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Right if I'm going to crack on with this (The after care - awareness project) I need some help with the questions to put both on it and also to ask.

I'm going to update this post with topics and questions that you suggest in this thread.

1. DVLA - What do I need to do?

You are legally obliged to inform the DVLA and return your license

2. Coiling - MRI safe?

Yes

3. Clipping - MRI safe?

Depends on the type of clip used. Ask your neurologist.

4. Recovery - What can I expect?

There is a huge range of what to expect, and you will fall somewhere within this. Although you maybe expected to make a "full" recovery this may not mean you will be able to go back to the life style you had before SAH. Some people will not be able to return to work at all whereas some will make a return within the three month period. So you can see there is a wide spread of what could happen it is very much down to your individual circumstances. You have had a life changing experience so it is a realistic expectation that your life will change.

Questions to ask my own doctor or neurologist.

waiting for your ideas

Symptons

Long term effects include:

Dizzyness

Physical disability such as limb weakness.

Impaired or double vision.

Personality changes such as increased irritability or disinhibition.

Memory problems.

This is to give you an idea of what I think, it may very well not in the end be anything like this! I want this to be led by us rather than by any health care professional, we are after all I feel best placed to comment on what life is like post SAH. That's not to say that I don't want input from medical professionals, I intend to approach my own neurologist and SAH specialist nurse to get advice.

Thanks in advance!

Scott

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Hi Scott

Great start. A few suggestions:

1. DVLA - What do I need to do?

You are required by law to inform the DVLA. You are not legally obliged to surrender your licence. That is a voluntary process if your doctor has informed you not to drive. Surrendering your licence removes the need for the DVLA to make formal medical enquiries into your fitness to drive. It's all set out at the following links.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Dr ... DG_4022415

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Dr ... DG_4022414

4. Recovery

This has been covered on this site in the SAH information section http://behindthegray.co.uk/welcome/inde ... &Itemid=42 There may need to be some expansion on that.

Ditto Symptoms.

Will continue to have a think about this. I did post somewhere a list of questions I asked my own NS, so I'll dig it out when I've got a moment.

Regards

Keith

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You see Keith this is one of the things we need to clear up, I was told that SAH is one of the few conditions that means you HAVE to surrender your license. The DVLA will then make enquiries as to your individual fitness to drive and make it's decision from consultation with your doctor. I'll try and venture into the murky world of the DVLA and get a definitive answer in writing from them.

Scott

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Scott, I believe it is very clear on the directgov website about what is required. There is no ambiguity. Notification is mandatory and it is a criminal offence not to tell them, but: (see links in my earlier post)

If your doctor, in accordance with these standards, has advised you that you should not drive you may wish to surrender your licence.

If you voluntarily surrender your licence, no medical enquiries need to be made:

Surrendering your licence removes the need for the DVLA to make formal medical enquiries into your fitness to drive.

Indeed, the form you fill in when you surrender your licence is called "Declaration of Voluntary Surrender"

Of course, if you subsequently re-apply for you licence to be re-instated:

If in the future, following surrender, you apply for the restoration of your driving licence, medical enquiries will need to be made.

Regards

Keith

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I agree with Scott on this, I never was required to surrender my driving licence, in fact when I rang my DVLA ( we have a separate one here, although we are still in the UK!) they could offer me no advice. I did not drive for just over six months as I knew I was not fit to do so, not I think something which can necessarily be left to the discretion of individuals ( I always felt, that I might have made the decision to give it a go had I still been working. :shock:

I also feel led by us Yes, Scott but if we wish to have the costs covered and any resulting literature issued to patients we need to involve health professionals in the production. They are as a profession and understandably, a bit precious about who does what and almost certainly would not give to all patients if it is purely privately produced. I also feel that we ned to have something to be given to all patients, when they are discharged and disseminated throughout the various health services. We cannot rely on a web prescence, sadly coverage of computer possession and skills is far from 100% :(

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Keith,

This is from the NHS website

If you have had a subarachnoid haemorrhage it is likely that you will not be allowed to drive for at least a year. However, if you develop epilepsy you may not be able to drive for longer. Before being allowed to drive again you will need to show that your medicines are working and that you remain free of seizures.

Following an illness such as a subarachnoid haemorrhage, you are legally required to notify the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). You will not be able to drive until you receive DVLA approval and your doctor has confirmed that you have made a full recovery.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Subarachnoid-haemorrhage/Pages/Complications.aspx?url=Pages/What-is-it.aspx

This appears on the Wessex site;

It is a legal requirement to inform the DVLA of your subarachnoid haemorrhage, regardless of the cause. The DVLA will ultimately decide how long you cannot drive for, dependent on many factors. You will need to avoid driving until you have heard from the DVLA. Driving suspensions can vary from several weeks, up to a year or more. If you feel you are ready to resume driving and have not yet heard from the DVLA, you should discuss this with your GP. An example of a letter to the DVLA could read:

Dear Sir/Madam,

It is my duty to inform you that I have recently been an inpatient at ...................................................................after suffering a subarachnoid haemorrhage. I was under the care of (Consultant Neuro-surgeon/Neuro- radiologist) who can provide you with further information.

Yours faithfully,

I know of people who have driven themselves home from hospital because they were not told about the problems involved in post SAH legalities. I also know that I was told by the DVLA in a telephone call that I HAD to surrender my license. My case might be different because I had passed my HGV, but without getting in writing from the DVLA what people should do I don't feel that we can say one way or the other. There is conflicting information out there and depending on which link you click you get widely different advice.

