The Game of Thrones star opened up about her health struggles in a deeply personal speech. Emilia Clarke, 39, was honored at Variety’s Power of Women London event on June 3, 2026. She used the platform to talk about surviving two brain hemorrhages when she was in her twenties. The actress also stressed that healing takes just as much effort as staying alive.
Clarke first suffered a brain hemorrhage in 2011 right after finishing the first season of Game of Thrones. She had a second one in 2013. For many years, she kept these health scares private. She finally shared her story publicly in 2019 when she started her charity, SameYou, with her mother Jenny.
Trigger Warning: This article discusses serious medical conditions including brain hemorrhages and recovery from trauma.
Clarke Felt Like She Cheated Death After Health Scares
During her speech at the London event, Clarke spoke honestly about her mental state after the two brain injuries. She admitted that she did not feel lucky to be alive. Instead, she felt scared and confused.
“For a number of years, I felt that I had cheated death, and it was coming to get me,” Clarke said. “I truly felt like I had done something wrong, and I shouldn’t be here. I also thought it ruined my ability to act — which some people might agree with!”
The actress explained that she ignored many symptoms after her surgeries because she looked fine on the outside. She talked about feeling extreme tiredness, anxiety, and even blacking out after long work days. She blamed herself and her busy work schedule for these problems. It never crossed her mind that her past brain injuries could still be affecting her body years later.
“Fifteen years after my first bleed, I have the hindsight to see how difficult that time truly was,” Clarke shared. “I never had the chance to reflect on what my two brain traumas had done to me because I could walk, talk, be myself, remember my lines and was back on camera within weeks of both brain injuries. I was fine, right?”
Actress Compares Brain Injury Care to Cancer a Century Ago
Clarke did not just talk about her own pain. She used her platform to highlight a much bigger problem. She said that millions of brain injury survivors around the world are not getting the help they need after they leave the hospital.
“One in three people will suffer a brain injury at some point in their lives,” Clarke stated. “The combined number of people currently living with the life-changing consequences of stroke and traumatic brain injury in the UK and the US is more than 15 million people alone.”
The Solo: A Star Wars Story actress explained what usually happens after a brain injury. Doctors save the person’s life by stopping the bleeding or removing clots. Then the patient is sent home. But the real problems start after that. Many survivors are left with physical, emotional, and thinking problems that no one helps them with.
“What many people don’t realise is that whatever symptoms remain—physical, cognitive, emotional, linguistic—the consequence is unresolved trauma,” Clarke said. “There are simply too few neuropsychologists and specialist rehabilitation services for that reality to change without a major shift in priorities.”
She made a powerful comparison to help people understand how bad the situation is.
“I often compare brain injury today to where cancer was a century ago: misunderstood, stigmatised and hidden from view.”
“When rehabilitation is available, it’s usually measured in weeks rather than years and focused on only the most visible symptoms,” she continued. “Brain injury recovery is still in its infancy, leading to lost potential, lost livelihoods and too many people falling through the cracks.”
SameYou Charity Has Built a Community of Thousands
Clarke and her mother started SameYou in 2019. The same year, she revealed her health battles to the world. The response from strangers surprised her.
“When I finally shared my story in 2019, we were overwhelmed by the response,” she recalled. “Mostly young people reached out to tell us their own stories. Today we have tens of thousands of survivors in our community saying essentially the same thing: the journey to healing feels like falling off the edge of a cliff without anyone there to catch you.”
The charity works to change how brain injury recovery is handled. Clarke explained that the name SameYou comes from the belief that people can find their way back to themselves after trauma. But they need proper guidance and support to do it.
“Recovery is every bit as important as survival,” she emphasized. “People need guidance. They need answers. They need support—physically and mentally.”
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Clarke Finally Found Healing 15 Years Later
The Me Before You star shared a hopeful update. She said she has recently been on her own recovery journey. With help from David Putrino at Mount Sinai in New York, she now has the energy and positive outlook she had in her twenties.
“This was a journey, not a miracle cure,” Clarke clarified.
She ended her speech by thanking the thousands of survivors in the SameYou community who keep inspiring her every day.
Clarke was honored at the event alongside Emma Corrin, Hannah Waddingham, Suki Waterhouse and Cynthia Erivo. The event took place at the Chancery Rosewood Hotel in London.
The actress continues to act. She recently voiced a character in the animated movie The Nightingale. She also runs her production company and remains active in charity work.
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