Best known globally for portraying Daenerys Targaryen — the “Mother of Dragons” — in HBO’s landmark fantasy series Game of Thrones, Emilia Clarke has once again opened up about the life-altering medical crises she endured while working at the height of the show’s success.
Emilia Clarke on surviving brain haemorrhages and having survivor's guilt
Clarke suffered two brain haemorrhages during the early years of “Game of Thrones”, experiences she has previously described as physically and emotionally devastating. Reflecting on the aftermath of those medical emergencies, the actor said she struggled to navigate recovery while simultaneously maintaining a demanding public career.
“At the time, ‘I was lost in a sea of ‘What next?’ when it came to my recovery and aftercare of a brain injury,’” Clarke said.
The actor first publicly revealed her condition in 2019, shortly before the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones aired. Until then, Clarke had chosen to keep her health battle private, continuing to work while managing the uncertainty and trauma associated with her recovery.
Her decision to eventually share her story coincided with the launch of SameYou, a charity focused on improving rehabilitation and mental health support for survivors of brain injury and stroke.
“Brain injury is very specific, because if I were to ask you where you think you reside in your body, you would probably say your brain,” she says. “So when that most fundamental part of yourself fails you, it’s terrifying on such an existential level. And it happens to one in three of us.”
“I know what it feels like to leave hospital and not know where to turn,” Clarke says. With the support of SameYou, she hopes other survivors won’t feel so alone.
Clarke has previously spoken about feelings commonly associated with trauma recovery, including survivor’s guilt and anxiety about returning to work after life-threatening illness. In earlier interviews, she described fears that parts of her cognitive ability had been permanently affected, saying she often worried about losing her capacity to perform as an actor.
Despite those fears, Clarke continued filming Game of Thrones during one of television’s most culturally dominant periods.