Scott

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Yes Scott, I've read those websites. Nowhere does it say you must surrender your licence. I was certainly never required to surrender mine, even after I informed the DVLA. Even the DVLA say surrender is not a requirement, only that you must inform them and they will decide after medical investigations. The DVLA is the only body that can tell us the answer, not the NHS or the Wessex and I believe that answer is already very clear.

Regards

Keith

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Yes Keith I know, that's why I said I would get in writing what is required from the DVLA. If you are not allowed to drive it states on the DVLA website that you have to hand your license back, what I will be seeking is a definitive answer.

This is without even going into the whole insurance issue and if you need to inform your insurance company! That's a minefield which led to one of my insurance companies withdrawing their coverage, the other said that they went with the DVLA and if I was medically fit to drive then I would be covered.

Scott

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Hey there

This is all very confusing. I was told that I had to inform the DVLA and surrender my licence (which I did and got back three months later) but that I didn't need to inform my insurance company unless there had been complications or I had developed epilepsy as a result - this I was told by the DVLA!!!

All very confusing that, I agree, need clearing up

Off for dinner now

TTFN Sami xxxx

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Hi,

I was told that i neeeded to inform the DVLA but keep my license until thy made a decision. The decision came back that I was fir to drive 6 months on so I never had to surrender my license at all.

I have always told my insurance companies and yes it has always uped my premium. Although I must say this year, it did not affect it too much.

Love and hugs

Laura

x

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... to inform the DVLA but keep my license until thy made a decision.

Laura that is exactly according to the law, the leaflet from their website explains it all in plain English and it couldn't be any clearer IMO. But but hey, I'm not the expert here so I'll give up on this one ... good luck.

Regards

Keith

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SCOTT MY COILS ARE MADE OF PLATNUM AND WAS NEVER TOLD OF A PROBLEM WITH ANY TEST, I WAS TOLD THAT IT WOULD NOT SET OFF METAL DETECTERS BY AN EMT, AND THAT THEY CAN STILL USE PADDLES ON YOU IF NEED BE WITHOUT ANY DAMAGE.

HOW DETAILED DO YOU WANT TO GET ABOUT RECOVERY?

AND ARE THE SYMPTONS COVERING BEFOR OR AFTER SAH OR DURING?

HERE IN THE USA THE DR REPORTS TO THE DMV AND HE HAS TO REPORT BACK TO RELEASE IT.

THAT IS THE ONE THING THEY HAVE THAT IS CONSISTANT ABOUT SAH HERE.

I HAVE TO SAY I DID NOT GET A HOLD ON MY LICENSE BECAUSE I HELD A LICENSE IN ANOTHER STATE AT THE TIME OF SAH AND THEY HAD NO IDEA WHERE THAT WAS.

EVELYN

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Evelyn as this is supposed to be a handout for post SAH it makes sense to keep it as concise as possible and keep only to symptoms after.

There is a lot of confusion out there, and even when you go to the "correct" authorities we get multiple answers! So the aim is to be able to reassure as well as inform.

Scott

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Well, I can only refer to what I experienced and that I needed to inform the DVLA (well Eric did) ..... I was never asked by the DVLA to surrender my licence after they were informed, but the question in my case, was the amount of seizures that I had .... I also had one seizure post-coiling, but that was down to the negligence of the nursing staff looking after me, that weren't checking my sodium levels, when I came out of HDU, so there was a question mark as to whether I met the DVLA's criteria regarding seizures or whether that extra seizure would stop me from driving for at least 6 months or a year...

I know that there is a different criteria between clipping and coiling .... as there's also a criteria with the seizure aspect and how many you have and whether they happened during the bleed or after coiling or clipping, so one size won't necessarily fit all ....

There was no way that I could have driven in the first 3 months, as I also had a third nerve palsy to my right eye (double vision) ... and wouldn't have felt safe anyway .... However, the DVLA contacted me and said that I was allowed to drive, as long as I corrected the double vision by using an eye patch or glasses fitted with prisms....

But, let's hope that we can go some way, to making it all, a little clearer ....

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Hi All

I informed DVLA and kept my licence. In the meantime I saw my GP and asked if I was fit to drive and he gave me the OK, some time afterwards the DVLA Medical Dept informed me I could drive but to notify them if I had a blackout, epileptic fit or there was a change in my neurological condition, at no time did I return my driving licence. I can assure you this was correct procedure. The DVLA have a choice of allowing you to keep your licence, revoke it or issue a new one on with a shorter expiry date ie:- one year, two years and so on.

Whilst waiting for a DVLA decision your GP can advise but obviously DVLA can go against his or her decision. The moral of the story is Keep Your Licence and return it if asked, I am also diabetic and this is another problem when DVLA should know about but you don't return your licence when notifying them.

Cheers

John

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Hi Scott,

D saw his NS today and we discussed the driving issue. His answer was DVLA usually say you can drive if you have had coiling at around post 3 months. If there was surgery that can vary depending on lots of issues. We know from our own experience that if your Dr says you drive and DVLA have not finished their investigation they might tell you as in D's case you can drive until the investigation is finished but each person is an individual. They are very helpful if you phone them. D phoned them again today as he has not had anything in writing from them yet and they told him they have a back log and dont have any idea when he will get a decision but if his Dr said he could drive then he can whilst the investigation is going on.

I found some useful info today on DVLA website:

For medical practitioners

At a glance guide to current medical standards of fitness to drive

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/media/pdf/medical/aagv1.pdf

You can download it.

Tina

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