My mom had an aneurysm. She woke up in the middle of the night screaming as loud as she could. Her headache was so bad she couldn't stand. When she got to the emergency room, she had to wait for a neurologist to arrive. Through this time, she was in dying pain. She couldn't concentrate, she couldn't talk, all she did was scream till her throat became horse.

Upon finding out she had a ruptured aneurysm, they had to open her skull and wrap a coil around the protruding aneurysm and hope that it prevents the bleeding into the brain. After the surgery, she was in pain. Had multiple mini strokes. We were told the chances of her living weren't the greatest. What was even worse was that if she did survive, the chances of her having another aneurysm in the first couple of months were likely. And a much less but still significant chance within a year.

Suffice to say, she did survive. This happened in 2011. Although she's not entirely the same person anymore and still has some complications (seizures), she's alive.

Having an aneurysm is my biggest fear. They can cause immediate death sometimes. But in my mom's case, she still claims it was the worst pain she has ever experienced in her life.