Hello, all — I’d like to share a couple of great updates from the past several months: In Nov I met with the cerebrovascular neurologist who reiterated how lucky I am and how far I’ve come, to the point of dubbing me the “poster child for ruptured brain aneurysm recovery.” He spent considerable time with me explaining that while much of the recovery occurs during the 3-6 months post-rupture timeframe, I can expect to make additional gains up to 2 years post. As long as my current symptoms (occasional headaches, intermittent fatigue) continue to lessen as expected, I won’t need to have additional appointments with him.
The bulk of my f/up care will be scans of various sorts to look at the blood vessels in my brain. Having just passed the 6-month (!!) mark, I’m happy to report that the cerebral angiogram I had on 1/12 showed that everything looks good! In this outpatient procedure, a small incision is made in the groin so that a thin catheter can be threaded through the artery up to the artery in the neck. Then a special dye is injected through the catheter, and when the dye reaches the blood vessels in the brain, x-rays are taken so the dr can see how the blood is flowing. In my case, they wanted to ensure that the coil which was placed in July had sufficiently filled the aneurysm space and that no blood was leaking past the site. The stats were in my favor, as just 8% of coil embolizations need further treatment, but obviously I was happy and relieved to be in the 92% :). Since the dr who performed the angiogram was the same one who placed the coil in July, I had the added privilege of meeting (and thanking!) him this time, as I have no memory of being treated by him when the aneurysm ruptured. I’ll have another angiogram next year and then transition to monitoring by MRA imaging (a type of MRI that looks at the blood vessels); those will be done yearly or at longer intervals, per the doctor’s recommendation.
On a day-to-day basis, I believe I have been completely “cured” of my night owl tendencies and find that 7-8 hrs of sleep per night truly is one of the best things I can do to maintain my health. Helluva way to finally follow that common advice! As mentioned above, I continue to have occasional headaches and intermittent fatigue, and at times I simply feel drained. Situations which include multiple, simultaneous sensory input can be rather tiring; and sustained, visual scanning, such as prolonged computer work, can still be bothersome but is manageable. Over the holidays I also discovered that playing board games was trickier than expected—a little too much concentrating, I imagine, though maybe the kids would say it’s because I was losing!
I’m continuing to make progress, and count among my successes several road trips to Chicago to visit family (with me able to do the driving the entire way a few weeks ago). After having to forego a couple of weddings last summer, I’ve been able to attend two since the end of September. My stamina on the dance floor remains a work in progress (sensory input overload) but seems to be improving. Happily, work continues to go well!
I suspect that I will limit posting here to perhaps an annual update, so you can assume that “no news is good news”! A heartfelt thank you to family and friends for your care and concern during the last six months. I’m looking forward to a great 2024!
