A YOGA instructor was tackling heavy barbell squats at the gym when she ripped open an artery in her neck, triggering a stroke.

Bridgette Salatin has now warned of the dangers of “ego lifting”, as she shares the first signs of her life-threatening condition.

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The 33-year-old was tackling 70kg barbell squats on an empty stomach at her home gym when she began feeling dizzy and got a “really bad” headache.

Bridgette suddenly felt a sharp pain shoot up from her shoulders to her right temple and she collapsed to the ground.

Despite having no feeling in her right arm, she believed she’d simply tensed a nerve or pulled a muscle so didn’t go to hospital until a week later.

Medics revealed she’d had a stroke and said the incident in April 2023 had been caused by a vertebral artery dissection, which is a tear that formed a blood clot.

The stunned mum-of-three believes the rupture was caused by not eating or sleeping enough before holding her breath to lift a weight she had “no business doing”.

It’s thought she’s had three mini strokes since and she’s been diagnosed with occipital neuralgia, a rare neurological condition causing severe pain in the upper neck and back of the head.

Now only able to squat with lighter weights on her back, Bridgette shared footage of her back in the gym last month, saying “while I won’t ever be able to squat heavy again, I am so thankful to be squatting with that bar again”.

Almost two years on from her ordeal, Bridgette says she’ll never be able to lift heavy weights again and warns people against pushing themselves too hard or “ego-lifting” during exercise.

Bridgette, from Harrison, Ohio, US, said: “When I woke up that day I had a pain in my neck but I thought I’d probably just slept on it funny.

“I was squatting and I had a barbell on my back. I started to get a really bad headache.

“I had one 45lbs weight on each side of the bar and the bar itself is 65lbs. I had a decent amount on my back and I was very, very skinny.

“I had no business doing that weight. I couldn’t breathe easy through it because it was just too heavy but I wanted to prove to myself I could do it.

“Two years before that I had a lot of muscle so I thought ‘I need to get back to that’.

“I was holding my breath and felt this sharp pain shoot up all the way from my shoulder to my ear, to my right temple and I fell. I didn’t do anything about that.

“I thought I had tensed a nerve or pulled a muscle pretty hard.

“I honestly thought I was dizzy because I hadn’t eaten any food and I wasn’t sleeping. I thought I wasn’t properly taking care of myself.

I intuitively knew something bad had happened in my brain but I wasn’t aware of the extent of it

Bridgette Salatin

“I intuitively knew something bad had happened in my brain but I wasn’t aware of the extent of it. For a straight week I could not feel any sensation in my right arm.

“They did a few scans on me and they said ‘you’ve had a stroke’ but how in the world does that happen at the age of 31?

“I felt an instant grief. I thought ‘I’ve failed myself’ and ‘am I ever going to be right again?’. I felt like I lost a sense of myself.

“I never, ever thought that that would have happened. It was awful and I’m not the same now.”

Bridgette says she didn’t feel other recognisable signs of a stroke, such a facial drooping.

After being on bed rest for a couple of months and taking blood thinner medication Bridgette’s artery healed in August 2024.

‘My short-term memory is gone’

However, it’s believed she’s had three mini strokes since her vertebral artery dissection and has been diagnosed with occipital neuralgia.

Bridgette said: “My short-term memory is gone and doing everyday things is hard for me.

“I used to teach a yoga class that was strictly on learning headstands but I can’t do that anymore.

“The gym is a big passion of mine and I don’t think that’ll stop because if I don’t work out for two or three days, I’m a monster.

“I know that I will never be able to lift heavy again but as a yoga instructor it’s taught me to adapt not just to life but to all the small things.

“I can’t do [my exercises] how I used to so I have to modify them. I can still work the same muscles and I can still build. It’s been a learning experience.

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The yoga instructor admitted that there were things she ‘could have done differently’ to prevent the incident and now encourages others to take care of themselves.

Bridgette said: “It’s changed my perspective on high-impact exercise.

“There were so many things that I could have done differently to prevent this occurrence but it’s a lesson learned now. I wasn’t eating and I wasn’t sleeping [enough].

“I always encourage people to start off with lower weights and more reps because it builds your muscle endurance and helps with your breathing.

“It’s all about taking care of yourself and making sure you’re good.

“Just find a good balance where you’re being challenged but it’s not causing any pain or discomfort.

“Don’t push yourself too hard.”