Richie Faulkner Says Stroke Gave Him Permanent Brain Damage

Judas
Priest
guitarist

Richie
Faulkner
is
still
dealing
with
complications after
having
an
aortic
aneurysm
and
multiple
open
heart
surgeries,
noting
in
a
recent
interview
that
permanent
brain
damage
has
been
done.

Back
in 2021,
Faulkner
collapsed
onstage
with
a
ruptured
aorta
during
Judas
Priest’s
performance
at
the
Louder
Than
Life
Festival
in
Kentucky,
prompting

emergency
surgery.
More
operations
have
followed
in
the
years
since
and
the
effects
have
been
long
lasting.

Faulkner
recently
spoke
with Premier
Guitar and
explained
that
about
a
month
after
his
initial
operation,
he
experienced
what
he
later
learned
to
be
a
TIA,
a
transient
ischaemic
attack,
often
referred
to
as
a “mini-stroke.” Faulkner
said
that
although
he
does
not
remember
specifics
of
that
day,
doctors
informed
him
that
TIAs
can
lead
to
full-scale
strokes.
He
experienced
another
TIA
about
a
year
later,
and
underwent
another
heart
surgery.
By
then,
Judas
Priest
had

resumed
touring
with
Faulker—
he
got
permission
from
his
doctors
—
but
he
could
tell
something
was
off.

“There
was
something
in
my
right
hand
—
I
thought
it
was
my
rings;
I
wore
these
stupid
rings
for
some
reason.
And
I
thought
it
was
that,”
he
said
(via

Blabbermouth). “So
I
took
the
rings
off.
I
thought
it
was
impeding
something.
I
was
changing
my
picks.
There
was
something
different.
I
could
get
through
it,
but
there
was
something
different
about
my
right
hand.
And
again,
I
could
get
through
it.
I
was
brushing
my
teeth
one
morning
and
I
thought, ‘Something’s
wrong
with
the
right
hand.
Something’s
different.'”

READ
MORE: The
Best
Song
on
Every
Judas
Priest
Album

After
being
examined
by
doctors,
Faulkner
learned
that
he
hadn’t
just
had
mini-strokes.

“They
said
that
the
fact
that
it
hasn’t
gone
away
means
that
it’s
not
a
TIA;
it’s
a
stroke,”
he
continued. “TIA
damage
can
go
away.
Stroke
—
that’s
it.
It
is
damaged.
You’ve
got
damage
in
your
brain.
Now
I
thought
I
had
brain
damage
before,
but
this
is
real.
It’s
a
small
thing
on
the
left
side.”

Faulker
Felt
Guilty
Over
Not
Playing
the
Same

At
the
same
time,
Faulker
says
he
was
worried
that
he
was
letting Judas
Priest
fans
down
with
the
way
his
illness
was
affecting
his
playing.

“I
feel
like
I’ve
got
a
lot
of
trust
from
the
fanbase,
from
the
guitar
companies,
the
string
companies.
They
back
you.
They
put
their
bets
on
you,
and
I
don’t
want
anyone
to
know,
because
as
soon
as
they
know,
they’re
gonna
lose
faith,
they’re
gonna
bail
out,”
he
said. “And
I
felt
that
in
a
band
like
Priest,
it’s
gotta
be
world-class
stuff
and
I
don’t
feel
world-class.
I
went
out
there
every
night.
I
feel
like
a
fraud
because
people
don’t
know
—
maybe.
But
one
day
they’re
gonna
find
out.
Someone’s
gonna
find
out,
someone’s
gonna
say
he’s
not
playing
that
the
same.”

Despite
this,
Faulkner
says
the
setback
has encouraged
him
to
make
the
best
of
the
situation.

“I
know
there’s
a
lot
of
people
out
there
that
play,
they
sing,
whatever
they
do,
and
they
feel
like
they’re
not
good
enough
or
that
we
don’t
have
these
issues
as
well,
and
it
affects
your
mental
health,”
he
said. “And
I
want
them
to
know
that
they’re
not
alone.
All
of
us,
probably
more
people
than
we
are
all
aware
of,
struggle
with
something
somewhere.”