Objective . Draw attention to the presence of post‐traumatic stress disorder in aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage patients. Design . Case review of 28 patients referred to clinical neuropsychology via a neurosurgery out‐patient clinic. Method . Clinical interview of patients presenting with anxiety related to their medical condition. Results . In 50 per cent of patients anxiety was found to be the main presenting problem and 32 per cent of referred patients met the diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder. Conclusion . The case review identified significant psychological morbidity in patients with good physical recovery. This requires detailed scientific evaluation in future studies of outcome.