I'm the writer of the story--thank you so much for reading. I'm glad to know that my experience helps people gain further understanding of strokes/brain injuries. I hope your girlfriend is in a better place, now.
After my severe traumatic brain injury, I'm trying to do the same thing. Brain injuries are so broad and so complex and dangerously invisible. I would guess this is the one unifying thread between us.
This is a solid A-level piece. Good job on both the writing and content.
Even for someone who understands the symptoms conceptually, it's a completely different matter to actually experience what it's like to be unable to speak the name of a person that you see constantly, or to experience real pain from light, or to be around people and then be utterly exhausted afterwards. It took time for my family and friends to grasp the extent of my injury, especially since it didn't occur in any dramatic or obviously horrible way.
If you are like me, you'll have moments in which you feel completely frustrated and hopeless. Be patient and merciful with yourself. Last year I wondered if I'd ever be able to have a job that required serious mental thought -- but this year I've successfully switched careers to become a full time programmer.
I apologize if this is unsolicited advice, but I guess I'm saying what I wish I would have known when I first got my concussion. And for others who read this: if you get a concussion, see and listen to your doctor -- and if your doctor doesn't take you seriously, find someone who does (especially if you have a clinic nearby that specializes in concussion / brain injury). I can't know for sure, but I think my life over the past two years would have been a lot different had I simply _rested_ in the period afterwards, instead of staying up late studying.
"only". All brain injuries are incredibly frustrating.
Adding on the advice, if you have others close around you, please listen to them and take their advice even if it's painful. This was positive for me and I'm glad I did it... but man it was painful. I felt powerless and helpless and couldn't grasp the full details of the situation. When everyone around you is saying the same thing, they're saying it for a good reason.
The largest lesson I've learned is that there's nothing fundamentally wrong with someone who has a brain injury. They manage their deficits like any sane person would. Yes, their deficits will show through but that doesn't speak to who they are. That's their injury showing itself and they're doing their best to control it.
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/patent-foramen...
Generally, a patent foramen ovale doesn't cause complications. But, some studies have found the disorder is more common in individuals with certain conditions, such as unexplained stroke and migraine with aura. In most cases, there are other reasons for these conditions, and it's just a coincidence the person also has a patent foramen ovale...The possible link between patent foramen ovale and stroke or migraine is controversial and research studies are ongoing.
I'm 42 and have had migraines with aura (mostly blindness) since I was 15. My father is 72, my oldest sister is 51 and my youngest sister is 45 and they have all had migraine with aura since a young age with no strokes reported yet.
But make sure you'll NEVER take vasoconstrictors during the aura... Migraines with aura have two phases :
- first vasoconstriction, which cause the aura. Should not last more than 30-60 minutes. Take NO anti-migraine vasoconstrictor at this point.
- next comes vasodilatation which causes the pain. That's when vasoconstrictors can be used.
Find my comment bellow to learn more.
Interestingly, I have literally never taken prescription migraine medication. I don't have severe ones often enough to warrant needing it. The only thing I take - and I take it at the first sign of aura - is two Excedrin. The active ingredients in Excedrin (aspirin, tylenol, caffeine) are identical to the active ingredients in Excedrin Migraine so I generally take either. It seems to lessen the severity and duration of the headache.
As a neurologist once told me - there is no medication you can take that will reduce or eliminate an aura. So to your advice that it is dangerous to do so, apparently it's not effective either. So there is no upside and apparently plenty of downside to taking vasoconstrictors during aura.
Before that, I was usually taking 1000mg of aspirin too.
My advice if your migraines occur in high stress times (mine did): learn auto-hypnosis or find anything to lower that stress level...
There are still gaps in memory. My friends, since this essay was published, have told me how they visited in the weeks and months following my stroke, and I am floored by how I don't recall their visits, whatsoever. Like, nada. But I know I felt their love, so there is that.
Again--thank you all for the amazing response to my essay. I am overwhelmed in the best way. We writers don't get a lot of kudos, so when the love does come around, it matters very very much. I know it holds me through the darkness and keeps me going. So, thank you for keeping me going!