Emilia Clarke is missing parts of her brain after suffering a stroke and undergoing two brain surgeries due to aneurysms.
Emilia Clarke who was the main character for (GOT) Game of Thrones, was also recognized as Mother of Dragons, revealed parts of her brain are missing after suffering two aneurysms while filming. During a recent appearance on BBC One’s Sunday Morning, Clarke opened up about the effects both her aneurysms had on her brain, after initially opening up about the traumatic experiences in an essay she wrote for the New York Times in 2019. Clarke shared that she herself is amazed she is able to continue living a normal life due to how much of her brain is actually missing or just considered unusable.
I am in the, really, really small minority of people that can survive that There’s quite a bit missing! Clarke explained. Because strokes, basically, as soon as any part of your brain doesn’t get blood for a second, it’s gone. And so the blood finds a different route to get around but then whatever bit it’s missing is therefore gone.
Clarke suffered her first stroke in 2011 after an aneurysm ruptured in her brain, which also caused a subarachnoid hemorrhage. Thankfully those around her acted fast, and she was rushed into brain surgery. In her 2019 essay, Clarke remembered waking up in the ICU after her first brain surgery unable to remember her name and unable to communicate. She was suffering from aphasia due to the trauma her brain went through.
Clarke was afraid she would never be able to act again due to being diagnosed with aphasia after getting out of her first brain surgery. Thankfully she recovered and was able to return to “Game of Thrones” as Daenerys Targaryen.
She recalled asking the doctors to let her die because she didn’t know how she would carry on without communicating and working her dream job as an actress, writing, My job my entire dream of what my life would be centered on language, on communication. Without that, I was lost.
After going through two traumatic brain surgeries, Clarke created a charity called SameYou intending to help survivors of strokes and brain injuries recover in all aspects of their lives.
The charity’s website cites its mission as helping to transform the way brain injury survivors and their loved ones are supported through emotional, mental health, and cognitive recovery services because the journey doesn’t end once they leave the hospital but continues at home.
