Dan Dotson on the Road to Recovery After Brain Aneurysm Scare

Dan and Laura Dotson have been household names since Storage Wars first aired in 2010, but they’ve recently been making headlines for a different reason: A double brain aneurysm that sent Dan to the hospital for risky emergency surgery.

According to his wife, Dan started exhibiting strange symptoms early Monday morning, when he woke from his sleep asking odd questions. The symptoms worsened throughout the morning, with him finally collapsing after taking a shower. Laura acted quickly to call 911 and administer CPR until help could arrive, actions that saved the auctioneer’s life.

At the hospital, it was discovered that Dan had suffered from two brain aneurysms: One behind his eyes, the other – the size of an apricot – near his neck. Such aneurysms occur when the arteries supplying blood to the brain become overloaded, leading them to bulge, weaken and ultimately burst. Aneurysms are generally caused by high blood pressure. In Dan’s case, his 40-year smoking habit likely contributed majorly to the development of these aneurysms.

Doctors originally gave a very bleak prognosis, giving him just a 20% chance of surviving, but the risky surgery to remove the aneurysms was a success and Dan is now on the road to recovery. Although doctors feared facial paralysis as an effect of the incident, he seems to be recovering normally without any paralysis or long-lasting effects.

According to Laura, one of the first things Dan did upon waking is vow to stop smoking. This will certainly reduce his chances of developing further aneurysms in the future.

TMZ reports that producers were alerted to the situation, and a camera crew may have filmed some of the surgery. If this is true, we might see parts of Dan’s surgery and recovery during Season 6 of Storage Wars.