Kirsten Storms is sharing a poignant update on her ongoing health struggles. The "General Hospital" star—who has taken a hiatus from the beloved soap opera—revealed that she was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm in January and is slated to undergo surgery soon to address the condition. According to the National Library of Medicine, an aneurysm is a bulge or ballooning in a blood vessel in the brain that can become life-threatening if it ruptures. This diagnosis comes three years after Storms underwent a craniotomy to remove a cyst.
"The January scan was prompted by symptoms that the doctors suspected might be brain-related," Storms shared on Instagram on October 13. "Okay—when I say I was stunned to learn they’d found an aneurysm on the right side of my brain...well, I basically launched into a stand-up comedy routine," she joked, trying to lighten the mood.
Unfortunately, doctors couldn’t immediately treat the aneurysm upon discovery. "I had a procedure that weekend where a doctor threaded a camera from my leg up to my brain," the 41-year-old explained. "Anyway, due to the *slightly* complex nature of the aneurysm—nothing dire, just not typical—it couldn’t be coiled right away."
As the "Days of Our Lives" alum awaits a minimally invasive coiling procedure designed to block blood flow to the aneurysm, she’s leaning on loved ones, including her co-star Emme Rylan, for emotional support. "Here I am with Emme in St. Louis," she wrote, "and we’re crocheting the most stunning sweaters while my coiling procedure is being scheduled for sometime in the next two weeks."
The "Zenon" alum also revealed that the aneurysm wasn’t the only diagnosis she received and that the health scare prompted her to make a significant life decision: to leave California. "Since the January scan revealed a new, but *very small*, squatter (aka a cyst) on my brainstem, it was clear I needed to make some urgent changes in my life," she wrote. "For personal reasons, leaving Los Angeles became incredibly important to me."
"The biggest reason for the move was Harper," she said, referring to her 11-year-old daughter with ex-husband Brandon Barash, "but a lot of it was for my physical and mental well-being—and my overall happiness."
In this new chapter, Storms is learning to filter out the noise, including rumors about her health. "There are a few truly toxic people out there—we all know that," she reflected, "but there are also people in my life whom I’m deeply grateful to know. One of them just made a f---load of amazing sweaters with me. They’re glorious."
