Hi Andy! God bless you and your sister! I, too, had a Subarachnoid Aneurysm rupture in 2011, the day after giving birth to my first and only child. I was in the Neuro I.C.U. for two and a half weeks, 95% of which I have zero memory of. I still ask my husband questions and its been 3 yrs! I have been told the memory loss is due to the brain trying to heal, and, on all actuality, seems like an added bonus since my husbands’ stories are horrible. I can’t even begin to imagine all he went through!!! In my honest opinion, being the patient is the easy part! 
My family and friends are the ones who had it hard. It sounds like ur sister is really doing remarkable! Count your blessings every day…cause they ARE blessings! XX
Hi Andy,
I am so glad you shared your sister's story...and please know she is so early in the healing journey. She has improved greatly. When one speaks of brain injury the littlest improvements are big. It can take a year or more until she knows what her new normal is and isn't...her brain and body have been through a lot...and short term memory and forgetfulness can be things that happen in the beginning and will improve with time...be patient...love the survivor in your sister for now...and take care of YOU along the way...Thoughts out to you, sister and entire family ~ Colleen
Hi Andy
My 42 year old wife suffered a ruptured aneurysm a year ago . She was 28 weeks pregnant! she required a crainiotomy, as coiling was not an option due to the neck of the aneurysm being too large.
She underwent surgery to remove the blood clot & clip the artery. Her recovery post op with our little baby "on board" can only be described as a miracle. Today we have a beautiful little girl and whilst recovery can take many years, my wife has resumed work whilst also looking after our perfect little angel.
She still suffers memory loss, as seems to be the norm and battled with speech, a condition called anomic dysphasia( she cant remember names, and Names of things) She has been undergoing/and continues to have speech therapy to assist with this problem. She owns her own architectural practice BUT if you did not know she has this condition you would not pick up her speech issues. It gets worse if she is tired.
Fortunately she did not suffer too much with her mobility , But her sight was affected in her left eye ( 6th nerve palsy) I.E she was squint and could not focus properly for over 8-10 months. she still has mild vision issues, BUT is driving again, and you cannot notice her eye problems at all.
Whilst this all seems like a massive mountain to climb, our year of recovery to date has flown by , with massive improvements, so whilst we cannot know all the specifics that your sister is faced with, Ours and many others stories are testament to what can be achieved despite the worst possible odds.
You will hopefully notice big improvements soon, and as time goes by they seem to diminish, and the state or condition then becomes the "norm" . I believe the most important thing is not to rush or get frustrated with the speed of the recovery, Accept that this is along term process and take every positive healing event, and feed off that . If you get frustrated you will get depressed and that will certainly lead to a relapse. Think only of getting better and the goal of getting better.
With my wife and child on the operating table in the hands of God and the surgeons, I kept on saying to myself, "THERE IS ONLY ONE OPTION, THERE IS ONLY ONE OPTION,THERE IS ONLY ONE OPTION!" So for you and your family........... THERE IS ONLY ONE OPTION!
All The Best.
Regards
Greg
Andy, your sister is a fighter. I am so glad she is still here and you have come to a great place with some really amazing people!
In April of this year during a routine CT Scan for whiplash, they discovered a 13mm aneurysm. Since then I`ve been for 2 neurological consultations and was advised that the aneurysm neck is too wide for coiling, leaving me with the options of craniotomy or "pipeline" which is very new procedure and not much long term data. So I decided to have the craniotomy, next week I see the neurosurgeon to sign consent forms and explanation of procedure which I`m expecting will be scheduled soon...As I read the survival stories here, I am both amazed and terrified...Amazed at the optimism and strength of each person in each story but terrified as I am 57 years old (already forgetful) and worried that all the complications will not get better or that my personality will change completely and I won`t be the same with my kids and grandkids, as I`ve been hearing stories of people changing their previous lives altogether leaving their loved ones, is that a possibility?
