A MUM-OF-TWO was lucky to survive when she suffered a brain aneurysm after a workout at the gym - and had to have nearly half her skull removed.

Lisa Ross, 35, thought she had a migraine after bending down to pick up light weights during her usual body pump class.

But two days later she was rushed to A&E where medics detected a brain aneurysm behind her right eye, which ruptured.

Lisa, from Cumbernauld, also suffered a stroke, followed by another just three days later.

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Two years after the catastrophic illness, Lisa has been left with no peripheral vision and limited mobility in her left hand, but she feels lucky to be alive.

Lisa said: “It still baffles me to this day how I went from fine to nearly dying in one week.

“I was miserable for months afterwards but I really feel lucky now to still be here and it makes me cherish my family and the little things in life even more.”

The aneurysm happened on March 2, 2017 during Lisa’s gym class.

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It went undiagnosed for two days until Lisa went to A&E at Monklands Hospital in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, after suffering agonising pain.

A CT scan confirmed a brain bleed and Lisa was transferred to a special unit at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.

Medics operated and successfully stopped the bleed, but two days later swelling from the surgery caused a second massive stroke.

Part of Lisa’s skull had to be removed to ease the swelling and save her life.

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Lisa was unresponsive and moved to intensive care, and even failed to recognise her sons Kalvin, 11, and Connor, five, on the first day of her recovery ten days later.

She could not walk, talk or swallow, and was kept in the QEUH for nearly four months with husband Richard Ross, 35, visiting every day until being discharged on June 29, 2017.

Former RBS customer service agent Lisa said: “I remember coming home and constantly thinking ‘Why me?’.

“There’d be endless days of sitting on the couch doing nothing.

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“This low period lasted for months and months.

“It wasn’t until Kalvin one day said out of the blue, ‘I’m so glad you made it through this mummy’.

“That was my wake up call. It made me realise life doesn’t stop after a brain injury - it’s simply a new beginning.

“Realising the support network you have around you and that you’re not alone and have a purpose encourages you to keep going.

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“My love and appreciation for Richard and the boys has never been greater and I now do everything I can to help others in the same situation.”

The determined mum is now back at the gym and works with mentoring charity Momentum Scotland.

Lisa added: “I now see a personal trainer who helps me with special exercises for my hand.

“I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved in my recovery which was only possible thanks to the support from my husband, friends and family.

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“I am now focused on moving forward, helping people and cherishing what I have.”

Her mum Lorna Watson added: “I can’t describe the fear. It’s something no parent wants to experience.

“Seeing Lisa lying there with all those tubes and wires and her head bandaged up just broke my heart.

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“Richard was incredible – he was there for the kids and Lisa in a way that no man would ever expect to be.”