A Love Letter from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
This story is based on the author's real experience of suffering a subarachnoid hemorrhage during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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A Love Letter from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
A headache that feels like your brain is being squeezed directly.
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Do you have an ideal way for your life to end?
Occupation: Manga Artist
I do.
Live a healthy life past 80...
...and then pass away peacefully without suffering.
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To that end,
I live a healthy life now.
Plenty of sleep, a proper diet, and moderate exercise.
Annual health check-ups.
Healthy habits I've maintained for years, with occasional breaks.
Perhaps because of that,
I'll be fine!
I even had a strange sense of confidence.
Summer 2020
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My head hurts!
Huh? What's this?
A pain I've never felt before.
A pain that feels like my whole head is being squeezed.
It's not a headache I recognize, like from a cold.
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Maybe it's just temporary? I'll rest a bit...
If I had to describe this pain...
...it's like Sun Wukong's golden fillet is squeezing my brain directly.
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An ambulance... Should I call one?
I'm calling!
Hello, this is the fire department.
Huh? Is 119 for the fire department?
...Oh, I've made a mistake.
I thought I was calling for an ambulance.
This is the correct number for ambulances as well.
Oh, really! I never knew that.
I have a severe headache...
It feels like my entire head is being squeezed...
The symptoms started about five minutes before I called.
It's the first time I've felt a pain like this.
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My name is Yuki Shingetsu... I'm the one who's sick.
My current location is...
Please give me a phone number where you can be reached.
...080-
Have you traveled abroad within the last two weeks?
...Ngh.
...Gah!
...Have you traveled abroad within the last two weeks?
...
...No.
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The ambulance... hurry...!
...Over here.
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I waited near the window to make it easier for the paramedics to get me.
Are you Yuki Shingetsu?
...Yes.
We'll need your wallet and your health insurance card.
...They're in my room.
Please don't move.
Huh?
If I don't move, how am I supposed to...
...get my wallet and insurance card?
In the end...
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They decided to get my wallet and insurance card later.
I was rushed to the hospital.
During the examination at the hospital, I fell into a coma.
Where am I?
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...Ah.
...A hospital room?
Ms. Shingetsu.
Are you all right?
A nurse?
Are you in any pain?
My head hurts.
Where... where am I?
This is Kitahara International Hospital.
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Yuki, you had a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
You were brought to this hospital.
!!
A subarachnoid hemorrhage is caused by a ruptured cerebral aneurysm.
Arachnoid mater
Subarachnoid space
Skull
Bleeding occurs in the subarachnoid space.
It's accompanied by a severe headache.
There are generally three outcomes after treatment, right?
Living with after-effects.
Death.
A full return to society.
Each outcome has roughly the same probability.
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Can I move my hands?
They moved!
What about my legs? Can they move too?
Please don't move your legs!
!!
I can't?
Why not?
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A Love Letter from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
The Cause of the Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
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Previously...
I was rushed to the hospital by ambulance after a sudden, severe headache.
I was told I had a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
When I checked to see if my limbs could move...
Don't move your legs!
...Um?
We performed a catheter surgery through the base of your thigh.
If you move now, you might start bleeding.
...A catheter?
How much longer do I have to stay still?
Another two hours.
What time is it? What day is it?
I want to know what's going on.
Please tell me.
The surgery is already over... right?
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Yes, it's over.
Right...?
You did just say it was a catheter surgery.
I didn't want to have surgery.
...Well, it was a subarachnoid hemorrhage, so...
...I probably would have died without it, but still.
My phone! This is great.
Oh.
Yuki, here's your phone back.
Thank you very much.
What is an endovascular catheter surgery?
Also known as endovascular surgery.
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A tube is inserted through the femoral artery at the base of the leg,
and travels through the blood vessels to reach the affected area in the brain.
So they didn't have to open my skull.
Wow, they can do this kind of surgery now. That's amazing.
Now then...
Strokes are...
subarachnoid hemorrhage cause
Cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, and subarachnoid hemorrhage.
They're divided into three types.
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The causes of stroke are similar to those of high blood pressure and diabetes. They are rooted in daily lifestyle habits such as:
- Diet
- Lack of exercise
- Stress
- Smoking
- Excessive drinking
These are also known as 'lifestyle diseases.'
This is all stuff I already knew...
Also,
I haven't been living an unhealthy lifestyle.
Diet
I'm careful about what I eat every day.
Oh, maybe it's that?
I think I'm eating healthily, but...
...maybe I'm actually not?
I do eat junk food sometimes.
...But my health check-ups always come back normal.
Excellent
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Lack of Exercise
If anything, I exercise too much.
I've even consulted a doctor about it a few times before.
You're doing too much weight training and running. Please cut back.
I adjusted my workout routine after that.
Stress
I spend the most time on my mental well-being.
...Or was I just telling myself that?
Smoking
Excessive Drinking
I don't smoke, and I don't drink.
Why did I have a subarachnoid hemorrhage?
I don't know!
...My head hurts.
I'll ask the doctor tomorrow.
Ms. Shingetsu, it's about time...
Excuse me... Oh... now that I think about it, a long time ago...
...my uncle collapsed from a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
...Ms. Shingetsu!
What is it?
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It could be genetic.
What?!
The Next Day
I'm Dr. Hayashi, the neurosurgeon. How are you feeling?
I heard from the nurse.
That you have a family history of subarachnoid hemorrhage.
Doctor
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Your family members may also be at risk for a subarachnoid hemorrhage.
My subarachnoid hemorrhage...
...was caused by a genetic factor!
Is that possible?
