Emilia Clarke feared being dismissed from Game of Thrones following a brain injury

The 37-year-old played Daenerys Targaryen in the fantasy series, but in 2011, she had a brain bleed while working out at a gym in north London.

Clarke did not want to make her injuries public, so she kept it mostly hidden from her co-stars on the show. However, she stated that she was concerned that her supervisors would believe she was incapable of doing her duties following the brain bleed.

Doctors discovered a second brain hemorrhage in 2013, while she was still starring on the show. In a new interview with the Big Issue, she described the challenges of returning to work following her brain injury.

Clarke stated: "When you have a brain injury, because it alters your sense of self on such a dramatic level, all of the insecurities you have going into the workplace quadruple overnight.

"The initial concern we all had was, "Oh my God, am I going to be fired?" "Am I going to be fired because they think I'm incapable of doing the job?" Clarke returned to work within weeks of her initial brain bleed, but she said she was afraid she might die from another haemorrhage due to the stress and strain of working in front of thousands of people and cameras. She continued: "Well, if I'm going to die, I better die on live TV."

After recuperating from her injuries, Clarke and her mother, Jennifer Clarke, established a nonprofit to assist persons with brain injuries.

The mother-daughter combo were even awarded MBEs earlier this year for their work in establishing the charity SameYou.

Clarke previously highlighted how "fragile, sensitive, and scared" she felt following her brain damage. She was astonished to learn how underfunded rehabilitation programs are, especially since recovery has become a priority of her nonprofit.