Just to encourage you, my wife was almost 63 when she had her aneurysm. Her outcome was a 5, interns of effects the worst, and yet today she is doing most everything she did in the past. In your situation, you would not have had the bleed on the brain which she had as hers ruptured, so I would expect your recovery to be excellent. "Trust in the Lord will all your heart."
Andy, the fact that Lucy is 23 may go a long way in helping her heal. It will take time, as many have already said. I was 33 and in good health when mine ruptured 26 years ago. Still, I had a long time of healing before I could say I was recovered. It is not uncommon for me to have a small loss of thought. I may stumble over a word or two. Mostly when I'm very tired. Don't be surprised or alarmed if Lucy has similar issues. With time they may diminish. While she heals, I would keep everything familiar, to Lucy, around and always present. This will certainly help in her recovery.
Dom
It’s been almost a year since my surgery had 2 anerusyms clipped I noticed a change in my personality I now get easily aggravated and say what’s on my mind even if it’s not nice I was never like that also can’t retain info when I’m reading it’s been a very tough year from me including my finance/sons father passing away a month ago since the surgery I can’t sleep
I normally get about three consecutive hours at night and I don’t nap at all i fall asleep quick but can’t stay asleep 
Hi Andy
Tough time goin there
Sorry my prayers are with you
I had 3 brain aneurysms also
Same kind
A stent in one
Had a lot of problems similar to yours
I learned from my speech thearpist
To write in a journal daily after a bit of time and it helped me to remember what I did an hour ago then in the morning and so on enventually it has helped me
I have had to help remembering things and my children , sister family and friends tell me and now after I think about it it comes back
My aneurysms were in 2006,7 then some artery rips in my neck in 2010
I am doing better
Have some vision and hearing and processing of info and language is slower
But I am here
I
Lost 3 family members to brain aneurysms
Life gets better
Take care and God Bless
Vicki Lynn
Hi, my rupture was last year the confusion is normal it takes a very long time for the brain to heal from the trauma. My husband says he explained what happened to me 40 times while I was in the hospital and I still didn’t get it I asked for my laptop and said I was going to work, meanwhile half my skull was missing and I wasn’t allowed out of bed! It is a very long road but it sounds as though she is doing well just be patient and keep faith.
Thats a shame. Can you not take something to help you stay asleep? You need rest!
Andy, I have had two annie's this year, without ruputure. I am sorry I am no help to You and Your sister, but I will Pray for both of You. God Be With Both Of You
I agree with Cassie. My ansuerym was two years this August. I feel your sister is still healing and the confusion is normal. My husband told me a lot of times what has happened to me but trauma to the brain takes time to heal. My ansuerym has taught me how to have patience with myself…
God bless you and your family. Your sister is a true miracle. I had a ruptured brain aneurysm (almost 2 years ago) and it took a little while to get my short term and long term memory back. My family wrote everything down on paper for me so I could read it every time someone entered my room because I would keep asking them over and over again, “what happened and where am I”. They also brought me current photos which helped a lot. Photos I had taken in the days before it happened. I had a 16 day old daughter when my ruptured brain aneurysm happened. I had been diagnosed with pregnancy HELLP syndrome 5 days after my daughter’s birth. I was never given a Neurological review after having HELLP and was sent home 14 days later. Thus just 2 days at home and that’s when the aneurysm rupture happened. Her memory will improve over time. She just needs to heal her brain which will also heal her body. I was paralyzed for a few months but have made a full recovery. When she is released to come home please make sure they check her Vitamin D3 levels. That is extremely important! Keeping you all in my prayers.
I have family aneurysms. I suffered an aneurysm in my carotid artery pushing in to my optic nerve at 49. I am not the same but I am able to work and take care of myself. My sister a year later had one bleeding and sealing itself behind her eye and had surgery on her 49th birthday. It can be hereditary and your family needs to be checked. My father had 5 in his heart arteries. I have a friend who has survived 4 so far. I had a successful clipping and I saw crazy lights and will for the rest of my life, had confusion, memory problems, anger issues, etc. It happens.
