My TGA experience occurred at the end of March 2019, on the 3rd day of a two-week vacation in Italy with my daughter (who happens to be an RN).  After two perfectly normal days in Venice, we took the train to Bologna, rented a car, drove down to Florence and checked into our Airbnb apartment around noon.  Later in the afternoon, we walked to a restaurant for dinner, drinking only water then and for the rest of the evening.  We had a 9-hour tour scheduled for the next day, so we went to bed around 9:30 pm.  I remember feeling that the room was warm and stuffy so I opened the doors to the balcony for some fresh air.   

 

After waking up at 6:00 am the following morning, I remember feeling hot, nauseous and wanting to go sit out on the balcony to cool off.  I also remember standing in the shower, looking at the knobs, trying to figure out how to turn on the shower (because it was Italy).  That is all I remember until five hours later when I “came to,” sitting on the edge of the bed while my daughter fed me crackers and very sweet orange juice.  She asked me questions like what was my address, if my other daughter had a job, what was her address, etc., none of which I could answer.  She checked me for signs of a stroke or TIA, but everything was normal.  I told her I felt like I had the worst hangover ever.  She explained to me that she woke up to the sound of me throwing up out on the balcony into a plastic bag that I had gotten from under the kitchen sink (I have no memory of that).  She said that I had taken a shower (I have no memory of that).  She said that I kept asking where I was, and how did I get there.  She kept giving me the answers, and I kept asking the same questions over and over, similar to how people with a concussion act.  She said that I had no memory of coming to Italy, or where I was, even after she would explain it to me.  This behavior went on for a couple of hours.  Eventually, I started to remember bits and pieces - I told her that I knew we were in Italy, but that I didn’t know where we were in the trip – at the beginning, middle or end – or how we got to where we were.  I was very confused as to time and place, and very disoriented, and did not understand where I was or how I got there.  Later that day, I eventually regained all my memory, except for the period from 6:00 am to 11:00 am that morning, which is basically a big blank space in my mind.  As time went on, I felt more and more like myself, albeit, still a little shaky, and we were able to enjoy the rest of our time in Italy.  After I returned home, I got on the computer and entered all my symptoms and everything that happened to me.  Of course, none of the obvious diagnoses fit my exact symptoms, but I did eventually come across references to transient global amnesia and read about other people’s experiences, and became convinced that’s what happened to me.

 

Once I was home from Italy, I contacted my doctor who sent me for a CT scan and referred me to a cardiologist to be checked out.  The CT scan was normal and so were ultrasounds of my carotid arteries and heart.  After the tests, I met with the cardiologist who confirmed that everything was normal.  I was prepared to plead my case for TGA and had with me a piece of paper describing TGA to back up my argument.  To my amazement, He was the one who brought it up to me, and told me that he thought that was what happened to me.  He said that it more than likely would never happen again and that I should just be happy and go out and live my life.  I felt relieved and satisfied that he had confirmed what I thought had happened to me.

 

As of this date, August 22, 2019, I have experienced no effects from this one episode of TGA, other than the 5-hour blank space in my mind.  I have decided to let it go, and not try to figure it out, and hope that it was just a rare, one-time blip in my life.