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A Love Letter from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
We don't laugh because we're happy—we're happy because we laugh.
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Previously...
The cause of my subarachnoid hemorrhage...
...was a genetic factor!
I learned that this was a possibility.
My life in the ICU began suddenly.
The ICU is...
...a ward for patients who have survived life-saving procedures.
Faced with this sudden, critical condition...
...I was overcome with shock...
...and broke down in tears.
Or so you'd think.
Ms. Shingetsu.
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Please review these.
Don't push yourself, it's okay.
Hospital Admission Guide
!!
This is the admission guide.
There are quite a few pages,
but there are consent forms and other documents we need you to review and fill out.
So many...
...Okay.
Pajamas and towels are available for rent.
Please check this form for details.
Would you like to purchase a toothbrush and slippers?
You can purchase anything you need for your hospital stay from this list.
...Okay.
...Yes, I'll buy them.
Also...
The admission process is more involved than I imagined.
Don't push yourself, it's okay.
Ooooh...!
And then...
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Contacting everyone.
Reply, Contact, Reply
Work
Thankfully, I had submitted all my work projects the day before!
It's like a miracle how conveniently I collapsed.
I must have worried you all. I'm so sorry.
I bet you never thought it was a subarachnoid hemorrhage. I was surprised myself.
Family
Friends
I'll ask them to bring me some things I need.
Insurance card, wallet, a new novel.
When they ask if I'm okay, what should I say? I don't even know...
I'm alive, and I can send emails.
So I guess that counts as being okay.
I'll just tell them I'm okay.
...
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I'm tired...
I'll just zone out for a bit.
After regaining consciousness,
my first day in the hospital...
...was a busy one.
Being alive is a lot of work.
And so,
as for the symptoms of my subarachnoid hemorrhage...
Yuki, how are you feeling?
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...You know how your head hurts when you oversleep? It's a pain like that.
...Hmm? You have a fever of 38 degrees.
The headache gets worse when I lift my head, right?
With my subarachnoid hemorrhage, I can move my arms and legs, but...
...the headache becomes severe when I try to sit up.
So I'm almost completely bedridden.
Am I going to be bedridden forever?
There was a time I thought that, but...
...the anxiety didn't last.
I'll probably be fine.
I vaguely believed in a future where I would make a full recovery.
This might sound surprising, but...
...in the early days of my hospitalization for the subarachnoid hemorrhage,
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...it was peaceful.
One of the things creating this peace...
Wow, this is fun!
Wahahahaha hahahahaha
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...was the sound of the nurses laughing.
That's odd.
Ahahahaha hahaha
...I don't think anyone here said anything funny.
Ahahahaha hahaha
...Why?
Ah...
Ahahahaha hahaha
...
Waha
Ahahahaha hahahahaha
Heh.
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...Pfft, hahaha.
Pfft, hah.
No! It's not even funny, but...
I can't help but laugh! This is ridiculous!
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They know the effect laughter has on patients,
so they're laughing on purpose.
We don't laugh because we're happy—we're happy because we laugh.
I'm reminded of the words of the French philosopher, Alain.
A phrase the doctor often repeated in the early days of my hospitalization.
The first two weeks after a subarachnoid hemorrhage are the most critical.
I would come to understand the meaning of those words a little later on.
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A Love Letter from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: My Higher Brain Dysfunction (Aphasia)
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A phrase I heard often in the hospital.
Two weeks.
Nurse
These two weeks are crucial.
The first two weeks after a subarachnoid hemorrhage are the critical period.
Doctor
...
Once two weeks have passed...
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Will this headache go away?
Will I be able to leave the hospital?
Yes, as long as there are no complications.
Two weeks!
That's how long it'll take for everything to be resolved.
On a scale where the maximum pain is 10...
How is your headache right now?
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Right now... it's a weak 3.
It hurts when I talk.
This was a question I was asked often,
and I answered based on my own personal scale.
My scale was:
A headache where I can use my phone for 20 minutes straight.
A headache where I can use my phone for 5 minutes straight.
Level 5
A headache that makes my body shake when I walk.
I feel nauseous.
I can't walk with this much pain.
Rehab is impossible!!
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Level 10
There are no levels 6 through 9.
The pain shoots straight to a MAX 10.
Keep up the good work with your rehab.
You're fine to walk in the hallways.
It hurts too much when I sit up. I can't do rehab.
He's a monster!
Come on, you can do it.
...No, I really feel like I'm going to be sick.
Yuki.
Yuki, you're trembling. Let's stop rehab for now!
Next time, please speak up so we can hear you better.
...
...But I'm supposed to be discharged in two weeks, right?
Should I push through?
I have to think about my life after I leave the hospital...
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The staff here has a habit of immediately praising any patient who does something that looks healthy.
Yuki, that's amazing!
Amazing! You're doing great!
Well, I used to meditate every morning anyway...
Let's do this!
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Let's keep working hard on your rehab!
...
Yes!
My head still hurts when I sit up, but...
...I'm going to get completely better...
...and leave the hospital in two weeks.
Thank you for your support.
Day 8 since the onset of the subarachnoid hemorrhage.
Yuki, I'm going to change your IV drip.
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How are you feeling?
I'm fine.
...Oh.
The IV in my left arm hurts.
Azami kiw rakwa Q kio.
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Excuse me? What did you say?
...Azami kiw rakwa Q kio.
...? Could you please repeat that?
The IV in my left arm hurts.
...Ah.
Azai kiw rakaa...Q.
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Have I... lost the ability to speak?
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The first two weeks after a subarachnoid hemorrhage are the most critical.
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