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Mick W - Hi everyone!


MickW

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Hi all, I am male age 41. I had a SAH 6 weeks ago caused by an aneurysm bursting. Like probably most of us here, until then I had never heard of SAH and did not really know what an aneurysm was.

I have been reading some of your posts and would like to thank you all for contributing, it has really helped me.

Coming out of hospital with very little knowledge of what to expect as you know is really scary and I have been really worried on too many occasions to count (I have ended up calling an ambulance out twice the first time I was diagnosed with viral meningitis the second was me worrying about feeling faint and was nothing) Finding this site has helped to reduce that anxiety.

I have learned that violent sickness and headaches everyday are somewhat common, something I didn't know until reading from this site.

Once again thank you all and I hope I can contribute also. :-)

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Hi Mick and welcome to BTG. This site is certainly a great comfort for anyone who has the misfortune to suffer a sah.

From what you say, the lack of information on leaving hospital doesn't appear to have improved at all since I had mine 4 1/2 years ago:roll: I think most of us have learnt more from this site which is a godsend - it's good to hear it has made you feel less anxious.

I, like you, knew nothing about sah/aneurysms at the time, but having had one rupture and another unruptured one, which is being monitored, I think it's going to be in my vocabulary for some time!

It is very early days for you in terms on recovery and although it can take varying times to see/feel improvements, it does get easier as time goes on. Water and rest seem to be the two key aids in recovering from this trauma.

Wishing you all the best,

Sarah

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Mick, we have stuff in common. I am new to site and male also. I am 20 years older however. I've just been looking at this site a week or so, but have gotten some good, usable information. Hang in there. Casey

Thank you!

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Hi Sarah,

The information leaflet I was given was OK in as much as it told me what I had but it doesn't go far enough about what you may experience over the coming months.

Another thing that seems to be common is the slow speed of diagnosis from the time the paramedics arrive, mine thought I had an ulcer in my stomach! They focused on me being sick rather than my stiff neck/chronic headache. I sat in A&E for 6 hours before I was seen because I kept being put to the back of the queue because I was deemed as not being a priority.

Anyway I digress!

Thank you for the advice and hope all goes well for you.

Edited by MickW
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Hi,

I am fairly new as well. Had my NASAH in April. I am no veteran to all of this but what I have learned so much is from this site and also digging and reading and scaring myself and educating myself as much as possible so when I do go back to the doctors I am armed with the right questions.

My first two weeks home were very difficult. Depression, crying spells, weird whooshing things going on in brain, fear, and good ole anxiety, which has decided to stay awhile.

This site has helped immensely. Hoping you are feeling better soon.

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Hi Mick & welcome to BTG, sad to see another person not treated properly by hospitals. i know SAh#s are pretty rare but still with a thunderclap headache they should know what it could be! Many of us on here have been misdiagnosed or not treated as promptly we would have liked.

You are still early days as Sarah says, I remember just having a shower & getting dressed would make me exhausted & wobbly for the rest of the day. I didn't have the nausea which I imagine is part of the bodys reaction to blood in your spinal fluid. You need a lot of patience in the early days not to push yourself too hard or expect too much of your healing brain. I am almost 3 years post op & the headaches are lessening but the fatigue is still a problem although I have learnt strategies to help me deal with that.

You'll find lots of great info & personal experiences on here, it was a lifeline for me in the early days & I wouldn't have come so far without it.

Take care & keep in touch x

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Thank you again for your words of support, I have re-read my original post and need to add that it implies that I have sickness everyday, this has come out wrong. I have headaches every day but the sickness is every now and then.

I feel that I am recovering well but still have noises in my ears, dizziness etc but I can feel myself getting stronger everyday.

I feel angry at my treatment in A&E but cannot fault my treatment once diagnosed and transferred to Hurstwood Park Neuroscience Hospital in Haywards Heath. They were brilliant.

As I say thank you again! I have my follow up next month at Hurstwod Park and I am going to suggest they give details of this site in their info leaflet if that is OK (if someone could let me know if this is alright)

Take care

Mick

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Welcome Mick, I am sure it would be OK to pass this site on to put in an information leaflet. Goodness knows there is so little information and support out there, every little helps.

That is the reason Karen started this site after her own SAH.

We have other members who have been referred to us by neuro nurses and others at follow ups.

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Hi Mick,

Welcome to BTG. I was told about this site by a brain injury support worker, unfortunately not until almost 2 years post SAH. It's great that you have found it so early, there is so much useful info on here.

