Don’t mistake these symptoms for just another severe headache.
Lee Broadway suffered from migraines since childhood, but her husband knew something was different when the 41-year-old called saying she had the worst headache of her life.
Her husband, Eric, told People that his wife had suffered from migraine headaches since childhood. However, when Eric got a text from his wife to come home immediately, he knew something had to be terribly wrong.
“I raced home and took her to the ER,” Eric, 43, told People.“I knew this couldn’t be good.” His instinct hinted at the tragedy to come. The mom of four had actually suffered a deadly brain aneurysm..
When the North Carolina couple rushed to a hospital on April 1, “She was begging to have the pain go away,” Eric said. “As a husband, you want to protect your wife and help her, but there was nothing I could do.”
Sadly, two days later, on April 3, Lee died from complications from a brain aneurysm — a weak area in the wall of a blood vessel that causes the blood vessel to bulge or balloon out.
While doctors initially thought they’d been able to repair her aneurysm with a procedure, she suffered a complication the next day. Doctors told Eric there was nothing more they could do for his middle school sweetheart and the mother of his four children.
Now, doctors are urging patients to seek attention if they have the following warning signs:
- Seizures
- Blurred or double-vision
- A painful headache like you’ve never had before
- Over-sensitivity to light that can come on suddenly
- An instant stiff neck
- Constant feeling of nausea and the urge to vomit
- Drooping eyelids
- Losing consciousness
- Feeling numb in the face
- A stabbing pain above or behind a single eye
- Hearing noises that are similar to gunshots or explosions
While it can be hard to determine whether you are simply having a migraine, these added symptoms should be a sign to get immediate help. The result of a ruptured brain aneurysm is an extreme headache that can be felt immediately, which was the case with Lee. Unfortunately, for someone who has migraines frequently, this pain can be quite familiar and hard to detect.
According to the Mayo Clinic, a brain aneurysm can feel like the “worst headache ever experienced.” That intense sensation can also present with nausea, blurred vision, drooping eyelids, or confusion. If you’re ever with someone who complains of a sudden, severe headache, you should call 911, the page advises.
Sources: AWM, People, Mayo Clinic
