
'I have brain aneurysms that could rupture at any time - I live in constant fear'
A woman says she lives in 'constant fear' she could die at any moment after aneurysms were found in her brain.
Former customer service worker Amber Ford, 31, from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, says she was a 'healthy, outgoing' person before she began feeling unwell in 2018.
She was first diagnosed with mumps and Bell's palsy, a condition causing temporary weakness.
'My face was all twisted when I woke up one day,' she said.
Her condition took a turn for the worse in 2020 when she began experiencing excruciating headaches, nausea, mood swings and fatigue which was so severe she was falling asleep at work.
She was eventually forced to leave her job due to her condition.
Amber said: 'I wasn't able to stay awake. My behavior changed massively. I was lashing out and getting angry for no reason – completely out of character. I knew there was something wrong.
'The headaches I was getting were so bad that I was physically sick.' Amber Ford Amber was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy in 2018
Despite visits to her GP and a hospital, Amber felt she was not being taken seriously.
She was especially concerned about a lump in her throat which she believed to be cancer – but she said medics refused to refer her for further assessment.
'I kept being fobbed off. The doctors told me nothing was wrong, and they made me believe it was all in my head.
'One doctor even suggested psychiatric treatment because she said I was bringing the symptoms on myself, and medical opinions couldn't justify me getting a scan.
'That was the end for me. I realised I wasn't getting anywhere with the NHS, so I decided to go private.'
Through her work's private healthcare, she was able to seek a CT scan on her neck in December 2023.
But the scan instead revealed a shadow in her brain.
She was referred for a further MRI scan with the NHS in April 2024 which confirmed there could be up to three aneurysms sitting along a duplicated artery – a rare anatomical variation where a segment of a brain artery divides into two separate channels, which then rejoin distally.
'I was in total shock. I was convinced it was everything else going on other than that.
'When someone tells you it's something with your brain, it straight away becomes terrifying. Your brain makes you who you are.
'It's a really scary situation.' Amber Ford Amber says she wants surgery so she can 'get her life back'
A neurosurgeon suggested they could perform an angiogram to investigate further and surgery to cut off blood supply to the aneurysms; but these carry a high risk of complications due to her complex anatomy, which includes permanent disability or even death.
Amber is hoping to be seen by a brain surgeon with expertise in operating on duplicated arteries in the US, who has agreed to look at her case. She is aiming to raise £35,000 on GoFundMe.
'I'm part of an aneurysm support group with over 40,000 members, and I've only come across two people who have a duplicated artery with an aneurysm,' she added.
'I don't want to go to the US for surgery, but I'm in a situation where I really want to fight for a better outcome for myself. If there's any surgery that minimises my chances of disability or dying, I want to choose that option rather than the one being offered here, where they've never done it before.'
Amber says her aneurysms are growing 'significantly' and fears they could rupture at any time.
Amber also said the condition also runs in her family; her grandmother, Isobel O'Neill, died of a brain aneurysm at 56. Amber Ford Amber says she spends her life 'in edge and in constant fear'
'My whole life has completely been changed and put on hold,' Amber said.
'I live on the edge and in constant fear. The minute I go out, my anxiety goes through the roof. I have pain in my head, sore ears, and think, 'is this it? Am I going to die?' There are times when I lie down and I think I won't wake up.
'It doesn't make it easy knowing if something in your brain pops, it's going to kill you. That's no way to live.'
Amber said she is angry with doctors who dismissed her concerns and says her situation might have been different if she was listened to sooner.
'It's been a long process trying to find out what was wrong. I have been ignored for years and made to feel like a hypochondriac.
'If I had initially got that brain scan when I had Bell's palsy, we could have saved so much time and pain.
'I just want things to go back to normal. I want to go back to work, go out, and not worry that I'm going to die.
'I want a life. I want a family – so I need to get this surgery done.'
Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
Chancellor unveils £6bn NHS funding after health-centred spending review
Some £6 billion will be spent on speeding up testing and treatment in the NHS, Rachel Reeves has announced, after she placed the health service at the heart of Government spending plans. The Chancellor unveiled the investment, which includes new scanners, ambulances and urgent treatment centres aimed at providing an extra four million appointments in England over the next five years, after Wednesday's spending review. The funding is aimed at reducing waiting lists and reaching Labour's 'milestone' of ensuring the health service carries out 92% of routine operations within 18 weeks. In the review, Ms Reeves set out day-to-day spending across Government for the next three years, as well as plans for capital investment over the next four years. The NHS and defence were seen as the winners from the settlement, as both will see higher than average rises in public spending. This comes at cost of squeezing the budgets of other Whitehall departments and experts have warned tax rises may be needed later this year. The Chancellor and Sir Keir Starmer both sought to portray the review as a 'new phase' for the Government, following the criticism Labour has faced during its first year in power, including over cuts to winter fuel allowance. Ms Reeves claimed the NHS had been 'put on its knees' as a result of under-investment by the previous government, adding: 'We are investing in Britain's renewal, and we will turn that around.' The new £6 billion investment will come from the capital settlement for the NHS and will also help to speed up diagnoses with scans and treatment available in places such as shopping centres and high streets. The scale of day-to-day spending for the NHS is akin to an extra £29 billion a year. In a broadcast interview on Wednesday evening, Ms Reeves said the Government was 'confident' it could meet its pledge to reduce waiting lists after the boost to NHS spending. But while health and defence have benefited from the review, the Home Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Transport and Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are all in line for real-terms cuts in day-to-day spending. The Foreign Office is also in line for real-terms cuts, mainly as a result of a reduction in the overseas aid budget, which was slashed as part of the commitment to boost defence spending to 2.6% of gross domestic product – including the intelligence agencies – from 2027. Ms Reeves acknowledged 'not everyone has been able to get exactly what they want' following Cabinet squabbling over departmental budgets. She said 'every penny' of the spending increases had been funded through the tax and borrowing changes she had announced in her first budget. The Chancellor also insisted she would not need to mount another tax raid to pay for her plans, but experts warned the money for the NHS might still not be enough and the Government is under international pressure to boost defence funding further. Paul Johnson, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, described the hospital waiting times target as 'enormously ambitious', adding: 'And on defence, it's entirely possible that an increase in the Nato spending target will mean that maintaining defence spending at 2.6% of GDP no longer cuts the mustard.' At a summit later this month Nato members will consider calls to increase spending to 3.5% on defence, with a future 1.5% on defence-related measures. Steven Millard, interim director of the NIESR economic research institute, said the Chancellor's non-negotiable fiscal rules, coupled with the 'small amount of headroom' in her spending plans, meant 'it is now almost inevitable that if she is to keep to her fiscal rules, she will have to raise taxes in the autumn budget'. Elsewhere, policing leaders warned forces may need to make deep cuts after their settlement was announced. The spending review provides more than £2 billion for forces, but ministers have acknowledged some of that 'spending power' will come from council tax hikes.


Scottish Sun
4 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Addiction to ketamine rises eight-fold in a decade as powerful tranquiliser becomes popular with Gen Z
Doctors say heavy use can cause liver disease and permanently damage the bladder and kidneys GENERATION K Addiction to ketamine rises eight-fold in a decade as powerful tranquiliser becomes popular with Gen Z DOCTORS have sounded the alarm over an eight-fold rise in ketamine addiction in a decade. The powerful tranquilliser is popular with Generation Z because of its relatively low cost, experts say. Advertisement 1 Addiction to ketamine has risen eight-fold in a decade, experts have warned Credit: Getty Clinics in England treated 3,609 people of all ages for addiction last year, eight times more than 426 in 2014, figures reveal. Ketamine, also referred to as 'K' or 'Ket', numbs pain and can cause a trippy high. Dealers sell it in powder form for around £20 to £40 a gram compared with £40 to £60 a gram for low-quality cocaine. Doctors say heavy use can cause liver disease and permanently damage the bladder and kidneys. It is linked to constipation, depression and loss of mental sharpness. Advertisement Many medics fail to understand how addictive it can be, an NHS report said. Led by Dr Irene Guerrini of the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, it called the drug's prevalence 'concerning'. It said: 'As ketamine use increases, more individuals are seeking treatment for addiction. 'Long-term use can seriously harm both physical and mental health, diminishing quality of life, affecting personal relationships and impairing academic or professional performance.' Advertisement Dr Guerrini called for stricter guidelines on how the NHS uses the drug and more funds for treatment and prevention. Ministers are considering uprating 34878330from a Class B to Class A drug.


The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Addiction to ketamine rises eight-fold in a decade as powerful tranquiliser becomes popular with Gen Z
DOCTORS have sounded the alarm over an eight-fold rise in ketamine addiction in a decade. The powerful tranquilliser is popular with Generation Z because of its relatively low cost, experts say. Clinics in England treated 3,609 people of all ages for addiction last year, eight times more than 426 in 2014, figures reveal. Ketamine, also referred to as 'K' or 'Ket', numbs pain and can cause a trippy high. Dealers sell it in powder form for around £20 to £40 a gram compared with £40 to £60 a gram for low-quality cocaine. Doctors say heavy use can cause liver disease and permanently damage the bladder and kidneys. It is linked to constipation, depression and loss of mental sharpness. Many medics fail to understand how addictive it can be, an NHS report said. Led by Dr Irene Guerrini of the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, it called the drug's prevalence 'concerning'. It said: 'As ketamine use increases, more individuals are seeking treatment for addiction. 'Long-term use can seriously harm both physical and mental health, diminishing quality of life, affecting personal relationships and impairing academic or professional performance.' Dr Guerrini called for stricter guidelines on how the NHS uses the drug and more funds for treatment and prevention. Ministers are considering uprating 34878330from a Class B to Class A drug.