Actress Emilia Clarke, best known for her role as Daenerys Targaryen in the hit series Game of Thrones, has opened up about surviving two brain hemorrhages during her time on the show. The 39-year-old actress revealed on the How To Fail with Elizabeth Day podcast that after her second brain hemorrhage, she became convinced she was 'meant to die.'
First Brain Hemorrhage After Season One
Clarke recalled suffering her first brain hemorrhage shortly after wrapping the show's first season. She described the experience as feeling like 'an elastic band snapping around your brain,' accompanied by intense pressure. While working out at a London gym, she collapsed and crawled to the bathroom, vomiting from the pain. 'In that moment, I knew I was being brain-damaged,' she said.
Despite the severity, Clarke focused on convincing show executives and creators that she would recover in time to continue working. 'I was so ashamed that this thing had happened and that the people who had employed me might see me as weak,' she admitted.
Second Aneurysm and Emergency Surgery
While living in New York and performing in a Broadway play, Clarke suffered a second aneurysm. Doctors had been monitoring it through regular scans after spotting it during treatment for the first hemorrhage. However, surgery to repair it went wrong, forcing doctors to perform emergency brain surgery. 'My parents were waiting for me, and the doctors would come down every half an hour and say, "We think she's going to die," ' Clarke recalled.
Following the second hemorrhage, Clarke said she struggled emotionally in ways she had not after the first. 'The biggest thing that happened to me with the second brain hemorrhage was I shut down emotionally,' she explained. She became consumed with fear whenever she experienced a headache, worrying another hemorrhage was occurring.
Work as a Lifeline
While promoting Game of Thrones at San Diego Comic-Con shortly after one of her surgeries, Clarke remembered thinking, 'If I'm going to die, I'll do it on live TV.' Yet, she said continuing to work ultimately helped her survive emotionally. 'Without my work, I don't know what I would have done,' she stated.
Clarke also revealed that she did not allow herself much grace during recovery, viewing the experience as a personal failure. Despite the trauma, she continues to advocate for brain health and shares her story to inspire others.
