I had the surgery on July 18th and started back at work on September 12th. An aneurysm occurs when an area on an artery wall becomes weak, creating a sac that balloons out and fills with blood. Thankfully I have an extremely supportive family to assist me with the baby. Choice 1: I could continue to monitor my aneurysms every six months for the rest of my life to see if they changed in shape or size, ultimately deciding whether or not to operate down the road. The only doctor’s orders for release were that I needed to rest as much as possible; I couldn’t drive, drink, or lift more than 10 pounds. The diagnosis came upon my life very unexpectedly. I appreciate everything so much more. Treatment options include observation, clipping, coiling, flow diversion, or bypass. Some aneurysms can rupture when they are as small as 2mm, and some aneurysms can grow as large as 10mm and never rupture. After eight weeks, I was able to drive again. "Any sudden, severe headache that's unlike any headache you've had before warrants investigation as quickly as possible," he said. Someone in my doctor’s office accidentally released the report to me before my doctor got the chance to call and give me the news. Life seemed to be going perfectly. I considered myself extremely fortunate to have found this silent assassin before it had the opportunity to kill me. I got fully caught up on all episodes of my favorite TV shows and I think I put a permanent dent in my parent’s couch. rene’s story brain aneurysm survivor Rene is an energetic, passionate 7th grade teacher—and he was diagnosed with an unruptured brain aneurysm. My family said I was complaining of a headache whenever there was any loud noise, but I don’t remember that at all. About 40% of people who have a ruptured brain aneurysm will die as a result. A rupture is a critical and potentially life-threatening situation. I never in a million years thought there would be anything wrong with me. It made it much easier to get through my day to day routine without the constant reminder of my worries. Listen to your body and take action. This is a medical emergency. This link is provided for convenience only and is not an endorsement of either the linked-to entity or any product or service. With my family history, this could be a risky choice. Choice 2: The second option would be to coil the aneurysm. Unauthorized use prohibited. I had an at-home nurse come visit three times a week in the beginning and her visits became more and more spread out until I was discharged. The team of doctors and nurses at Penn Neurosurgery are amazing and took wonderful care of me. Read Jennifer’s story and learn to recognize the signs of a ruptured brain aneurysm. Read More: Emilia Clarke survived 2 brain aneurysms. My husband would come over every night after work and have dinner with us. I was slowly but surely getting back to my old ways. At that point, as with the water pipe break analogy, there's going to be damage. My in-laws didn’t bring my son to see me until the sixth day in the hospital because I was afraid that I would scare him. It terrified me to imagine the compromises to my brain that I would be risking. I’m not going to tell you not to be scared, because there are a million things to be scared of. For an unruptured brain aneurysm, your doctor will decide whether it's better to treat the aneurysm now or monitor you carefully (called watchful waiting). Since you too are pretty young at 37 and it good overall physical health it would seem they are giving us similar suggestions due to our hopeful long life expectancy. Other uses, including educational products or services sold for profit, must comply with the American Heart Association’s Copyright Permission Guidelines. And what are the warning signs? In many cases, aneurysms are often found only during testing for other conditions. I was only on the heavy narcotics for about two weeks before I decided to stop and switch to Tylenol. I received the news via email. "Most are small, and people live with them without any problem at all. The most upsetting thing about this appointment was that the choice was ultimately mine. Todd Crawford certainly didn't know that when his wife, Lisa Colagrossi – a fit, healthy 49-year-old news reporter for the ABC affiliate in New York and mother of two boys – began complaining of strong headaches. Choice 3: My third option would be to face this head on and go in for the surgery to correct the problem. ©2021 American Heart Association, Inc. All rights reserved. *All health/medical information on this website has been reviewed and approved by the American Heart Association, based on scientific research and American Heart Association guidelines. I can’t imagine what it would have been like if people were constantly asking me how I was feeling or if they were taking pity on me for my circumstances. All Rights Reserved. ... My Story: Surviving a Brain Aneurysm. If you have questions or comments about this story, please email editor@heart.org. I am a two-time brain aneurysm survivor. Today marks one year since I was diagnosed with two unruptured brain aneurysms. 1-800-AHA-USA-1 I called my doctor’s office off the hook, but the doctor was with patients and couldn’t come to the phone right away. Risk factors for brain aneurysms include smoking, high blood pressure, connective tissue disorders and a family history, usually a parent or sibling. "Nobody out there had ever focused on communicating the top signs and symptoms of a brain aneurysm.". The mean diameter of the aneurysms that subsequently ruptured was 21.3 mm, compared with a diameter of 7.5 mm for aneurysms defined after rupture at the same institution. I mostly slept the first two days in the hospital room. However, Elkind emphasized the difference between having a brain aneurysm and having one rupture. Other warning signs of a ruptured brain aneurysm include all sorts of suddenly arising sensations: a loud, booming noise (like a gunshot) heard only by the patient; sensitivity to light; neck stiffness; pain around an eye; vision problems; numbness or tingling in the face; and more. "When done vascularly, there's the concern whether it'll grow back again, but it's a less-invasive procedure.". I can’t even describe how great I felt. He explained how it depends more on how thin the wall of the aneurysm is, rather than the size, and you cannot determine how thin the walls are by any scan. On Oct 2, 2013 I was diagnosed with an unruptured brain aneurysm. Unruptured Brain Aneurysm Treatment. 