Bret Michaels

The Oprah Show had Bret Michaels as a guest via satellite today. Bret Michaels is a rock "star" who had a sub-arachnoid brain hemorrhage back in April...and lived to tell about it. In that regard, he and I have something in common. I also had a sub-arachnoid bleed almost three years ago, caused by a ruptured aneurysm. He and I are members of the 20% who survive without disability. (He is in rehab with some lingering problems. I didn't even have those!)

I couldn't help but compare our experiences as he talked. He said it was as if something popped in his head. The headache was so bad that he instantly knew he was in trouble and asked his woman to take him to an emergency room, but when they got there, he didn't want anyone around him. He didn't want to move out of the car. He explained that he still has problems with his extremities and his head still hurts, but he is expected to make a full recovery. At least he sought immediate treatment. I wasn't so wise!

When visiting at my sister's in Illinois late on a Saturday evening in late July, I suddenly got a huge headache. Nothing popped, but I was aware that it felt like my head was going to explode in the back...and the base of my skull hurt. The most miserable part, however, was the instant wave of nausea. I made it upstairs to the bathroom just in time, and was sick as a dog the rest of the night. Every time I attempted to throw up, my head and neck would just kill me. My sister supplied me with two ice packs--one for my head and one for my neck. She wanted to take me to the hospital, but I didn't feel good enough to go! Toward noon the next day, I was finally not throwing up so much, but my head still hurt. I knew I wouldn't be driving home that day. Finally, in the afternoon, I agreed to go to an immediate care facility. They did a quick CT scan which confirmed a brain bleed. I got a helicopter ride to Peoria, a craniotomy, a clipped aneurysm...and the rest is history.

Unlike Mr. Michaels, my family was not advised to gather because of my condition (although they gathered anyway). I never lost consciousness, never lost strength or feeling in my extremities, never lost vision or hearing, and never lost any memory. I never felt afraid that I was going to die. I just wanted to get it all over with so I could go home.

After the surgery, I felt better. My head still hurt a little, but not from the surgery. (I was told that the headache would last for about two weeks, and that's exactly as long as it did last. Then gone!) Even though I was told that people are usually in the hospital for15 days, I was sent home in seven. My incision didn't require surgical drains. My head wasn't totally shaved. They brought in a physical therapist to assess my walking ability and determined that I didn't need any physical rehabilitation! I didn't look very pretty--staples in my head and two black eyes--but I was alive!

The neurosurgeon that I was referred to at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis removed the staples and advised me that I couldn't drive for awhile, nor was I supposed to be left alone for about three weeks, due to the risk of vasospasm...and he didn't want me to return to teaching until after Labor Day. A number of people came to help out, but I got my daughter to let me manage by myself after about a week of being babysat. I got an extra three weeks of summer vacation. I didn't mind!

I really must write to Mr. Michaels and welcome him to the Twenty Percent Club. Should I??