Pushing Too Hard at the Gym? Fitness Trainer’s Brain Bleed Sparks Warning to Listen to Your Body
A super-fit personal trainer has shared that doctors attributed her unexpected brain bleed to “years of pushing it too hard at the gym.”
Linzi Todd, hailing from Northampton, suddenly started experiencing tinnitus—a ringing or buzzing in her ears—and intense headaches while leading a fitness boot camp back in March.
However, the 40-year-old mom of one brushed off these symptoms, thinking she was just feeling a bit “overtired.”
It wasn’t until the relentless headaches left her unable to get out of bed that she finally decided to visit A&E. There, she was sent for an MRI scan, and doctors suggested she should up her caffeine and water intake.
But the scan revealed a different story: she had a bleed on the brain along with a 17mm blood clot.
Ms. Todd shared that she received a call from medics who urged her to rush to the hospital without delay.
Once there, further tests revealed that a blood clot in her brain was caused by fluid leaking from her spine—something the doctors believed was a result of years of intense exercise. She ended up undergoing three weeks of treatment.
Now, Ms. Todd, who has stepped away from being a personal trainer and is now working for a mental health company, is encouraging others to stand their ground with doctors and not to give up if they feel something is off.
Reflecting on her frightening experience, she recalled, “I was at a training camp for outdoor bootcamp fitness, and that night, I went to bed only to wake up with tinnitus, something I had never experienced before.”
‘I woke up the next morning with a really banging headache then popped a couple of pills, felt unwell but cracked on.
‘I rang the doctors and they put it down to labyrinthitis [an ear infection] because I felt dizzy as well.
‘I just thought maybe my body was tired. I’m not the type of person that gets sick. I’ve always been really fit and healthy.
‘But the headaches persisted. I would wake up with intense throbbing in my head as soon as I got up every morning.
‘It felt like the worst brain freeze and only lying down and painkillers would give me some relief.’
After a visit to A&E and getting an MRI, she mentioned that she received an urgent call from the neurologist, who insisted she come to the hospital right away.
‘He said he could see an acute subdural hematoma on your brain, which is very serious and a very large blood clot,’ Ms Todd said.
‘He said we don’t often see bleeds of this size in women of your age without any head trauma and it was a medical emergency.
‘I was Googling what this condition was and it said there was a 25 per cent survival rate. I thought, “am I going to die? Do I need to plan my funeral?”
‘It was so traumatic. I had to say goodbye to my husband and daughter. I didn’t know if I was going to see them again or not.
‘Doctors were baffled by how I was presenting based on my scans and what they found. I was at high risk of a stroke and seizure, yet I was passing all of their cognitive and reflex tests.
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‘It’s normally found in boxers, rugby players, horse-riders — someone that has had trauma to the head.
I had this thought swirling around in my head, and honestly, it could have been the end of me.
Tests revealed that the bleeding in her brain was due to fluid leaking from her spine—something doctors say can happen to fit and active individuals who push themselves too hard.
They suspect that overdoing it might have caused a tear in her dura.
The dura is the outermost layer of membranes that serves as a protective barrier between the brain and the spinal cord.
In rare and serious situations, this leak can lead to a drop in spinal fluid pressure, which can tear the veins. This, in turn, allows blood to clot.
She’s about to have an epidural blood patch, a procedure designed to stop any more fluid from leaking around her spinal cord.
She shared, “I really don’t want anyone to shy away from exercise because this is such a rare occurrence, but it’s the only explanation I can think of for what happened.
“I never imagined that a severe headache could lead to this and nearly three weeks in the hospital.
“I had to advocate for myself every single step of the way. If I hadn’t been so persistent with the doctors, things could have turned out very differently. I honestly believe I could have died.
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“I just had this feeling that something was off. I always encourage others to listen to their bodies and trust their instincts. Don’t hesitate to seek help and demand answers.”
‘You’d rather get a normal result than leave it and it be too late.’
Previous research has indicated that too much exercise could lead to brain bleeds, which might result in serious strokes or brain hemorrhages.
In 2019, Joanne Leach, a 46-year-old from Anglesey, Wales, tragically passed away from a brain hemorrhage while using an exercise bike.
Even though her husband, Justin Beilensohn, 47, performed CPR for 20 minutes and was able to bring her back just as paramedics arrived, she ultimately succumbed to her injuries in the hospital.
Pushing Too Hard at the Gym? Fitness Trainer’s Brain Bleed Sparks Warning to Listen to Your Body