4 out of 7 people who recover from a ruptured brain aneurysm will have disabilities. Customer Service Waiting for the results from the angiogram was brutal. We only worry about them when they get large enough to cause a problem.". I was on an IV and a catheter. Aneurysms can remain stable throughout life, but in some cases they enlarge, or rupture – a life-threatening medical emergency. "The thought is that when it's done surgically, it's more definitive because the surgeon can see where to put the clip and whether it's definitively (closed)," Elkind said. However, Elkind emphasized the difference between having a brain aneurysm and having one rupture. "Many people walk around with what we call asymptomatic – or unruptured – brain aneurysms," he said. If you are in the same position as I was, I would recommend getting surgery in a heartbeat. I found out I have two brain aneurysms; one aneurysm measuring 2mm is located on my carotid artery and the second aneurysm measuring 4mm is located on my ophthalmic artery. Again, I turned to the most reliable source I knew – Google. There are two ways to try fixing it depending on how easy or difficult it is to reach, the patient's overall health and other factors. Posted In: Medical Stories 0 Replies Posted By: Anonymous; June 1, 2010; 08:53 PM; I am in my early 40's and was recently diagnosed with a small unruptured aneurysm in my internal carotid artery. He could not determine how fast my aneurysms had already grown, or if they would continue to grow. There are many people who are diagnosed with much worse things and some people who don’t even have the opportunity to be diagnosed before their ailment destroys them. I didn’t want to scare my son. They would then drill burr holes into my skull in order to remove a piece of my skull about the size of a credit card. I made plans with family and friends, went on vacations, and spent as much time with my husband and son that I could. Many unruptured brain aneurysms are found due to neurological symptoms caused by the size of the aneurysm. My great-grandmother had also suffered a fatal brain aneurysm at the age of 31. The explanation begins with an important clarification: An aneurysm is like a bubble in the wall of an artery, and plenty of people have them in their brain. And for that, I am grateful. I received the news via email. As scary as it was going into the whole thing blindly, I couldn’t have asked for better results. It has only been six months since my surgery and I am 100% back to normal, and have been for a few months. Happy, healthy, and back to normal. All of the what-ifs that came with the surgery made a possible rupture sound not so bad. Next, they would cut through the layers of the brain to access the aneurysm. I appreciate my family and friends more than I ever have. An angiogram is a procedure where they feed a small catheter through the femoral artery and guide it up to the brain. After a few weeks I would take a walk around the block every night after dinner with my family to try to get my endurance back up. My brother sponging water into my mouth in ICU. While Elkind cautioned that such an extreme discomfort doesn't always mean a subarachnoid hemorrhage, it usually requires dialing 911. They would place one or more clips on the aneurysm in order to cut off blood flow. Your brain is such a vital part of your being. Preparing myself for a brain surgery, I was expecting the absolute worst. He asked me about my boo-boo, but overall wasn’t too fazed. The question is, how much. Discussions By Condition: Medical Stories. Since my surgery I feel like I have been given a whole new lease on life. When he came to see me he was so happy! An unruptured brain aneurysm may produce no symptoms, particularly if it's small. The Bee Foundation 303 West Lancaster Avenue #334 Wayne, PA 19087, USA. What can be done about it? An aneurysm is a balloon-like bulge of an artery wall. Saturday: 9AM - 5PM CST We only worry about them when they get large enough to cause a problem." Life seemed to be going perfectly. When most of the people in your world think everything in your life is fine, it makes pretending that everything in your life is fine pretty easy. Recovery at home involved a lot of lying around, which got pretty boring. The weakness in the wall of a blood vessel could rupture at any time, unexpectedly. My mother had been harassing me for years to just go get checked to be safe. It is not possible for a brain aneurysm to cause any symptoms unless there is a rupture. Most often a ruptured brain aneurysm occurs in the space between the brain and the thin tissues covering the brain. For the next six hours I was completely unconscious and didn’t feel a thing as the wonderful doctors clipped my aneurysm. They would perform a craniotomy in order to access the aneurysm directly and place a few metal clips on the aneurysm to cut off blood flow. We were able to joke and laugh and distract ourselves from what was about to happen. The reason I initially went for my MRA scan is because of a long family history of aneurysms. If we cut off the blood flow all together, which would