My sister barely survived and has issues but she has improved. She is living alone and functioning. She will never be the same and you will have to deal with that. But she is here and she will get better than she is right now and it does take a long time. I am so sorry for you and your sister. My daughter stood beside my bed as I was wheeled away and all I could do is show a brave face. I am single and raised her alone. You just have to accept gods will and take it one day at a time. I know I will likely have another one one day and that maybe my daughter will too. That is our reality! You have to face this, grieve it, accept it, and then figure it out according to today and how she is now.
Careful not to work too hard. In home and out of home. Remember kids are a lot of work! I recovered fully after a 6cm brain aneurysm rupture and total left side paralysis. I went back to working as a para with special needs kids. About 30hrs a week. And was a single mom. I ended up regressing because I did too much. And was too stubborn to stop. I am now working 15hrs a week and off for the summers. I never went back to my full recovery status. It’s been 13 yrs now and I will never regain. Learn from me!! I’m not crabby as this note may sound. I just had to learn the hard way and now spread the message. Slow down!! You will never be able to do everything you used to. It sucks but I figure someone somewhere is telling us to slow down. And if we don’t they’re gonna make us!! XD take care!!
Everyone is different depending on where the aneurysm was and obviously in your sister's case te fact that she suffered two cardiac arrests complicates her recovery. That being said, I had a pretty bad hemorrhage in April of last year, suffered a very very short cardiac arrest during the coiling to repair the aneurysm and I too suffered issues with memory during that time. My family and friends now delight in telling me all the off the wall things I said. Now that I have made a full recovery, it's amusing although it wasn't at the time. Again, as I said, everyone is different, but my memory issues did not begin to clear until I was actually at home. I spent 13 days in ICU and 8 days in an inpatient rehab facility and remember almost nothing of any of it.
After a fabulous outpatient rehab, I returned to work in nine weeks, full time and in December of 2013, returned to school to obtain my bachelor's degree. I am blessed to have had such a quick and full recovery and this is not always the norm. I will be saying prayers for your sister and family.
Mary
Hi there...I too had a brain aneurysm one year ago. My short term memory was affected at first and I couldn't remember too clearly what I had just done the day before. It takes time to heal. I am still not 100% as far as remembering things but definitely have seen improvement post-surgery. Have patience, your sister's memory will come along as she heals. It just takes time. I will keep her and your family in prayer.
I suffered a ruptured brain aneurysm on Feb 14th, 2008, like your sister I suddenly had a headache like never before it felt like someone hit me with a sledge hammer, I could feel the bleeding on my brain. My left side was paralyzed, the ambulance was called and when they arrived my blood pressure was 275/170 and I was vomiting. They rushed me to Loma Linda University Medical Center, my family was told I had a 5% chance of surviving this. I remember bits and pieces of this but for the most part I remember nothing until after I was in critical ICU for 15 days and they repaired my aneurysm by angio with coils. Because of the bleed on my brain I suffered from vision problems and because of the swelling on my brain I also suffered seizures. With time(years) both of these problems have gone away, it takes time for the blood on the brain to dry.
It's been seven years, I have had 3 major brain surgeries and 6 angios (40 hours total on the operating table) almost 2 years of intense physical therapy and lots of struggles and ups and downs. They found the second aneurysm after the original rupture, they had to cut my head open and took out half my skull to get to it. So 6 coils, a stent,a clip and 4 plates holding things together I was finally released less than a year ago and am starting my life over. It was with the help of my dear friends and family who struggled with me through this nightmare. I had just divorced after a 24 year marriage and was left with no health insurance so not only did I have to fight for my life, I had to fight the "system" to get the necessary surgeries and treatment.
I am truly one of the lucky ones, I have recovered completely and do not require medication anymore. I am so blessed beyond belief and I am so thankful to my doctors, friends and family who help me through this!
My advice to your sister is no matter how frustrating it is to find the courage to keep going, there will be days when she will feel defeated but don't go there because with determination and LOTS of support she can make it....I truly feel for you all because you will have a fight ahead of you but know that their are success stories with this horrible illness. Hang in there and I will put your sister and her baby in my prayers!