Wishing you well with your recovery & I LOVE the photos of the view from your home. Absolutely fantastic to be able to look out at that every day, lucky you :-D

Michelle x

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hi mick

I understand where your coming from in respect of the ambulance crew not picking up on your condition .

even after forty years of being a paramedic within the nhs patients suffering from sah is a fairly difficult thing to pick up on they will most of the time go for something other than an sah in the forty years I have only had two patients which suffered sah ,which I am happy that I got the diagnosis right and the patient received the right treatment the one thing that is presenting from the beginning is the unequal pupils and is a direct link to the brain there are many other signs that also link to sah but they are so varied it is not unusual for it to be overlooked .did the crew check your pupils

if I remember the facts there are 1800 people suffer sah every year compare that to how many patients the ambulance service see per year it plain that its a very small group of people in a very large pond unfortunately the crew who picked you up may have never seen a sah but knowing the crew I think they would be more aware of what to look for now

im pleased that you are on the road to recovery now if I remember once the hospital recognised your condition things move rather rapidly one thing I would like to add although its no comfort to you once the bleed took place the pressure inside the skull compressed the bleed which in turn stopped the bleed therefore preventing any further damage I witnessed my lin suffering her bleed and despite all my skills I had to call for help and when it arrived I fell apart and yes I did recognize the symptoms and tried to deal with in but I still fell apart take care don't blame the crews or the hospital it happened you survived to lead a normal a life as poss I wish you well and hope to see more from you in your recovery take care

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Thank you Michelle - I am lucky to have the beach so close and have been spending a couple of peaceful hours most days sitting on it!

Hi Paul,

It is great to have the point of view from an ambulance crew member, it does in some ways make me feel better however there was a little more to it than in this thread, my story explains more. I was not only upset at the crews responds but A&E dept staff relied on their findings too much and just left me their, I did receive 2.5 ml of oromorph after 2 and a half hours - unfortunately too little too late. My wife tried to tell the staff that I was badly in need of care and unfortunately after 4 hours she complained again and was told that higher priority patients were in front. As my wife was walking away she muttered under her breath 'this is taking the...' she was frustrated and very worried however no threat but the nurse called security and had her removed from the hospital so I was left completely alone and in agony. After the ct scan I had to be told the results without my wife being present.

Things did move very quickly after diagnosis and I cannot fault the care I received from that point.

The crew did a blood test (pricked my finger), checked my bp and pulse all of which was normal. I didn't have my eyes checked as I recall but I may be wrong.

I do understand that a quick diagnosis is tough but they simply were not listening to what I was saying. Anyway I hold no grudges for the crew after all they were very quick and did not do any of this on purpose and they reassured me everything was going to be alright so as I say I hod no malice but just wish that they had listened to my wife and I.

Thank you for taking the time to explain the rarity of SAH I wasn't aware it was that rare.

Wishing you and your wife all the best.

Mick

Edited by MickW
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Hi Mick- i just joined the site too, i had my SAH 3.5wks ago, shame we have to meet in these circumstances but fabulous that we have found this site so early on- like you I didnt know about sah until it happened to me, - my hospital treatment was faultless however when i was discharged i was just handed my medication no leaflets on what to expect or anything so Ive been scared stiff everytime i get a niggle in my head thinking its gonna happen again or my clip is gonna pop off (irrational i know)

Pleased to meet you- heres hoping our recovery is made easier now we have people to talk to

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Mick,

We will learn together through this experience. Brian here. I had a NASAH on May 8 (I am learning the acronyms and more on this site than any doctor told me!). I think I saw another one of your posts saying they thought yours was a hangover.?? I enjoy a pint as well, however no interest since I got out of the hospital. I love this site. I learn something new everyday. The latest is that friends I run into say, "you look great!" Well thanks, but I don't feel great. I feel like everything I do is going to turn into another 'brain bleed' and I will end back up in the hospital. This site reminds me that I am not alone. I thought I was, but we are not. Anyway Mick, good luck in your recovery.

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Hi mick

I too have really suffered with sickness which resulted in me having a panic attack and turning up at a&e, anti sickness tablets have resolved the problem!! I guess we all panic at first and the a&e doctors didn't seem that surprised that I'd turned up therefore my next challenge is dealing with the anxiety. Sarahg

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Hi Mick. A noble club but one which we would all have declined membership:lol:

Hope you're doing ok. Lots of great advice here, it's worth searching old threads as members going back over the years have left oodles of good tips and reassurance.

Slowly now.

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