most likely happen with coiling, there was a great chance that I would lose all vision in my left eye. In some rare cases people experience symptoms when an unruptured aneurysm is large and presses on the nerves or tissue of the brain these … "It can happen to young, perfectly healthy people. There were 34 staples holding me together and the doctors were able to save a lot of my hair. The news that rapper and record executive Dr. Dre is recovering from a brain aneurysm has many people wondering: What is a brain aneurysm? Recovering from brain aneurysm surgery can be very stressful. I stop and marvel at the little things and try to soak up every experience, because I know that if my mom didn’t harass me to get that MRA, I might not be here for these experiences. "We want people to get to the point where they don't dismiss a headache," Crawford said. Watch his story through diagnosis and treatment. I only shared the news of my diagnosis with close family and friends. The most common warning sign of an aneurysm that may have already leaked is often described as the "worst headache of your life." It truly is amazing how one second could change your entire outlook on life. Twelve days after my surgery, I celebrated my 30th birthday with my family and friends. Crawford set out to fill that void soon after Colagrossi died in March 2015. Authored by Jennifer Casoni, RN. As an aneurysm grows it puts pressure on nearby structures and may eventually rupture. My husband said the first question I asked when I woke up was, “Do I look like Ronda Rousey?” He knew instantly everything was alright; at least I still had my sense of humor. I have no memory of the ICU. It was such a tremendous help to have my mom and dad around every day to take care of me and the baby. Pets and Your Health / Healthy Bond for Life, Institute for Precision Cardiovascular Medicine, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The doctor explained that coiling is only a temporary fix and I would probably need to go back a few times in my lifetime to add more coils as the aneurysm grows or changes in shape. Contact Us Having the support of my family and friends made it effortless! However, in case of an unruptured aneurysm, with the size is large, individuals can feel pain due to the occasional pressing of the bulge of the artery of the blood vessel against the tissues or nerves present in the brain. We only worry about them when they get large enough to cause a problem." I am extremely fortunate to have wonderful in-laws that brought my son to Philadelphia with them, where they stayed for the entire week, so he could be close to me. Closed on Sundays. Certain aneurysms are more likely to bleed, or rupture. The annual rate of rupture is 8 to 10 out of each 100,000, 40% of which are fatal. He was very cool and collected in explaining exactly how the surgery would happen and all of the possible side effects. I was 29 years old, recently married, and had only just given birth to a beautiful baby boy. I hope my story helps bring a little positivity or a glimmer of hope to anyone that may be experiencing a similar situation. What is that. I could not believe this decision was mine to make. I couldn’t believe this serious decision was mine to make. The catch with this choice was that the only baseline indication of the size of the aneurysm was the initial scan. © 2021 The Bee Foundation. As negative as this experience could have been, it has helped me to become a much more positive person. Saying goodbye to my family was the hardest part. Since I was about to turn 30 and now had a beautiful baby boy to live for, I figured I would give my mother peace of mind and go get checked out. If I had to do it all again, I would absolutely make the same decision to have the surgery. There were 13 of us in the waiting room. Doctors can then use imaging tests to determine where the problem is and how bad it is. Although the decision was still mine, he was recommending the surgery. Unruptured Brain Aneurysm Surgery: What to Expect. verify here. Going into the surgery, I was terrified of the recovery period, but I snapped back pretty quickly. I was 29 years old, recently married, and had only just given birth to a beautiful baby boy. Make sure you have a good support system at home. It often looks like a berry hanging on a stem.A brain aneurysm can leak or rupture, causing bleeding into the brain (hemorrhagic stroke). This would be a very invasive surgery and would involve months of recovery time with many risks involved, but would completely correct the problem and I would no longer have this ticking time bomb in my brain. Read Jennifer’s story and learn to recognize the signs of a ruptured brain aneurysm. The hospital stay was getting pretty boring. Changing lives through innovative research. It truly is amazing how one second could change your entire outlook on life. I consulted with my closest family and friends on their opinions. I calmly went for the scan and walked out of the appointment thinking nothing of it. Published on Apr 25, 2016. Doctors can perform an operation to clip off the bubble so it can't rupture again; that requires cutting into the skull. Then they would stitch me back up and it would take a few months to recover. The study, Trends in Mortality and Morbidity after Treatment of Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysm in the United States, 2006-2016, analyzed data … "Many people walk around with what we call asymptomatic – or unruptured – brain aneurysms," he said. Four out of seven patients who recover will have disabilities.Brain aneurysms are most prevalent in people ages 35 – 60, but can occur in children as well. According to the Brain Aneurysm Foundation, 1 in 50 people have an unruptured brain aneurysm.

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