Hi! I’m new here

Hi! My brain aneurysm ruptured right before Thanksgiving of 2021. I am 22. I live with my parents still so I have them to talk to, but overall, I feel so alone. I haven’t worked since the rupture, and I miss working. I was also supposed to graduate college and didn’t because I couldn’t finish my classes since I was in the hospital. My dad says all of this is just a bump in the road, and I know hopefully things will go back to normal. But right now, I feel incredibly lonely and sad. I feel like I’m too young to be going through all of this and really just want to go back to living my life.

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Hello laura1!

I am sorry to hear about the rupture. There are many questions that I would like to ask but instead I am going to share with you my story hoping that it will improve morale. I am “very old” compared to you :slightly_smiling_face: but I still have a long list of the things that I have to accomplish. I was 46 when I ruptured and this was three years ago. I woke up with a headache, went to work, had a coffee, the headache continued and around 9:30 am it became unbearable. I started to throw up, went home and one hour after I went to hospital. I was told that I had brain aneurysm ( had no idea what that was) and I needed surgery. Had the surgery, clipping, stayed 11 days at the hospital and 6 months off of work.
I hope that I am not bothering you with my writing…trying to keep to the point…
I have had a good recovery. How? I was determined not to let this turn in my life change the direction of it. Was I stressed, depressed, did I feel down, did I feel alone, was I angry with my luck ? YES, many times. I found the strength to move on by going for walks every day, with my husband, my daughters, friends or alone as long as the roads weren’t icy. :slightly_smiling_face:
Three years have passed and I feel good, back to normal. :pray:

Please let me know if you have other questions.

Take care of yourself laura1.

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Laura, I’m saddened to read how this is negatively affecting you. I have been affected badly also. I had a rupture that ended up being coiled and two others that were clipped. The ruptured one also caused Vasospasms and hydrocephalus and led to a decline in cognitive ability and decision making. The one thing I can tell you is that it gets better. Over time I have healed quite a bit with a reduction in headaches, dizziness, and worse of all a lack of confidence in and a lack of ability to do anything fairly complicated. I am a mechanical engineer and also pretty handy. There is no way I could do the engineering work, and I get totally exhausted doing routine work around the house such as painting, or working on the car. It has taken a long time for me but improvement has come each year. I hope your improvement is a lot more rapid than mine, but know that you will see improvement. Keep your chin up and keep trying, you’ll never know what you can accomplish until you try!

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Hi Laura, I had a rupture that turned my life around as well. I am older than you but found myself no longer working a job I loved and could not finish the university course I was about halfway through when it happened. On the bright side things do continue to improve for a very long time but hard to notice unless you have kept a journal or something reminds you of how difficult that was at another time in recovery. I also felt isolated and lonely. I tried an online game to challenge myself and it turns out the online community I have found there really helped with the isolation part too. Considering I was never a “gamer” prior to rupture, I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it is to be “normal” even if only in a virtual world.

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Welcome @laura1! Hopefully you can tell what a wonderful supportive group we have here. I think it’s the best.

Be kind to yourself and allow yourself to heal. As you have read, we all have our own story about surviving a rupture. I feel that our biggest hurdle is being patient, not only with ourselves but others as well. It’s really difficult not to push yourself too hard, especially in the beginning. Your brain will tell you when you’ve done too much, usually with a headache, but never quite as bad as the one you had when you ruptured. I would imagine your surgeon has advised you to rest when needed. I had a lot of rules from mine. For me, the ones she repeated was hydrate, eat protein and after the first year to regulate my sleeping habits. Check with your doctor on how much for all of these.

It’s tough to put so much energy into obtaining a college degree only to have it seemingly ripped away so quickly. We have many members who were able to return and not only complete their undergraduate but to complete a graduate degree. Hopefully some of these members will add their experience here for you.

It’s very difficult with the times we are living in to not isolate ourselves. @Kellie2 provided a great workaround! You’ve also joined us. So, although you may still feel lonely, you are not alone, we are here.

Best of luck
Moltroub

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Thank you all for the support!

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Hello @laura1
I’m so sorry to hear what you have gone through. I am much older than you, I could almost be your grandmother and I had my rupture one year before you had yours. What I have learned is that the brain needs time to recover, much longer than I had expected.
My neurosurgeon told me that most of the recovery takes place during the first year after the rupture, but it doesn’t stop there, maybe just slows down a bit. Having learned that, I think that you are still early in your recovery and there is a good chance that you will regain your strength and life. I also think that the physical recovery and the emotional recovery doesn’t walk hand in hand. For me, it was pure survival instinct to begin with and the emotional effects came much later and is still ongoing. Maybe you are experiencing the same. I think that being as young as you are is your superpower, I suppose that you will have a better chance of recovery than most of us older folks.
It must be sad to see your peers go on with their lives and you are not able to join them. I know how parents think and react, we try to cheer our children up when they are facing hard times and it’s not easy to find the right words. But I can assure you that they have been worried too. Try to set small goals forward and rest when your body tells you. All the best to you and we are here to chat when you need to. We know how it feels.

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Hi Laura1,

Yes, you are “too young” to be going through this, but it happened. I understand because I was only 19 when my aneurysm ruptured. I can clearly remember how frustrated I was that I had to miss a semester of college.

