That throbbing feeling

While headaches are very common, there are some instances when they indicate a serious underlying problem, writes Meera Murugesan

IT was just a regular day for Michael Lim when he got into his car one evening and instructed his driver to take him home.

The successful 47-year-old businessman had just attended a dinner gathering with friends and work associates and was looking forward to relaxing at home for the rest of the night.

Halfway through the drive home, he experienced a sudden and extremely severe headache.

It was the worst pain he had ever encountered and he immediately instructed his driver to take him to the nearest hospital.

They made it just in time because upon reaching the hospital, Lim collapsed and lost consciousness.

A CT scan showed bleeding in his brain. Subsequently, an angiogram was performed which revealed that Lim had suffered a brain aneurysm.

His family members were informed that Lim needed immediate surgery to treat the condition.

Lim was already in a coma by then. Once his wife gave consent, he was wheeled in for surgery.

In a split second, Lim had gone from being a man with no major health issues to one experiencing a life-threatening condition.

Fortunately for Lim, he recovered from the surgery. One week later, he left the hospital. Eventually, he went back to living life as he had always done and resumed all his normal duties.

The one thing that saved his life was his decision to seek immediate medical attention when he experienced that sudden and severe headache.

If he had continued the drive home, he probably would not have made it.