaches and just get my feet back on the ground. I have some short term memory loss, taste issues, and fatigue. AND I get confused sometimes so please direct me like I am a 1st grader it does not offend me! Plus I am trying to stay ahead of my pain by taking my medication b4 I am in bad pain. I was not taking it so I could think clear but that was not working very well for me!

1. Subarachnoid hemorrhage, (blood in spinal fluid)

2. Intracerebral hemorrhage

3.Vertebral artery dissection

4.Tentorial Tumor - probably memingioma

5. Right eye some vision loss

6. Headache & neck pain

I am so glad to have found this place - It has been one of the best things that has happend to me in months! Thank you all for being in here and posting.

[Sandi K]

Hi Mary! You've come to the right place. This site is full of warm caring people who share similar experiences and offer no end of support. It sounds like your angiogram was a nightmare, under those circumstances I wouldn't want another either!

Many of us here are 'mover and shaker' types who seem to be struck by lightening with the SAH. It sure knocked me on my butt right out of the blue. I'm just over a year now. Recovery is slow and sometimes still I just want someone to direct me like a first grader but more often I'm taking charge and in control again.

I think you said in another post you have right eye damage? So do I. I don't think I'll ever get used to it. I'm still trying to rub the 'lint' out of that eye!

Sandi K. Xoxoxox

[MaryB]

Thank you for your support. I am shocked at how little information I was given at the time of my release. I am due for my nap and every word I write looks wrong...... errrr. I was wondering and should ask somewhere other than here but it would take me an hour to find that place to post. BUT prior to my BH I had symptoms of great fatigue, writing wrong words in charts at work as well as finishing a sentence with a wrong thought. My attention deficient was in overdrive, can’t spell, can’t think straight, before Cymbalta I had much neuropathy. If I was pinched or something it almost felt like I had shingles again. My neurosurgeon does not think any of this was due to my hemorrhages ( we spell that different here in the states). Did anyone have any sort of problems prior to their episode? Just wondering. I have an appt next week with neurologist and I hope to find some answers about the past year. Because I strongly feel something was not right. Kindest Regards, Mary

[Danny H]

Hi mary glad you found the forum like i just did.

i also lost sight in my left eye sah side it was on my optic nerve ,i suffered 5 blees with like yourself blood in the spinal fluid.

a close call i was told,things will look up and now you have things incommon with us all,youll be able to get answers faster

take care and dont ever feel alone as i did.

Dan

[MaryB]

Thanks Dan, About 3 weeks after I was home I stood up & tore a bunch of tendons and ligaments in my foot, about 2 weeks after that I went in for a MRI with and without contrast ( I only had a bunch of CT scans in hospital) and they found a brain tumor. I was like REALLY????? I could not even discuss it more than we will recheck the growth in 3 months and I totally put it on my back burner. I do believe everything happens for a reason although we may never know that reason we often are examples of strength and courage to others without even knowing that we are doing anything more than taking one day at a time.

[Sandi K]

Hi again! Prior to my NASAH I was experiencing fatigue and headaches for months. I didn't feel well and couldn't catch up on my rest on weekends or even a 2 week vacation. I was always tired and popping ibuprofen for my head. I had heart palpitations and hot flushes too. I went to my GP thinking maybe I had skin cancer or something and all my energy was being used to fight it off. I had an EKG and a biopsy on a mole on my leg. All came back fine at the end of Sept. my head blew up November 10. I hadn't slowed down at all at work, only in my social life. We stopped doing so much on weekends cuz I just didn't have the energy.

Once my head blew up the headaches stopped for about 6 months. It was great relief. Instead I had the feeling of an elastic band around my head. The heart palpitations and hot flushes went away too. Later I developed migraine like headaches and now I take anti migraine meds daily which work very well.

I firmly believe my symptoms were due to something wrong in my head but I don't think any GP would ever have thought to scan me based on what I was presenting. Luckily, when the actual bleed happened the paramedics figured out what was happening (although they assumed aneurysm) and the ER was prepared for me upon arrival.

Mary, when I was discharged days later I wasn't given information either. Most people here on BTG share that experience and it's awful. Being discharged from hospital with SAH is a lonely place.

Sandi K.

[Gill C]

I had always had headaches before my anni & on reading stuff on the net whilst waiting for a diagnosis of my head pain I think I had cluster headaches. I too had migraines & I counted 10 in 7 days whilst waiting for my MRI. Since my clipping I haven't had a single migraine so I think the weak vessel behind my eye caused my migraines too & then eventually ballooned after 45 years!! The vessel (posterior communicating artery) which was clipped is on the same side as the visual disturbances/halo I used to get with migraines & the same as where the headache was.

I'm lucky in that my headaches have certainly got better since my op, I can generally take ibuprofen or paracetamol or on really bad days co codamol.

[mshawx_head]

Welcome Mary,

Like you, I've found this site of great support. We all have something in common and yet everyone's experience is at least a little different, as is the pace and way that the recovery goes.

I know you'll find people here a great help - and just logon when you need to let off steam or bounce ideas and feelings off people who know how it is.

I also was discharged with very, very little information. I'd always assumed it was beacuse mine was a NASAH and they clearly figured reasonably early on that it was routine-ish - so therefore was pretty uninteresting for the neurologists. Sounds like all these neuro's are the same, regardless !

Take care,

Mags

[Louise]

Hi Mary

Warm welcome to the site, glad you found us..

[jess]

Welcome to btg. Hope to chat sometime. Jess.xxx

[Winb143]

Hi MaryB

Welcome to site hope you feel well xx

I had SAH in August 2009 and 2010 shunt was fitted in August 2010...unil shunt was fitted I remember nothing apart from seeing my parents and family who had passed on .....I think my hubby and daughter suffered more than me, poor loves

Strange dreams like a man chasing me with a tube..lol ...catheter problems ???? I give up trying to make sense of it all.

Arguing with nurses for hurting me, sounds like me !!!

My Sister used to sing to me and stroke my hair...she told me " never give up", So for my Sis Sylvia Thanks xx

and my Daughter and Hubby I will help cook Christmas dinner sitting down though as back hurts real bad .....

Happy Christmas to all BTG xxxxxxxxxx and keep smiling MaryB

Thanks all of you, You helped me just being here BTG xxx

Love to all xx

WinB 143 xxxxxxxxx the hobbler

Edited December 23, 2011 by Winb143

[MaryB]

Thank you all, I wish my memory was better and I could express my graditude the way I wish I could.. know that it is there. I have only a few hours or a day here and there that I can actually get some paper work done and so I have been storing my brain cells up for the awful pile of mail and other stuff I need to do.,