Your father said what you’re experiencing it is just a bump in the road, I would categorize it as hitting a pothole and getting a flat tire!

My annie ruptured 52 years ago!

I used my time of recovery to work with my professors and counselors to get back on track and ended up changing my major and my career track. The result was that I’ve had opportunities and experiences that I couldn’t have dreamed of before my rupture or without making a career change. I would like to encourage you to use this time to reflect also.

As others have said, be kind to yourself and take time to adjust to your new normal. If you’re not already doing so, may I suggest using FaceTime or Zoom as well as other social media to stay in touch with friends so, that don’t feel so lonely. During my recovery, my sorority sisters came and held a meeting at my Mom’s house so that I could participate. :slight_smile:

One more thing, please try not to worry too much.

I wish you a complete and speedy recovery.

May God Bless You!

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@Carole_G
Wonderful advice from you to @laura1 it is very reassuring to have someone like you to share your experience.

Thank you!

Hi Laura,

My brain aneurysm rupture happened a week after I turned 40. What you’re experiencing is universal. I too felt alone and kept waiting for my old life to return. In my experience, elements of your old life will return, or you will begin to feel more comfortable adjusting. There will also be new discoveries. Just make sure to give it time. It will take a while to adjust. However, know you are not alone. There are a lot of online support groups with people who feel similarly and are a great support system. Hang in there.

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My aneurysm ruptured when i was 26 . I’m a few weeks from 50 now . Mine was a very hard journey . Went through the anger and why me stuff but things do eventually. Get back to somewhat normal. Always remember how blessed you are to survive what we have . Find your new normal and live life to tje fullest .

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Hello Laura,

So very sorry to hear this, especially at your age. Just take your time to heal and it varies for everyone. It might help to seek professional help such as therapy, I was devastated due to complications with an unruptured aneurysm procedure. It’s been 2yrs and still trying to get back to normal but a therapist has helped deal with anxiety, pain, fatigue & insominia. I have had to focus on what I can do now and not go back to the past. Meditation and breathing exercises has helped tremendously. But the best thing that has uplifted my spirits was my wife getting me a Rottweiler puppy (never liked dogs before). Now I have a better understanding of how dogs provide therapy for others. Wishing you the best and get plenty of rest.

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Hi laura1,
You are too young! I’m 6 weeks post rupture and 5 weeks post craniotomy to clip the aneurysm. I’m 38, much older than you, but I feel too young for this to happen as well. It does feel lonely at times and I went from being so active to having to be on “light duty” I often mourn my pre-burst self, but I really try to take it day by day and be grateful and proud of the progress I’m making. That does not mean I don’t have my fair share of breaking down, I do often, and damn I miss “normal” life, but for some reason, this was the hand we were dealt and I’m committed to playing it!! I do think this happening to you a such a young age makes recovery harder. You’re not alone and please reach out if you need anything. I have found out no one will ever understand what we go through as survivors, so lean into this community. Take care :slight_smile: :blush:

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Welcome! Sound advice you’ve provided, thank you. We really need to be kind to ourselves, treating ourselves as we would our best friend. Normal is relative and we all find ourselves changing all the time.

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I am so glad I found this support group. Everyone is so nice! I really do miss my normal life. I was about to graduate and now I just feel kind of stuck. I am grateful to be alive because my grandma died from a ruptured brain aneurysm. She was 56 and I’m 22, so I’m a lot younger than she was, but 56 is still a super young age to die. It’s just kind of crazy I survived all of this.

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Hi Laura
I am so glad that you found this group too. It really helps to read about what others have gone through. I am exited to hear what the future looks like for you, I am sure you will find a way to navigate through this and reach your goals. Perhaps different goals than you had before the rupture, but I hope you will find a way to accomplish your dreams. Is it possible for you to graduate next year? Your rupture was just three months ago and that might look like a long time, but what we have learned by experience is that the brain and body needs more time to recover, and later on the emotional side of it. I hope as the time goes that you will find a way to get to know your “new normal “ and start making plans . For me it was a sigh of relief when I had my one year angiogram checkup, this was also six months after I had my second procedure with a stent and more coils to secure the aneurysm.When my doctor said it looks good, your aneurysm is no longer filling with blood, welcome back next year, that was a wonderful day.
We are here to cheer each other up.

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Hi @LS6546
Welcome to the group that no one would like to be a member of. But here we are, cheering each other up. I’m sorry to hear what happened to you at such a young age. Your post is so full of positivity and I hope that you will bounce back to the life that you had. Six weeks are a very short time after the rupture and surgery, it takes time to heal. Let us know how it goes.
All the best wishes to you.

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Hi @Kellie2,

I like your mention of the game. I don’t spend any time gaming except for a little app I play by myself. How much do you think the gaming community has helped you? Any suggestions for a newbie?

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Hi @laura1,

So glad you’re here. Sorry to hear about your ruptured aneurysm and your family member. I just don’t know enough about familial associations, but my mother had an aneurysm too. I’m sure it’s a big life change for you now. I sincerely hope you can make arrangements to complete your degree program over time. I’ve taught many students at the Master’s and Ph.D. level while serving on their committees. There is a strong dedication to helping these students complete their degrees. Beyond the compassion, there is an investment in these students. It only makes sense to work things out with them. I hope this helps.

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