Just curious how long people have been in this category
Hi Kit...great post...I have 2 brain aneursym's...one was coiled and last check up it hadn't occluded yet...then I have one that is 2mm behind my left eye...and it has been watched for almost 4 years with no growth and/or problems...for my 2mm one ... more risk involved in surgery then watching...also, living each day as best I can to not contribute to my rupture. (meds for Bp, no smoking, no unneeded stress, etc.,)...~ Thoughts out to you ~ Colleen
Great post! I was diagnosed with a “tiny” 2 mm anterior communication anersyum in may of 2012. Still in the watch category!
I was diagnosed a month ago with a 3.5mm MCA aneurysm (MRI no contrast). Now I had a CT contrast and its 4mm. Neuro appt on Thursday. I'm sooooo scared.
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The angiogram is truly the gold standard...and will tell the most information...
So happy to hear that you had a successful procedure. How long ago did you have it done?
I have two aneurysms been watching 2 years now one 3mm and right next to it another pre anuerysm
I have two also a 5.6 infundibulum, and 5.7mm complex, both on PCOM (post communicating artery). They were found in Nov 2013, and we are keeping tabs with annual scans.
I too was terrified Kit....I was diagnosed with two 10mm aneurisms, both behind my optic nerves, one on the left and one on the right. They called them mirror images. Thankfully they were able to coil both of them, one on April 7th and one on April 15th. I was terrified both times but I lived though them and live the same way I did before they were discovered. Try to think positively, that is all you can do. Good luck, I will hope and pray all turns out well for you. Muriel
My 19 year old daughter has 3 aneurysm's, 2 of them have been coiled when she was 12 years old and the third we have been watching ever since. The only thing her doctor her not to do was to play soccer. Within the past 7 years the one we have been watching has grown a little. If this aneurysm is blocked off it would give her a stroke, so for now we are in a watching it stage.
I have an 11mm aneurysm that ruptured and got 8 coils last year, and they found another very small (<2mm) one during the angiogram that I’m supposed to get scanned every 2 years. I got an MRA 6 months ago that showed no change in both aneurysms.
I don’t have much restrictions, except for these: no bearing down, don’t hang head upside down (no more handstands…), exercise with lighter weights (if I can’t talk while lifting a weight, then it’s too heavy), be careful when gardening (they told me that many victims rupture their aneurysm when gardening, I think because of the long hours hanging the head down while exerting by pulling on weeds or digging). You might want to ask your neurologist about these things.
Sometimes I feel like there’s a ticking time bomb in my head, but most of the time I just feel blessed to still be around, especially after having survived a hemorrhagic stroke from the rupture and not getting diagnosed correctly until 5 days later. The doc told me that I probably should not have survived, but I’m sure many of you have been told the same. This year I got to see both kids graduate, one from high school, one from college, which I would have missed if things turned out differently. I was able to help one get started on a new career and the other get college figured out for the fall. And have been able to spend lots more time with my wife. My moments of fear are usually soon overcome by thankfulness for each new day given to me. I keep a running list of each significant experience I’ve had or shared, and each time I’ve been able to make a positive impact in someone’s life since my rupture. Not a bragging list, but a thankfulness list - a list of all the meaningful things I would have missed out on had I not survived. It helps me to enjoy each new day even more than I had before.
I've only been here since December. I had a 6mm coiled in 2012, I went back for my check up to find a new doctor and the return of the aneurysm. I get more studies next month. They say it can't be coiled again, just clipped.
Hi I'm a new member just found out about this foundation and I think its great. Its amazing I had a rupture 15 months ago. And as I sit here looking at everyone's post it makes me so emotional. Its crazy...
