On screen, she’s Daenerys Targaryen, Breaker of Chains and Mother of Dragons. But Emilia Clarke has endured numerous health scares over the past number of years that she’s only now beginning to share.
In a candid post on The New Yorker, Clarke shared a deeply personal account of her subarachnoid hemorrhage, and how it left her on the brink of death soon after Game of Thrones season 1 had wrapped. Her story begins in 2011, when HBO’s fledgling fantasy series had just started to stake its claim for the throne.
Emilia Clarke, on the other hand, was still adjusting to her newfound fame, but soon found comfort in fitness. For her, the gym was a stress-buster – that one place where all her fear and apprehension washed away so that she could focus intently on her workout. It wasn’t long before Clarke realized something was wrong, though.
When I started my workout, I had to force myself through the first few exercises. Then my trainer had me get into the plank position, and I immediately felt as though an elastic band were squeezing my brain. I tried to ignore the pain and push through it, but I just couldn’t. I told my trainer I had to take a break. Somehow, almost crawling, I made it to the locker room. I reached the toilet, sank to my knees, and proceeded to be violently, voluminously ill. Meanwhile, the pain—shooting, stabbing, constricting pain—was getting worse. At some level, I knew what was happening: my brain was damaged. I was sent for an MRI, a brain scan. The diagnosis was quick and ominous: a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), a life-threatening type of stroke, caused by bleeding into the space surrounding the brain. I’d had an aneurysm.
Filming on Game of Thrones seasons 2 and 3 were particularly difficult, after Clarke was informed that she was would require another, more invasive surgery. And so began a long road to recovery, during which time the actress feared for her memory and mobility. Thankfully, she made a full recovery, and feels the time is nigh to share it with her impassioned followers.
But now, after keeping quiet all these years, I’m telling you the truth in full. Please believe me: I know that I am hardly unique, hardly alone. Countless people have suffered far worse, and with nothing like the care I was so lucky to receive.
Long may that continue. You have to respect Clarke’s resilience, especially during the production of Game of Thrones season 2 and 3, when the prognosis was much, much worse. Thankfully, she’s “healed beyond my most unreasonable hopes,” and will be back on our screens to close the book on her Daenerys Targaryen saga once and for all. And thank the gods for that.
