Emilia Clarke opened up about suffering two brain hemorrhages at ages 22 and 24. She revealed that they kept her diagnosis a secret from HBO in 2011, as she was “ashamed” of it and lacked a full understanding of her “brain bleed.” She believed that talking publicly about her diagnosis might help her cope, and was overwhelmed by how many people came forward with their own stories.
Emilia Clarke says she was ‘ashamed and overwhelmed’ of brain hemorrhage diagnosis
During Variety’s Power of Women London event, Clarke broke her silence on experiencing two brain hemorrhages. She revealed that the first brain bleed happened when she was 22, also the age at which she filmed the first season of Game of Thrones. The second one followed at the age of 24, when she made her Broadway debut. “I’d like to blame my brain haemorrhage for the bad reviews, but it happened after we closed, early…” she added.
Reflecting on the difficult experiences, she added, “Fifteen years after my first bleed, I have the hindsight to see how difficult that time truly was. I never had the chance to reflect on what my two brain traumas had done to me because I could walk, talk, be myself, remember my lines and was back on camera within weeks of both brain injuries.”
The “Me Before You” actress said that she didn’t want anyone to know about her brain diagnosis in 2011. She even avoided revealing it to HBO, as she was “ashamed” of it and was “overwhelmed” after learning about the diagnosis.
“We didn’t even tell HBO until we knew I wasn’t going to die, which in TV terms, is usually when they kill you off anyway. After my second hemorrhage in 2014, I started to think that perhaps speaking publicly might help. But it still took years for me to grapple with my truth,” she continued. She mentioned that in 2019, she finally gathered the courage to speak about her diagnosis and was overwhelmed by the response she received from actual survivors.
“The journey to healing feels like falling off the edge of a cliff without anyone there to catch you,” she conveyed the message on behalf of the survivors’ community.