This is just my own opinion but here goes - I think anyone who has been told to “watch and wait” should just confirm that with the best neurosurgeon they can get to. Here’s why: I had an aneurysm rupture last year, almost leaving behind my husband and 2 young sons. Was taken to Yale where they “clipped the portion of it they could, and wrapped the rest.” They claimed it was too dangerous to clip more, but that I was safe and they 'd watch me. I did not want to accept that one opinion, so I went for 2 second opinions at Columbia Presbyterian and NYU Langone. The neurosurgeons there practically fell off their chairs and said my surgery MUST be re-done or I would die. Long story short, my aneurysm WAS operable, and NYU obliterated it completely. Some docs just can’t do it and they don’t have the courtesy to admit that you should go elsewhere. Like NYU or Mayo or Hopkins.
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Hi kit. I have 7 unruptured aneurysms. I have a stint through four of them and a coiling in one. Them were found back in 07. So now I just wait and see how then are every six months. Just do everything your doc says to do and everything will be ok. Take care
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Good morning. I am in my second year of watch and wait. My neuro requested a follow up MRI about 3 weeks ago. I'm to call his office to book the follow up appointment after I've heard from the hospital to book the MRI. The neuro office is booking about three months out now, so more waiting. When I asked why the hospital had not called me yet his assistant said he classified me as non-urgent. I asked how he could classify me as non-urgent since he has not seen the follow up imaging yet and her reply was "that is what he said, you know to present yourself to the ER if symptoms arise, right? That's all I can say." With a non urgent status it could be several months before the hospital calls, several more before I can see my neuro for his assessment. By then my yearly followups will be closer to two years.
Frustrating, considering how warm, supportive and understanding my neurosurgeon was last year when we met. He told me then if I was being driven nuts by the thing he would fix it for me. I'm about beyond crazy now, with this not knowing if there have been changes - it was 4.5mm when they found it in March 2013. Every headache stresses me out as I wonder if it will get worse. Knowing that if the 'mother of all headaches' does present I will be facing 50% mortality odds. We live in a rural area, hours away from the nearest full treatment hospital. That will also contribute to the odds against me.
Sometimes I wonder if the "we care" and "we can't care" attitude is all about politics and provincial health budgets and very little to do with patient care. I try hard every day to make each one count - I'm not willing or wanting to become a statistic of our health care budget. This watch and wait stance is playing hardball with my mental and emotional well being.
I'm not expecting bad news, I just don't sit well with the waiting to see again what we're watching part.
I hate it when drs do that. I had to wait to be seen by mine because mine were non-urgent too. I understand that there are others that are urgent but don’t just brush us off because you think it’s non-urgent. To us everyday living with aneurysms is urgent
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Thank God I was very lucky the only issue I came out with was my short term memory. I had the worst headache ever and my neck got stiff. I was not able to move my head to either side. I new then that there was something really wrong. I told my wife to call the e.r. when I got there they took a ct scan and found that my head was full of blood. At this point I don't remember anything else that I'm typing. I was told that right there in the e.r. they had to drill a hole in my head to release the pressure. Then they attempted to do the coiling to stop the bleeping but it did not work. They told my wife that they could wait a day or two to try the coiling again or they could just operate. My wife then asked the doctor what he would do if that was his son laying there, he told her he would operate so they did. They gave me a 50/50 chance to survive. I was in the intensive care unit for 15 days after the operation. I must say it has been an up and down recovery. This has been the only operation I ever had in my life. So recovery and everything that goes with it has been all new to me, still today. Right now i'm going for an M.R.I. on thursday for my neck and shoulder. Ever since that evening my neck has never healed properly it always bothers me. When I drive I use those round pillows it helps. I was just diagnosed with Vertigo. I've been in bed for the last four days. I'm not sure if this is what i'm suppose to do on this page but i'm just sharing. Have a good day.......
I have a 4.6 mm anterior communicating artery aneurysm which was diagnosed in January of 2012. It has a wide mouth and cannot be coiled, so rather than major surgery, I deciced to wait. It is being watched. At first, i found it very difficult to live with. I’ve calmed down and live my life as usual. I get yearly CT scans with contrast.
Thanks to everyone for responding. This forum is really the only thing that makes me feel better. Boyfriend/family are worried and freaked out- they care, but sometimes bring added stress. Neuro app