I'd like to take you back to July 26, 2003. It was an average morning for me; I was lifting weights in a class at the gym when I was suddenly confronted with a blinding, uncontrollable migraine that came on without warning. The pain was unbearable and nauseating, so I got out of class to lay on a couch and let it pass. However, it grew more intense by the minute, and the gym staff reached a friend to drive me to the hospital. I remember getting into the truck while sobbing from the pain, then vomiting uncontrollably, and then losing the next 10 days of my life. I suffered an unexpected brain aneurysm, and spent a week and a half of my life mainly at OHSU, undergoing numerous tests and surgeries that saved my life in the end. Before all of this, I barely had any idea what an aneurysm was, or how common they are. I hope that by sharing with you the symptoms, the diagnosis, and the treatments available, then maybe you can learn to recognize one before its too late.
             A brain aneurysm is a weak bulging area in the wall of an artery that supplies blood to the brain. Sometimes they form by a blood clot breaking away and lodging in the tissue of the brain. Typically they go unnoticed because there are no detectable symptoms; however, they may rupture in rare cases, causing what is known as a subarachnoid hemorrhage. This can lead to a fatal loss of blood into the skull and lead to a stroke, potential brain damage, or even death. They are typically discovered in a network of blood vessels located at the base of the brain known as the circle of Willis. Between 1 and 5% of all Americans may have unruptured brain aneurysms, while 15,000 Americans have a stroke every year from an aneurysm that ruptures. Often the aneurysms occur in blood vessels that have been weakened by a condition known as arteriosclerosis, which is a thickening of the arteries or sometimes by high blood pressure. However, it has also been found that genetics play a big part. ...