I’ve experienced deep vein thrombosis twice in my life so far. In 2010, when I was six weeks postpartum, I had cramps in my calf that lasted for three days, but I had no discoloration or swelling. I called my doctor and they had me come in “just in case.” An ultrasound of my right leg showed six clots.
I took low molecular weight heparin for 10 days and then I was put on warfarin. For the last 13 years, I’ve been to the doctor five or six times for either a D-dimer or ultrasound because of leg pain. It’s been awful.
This year, I had a hysterectomy, a procedure that lasted two hours. My gynecologist gave me a shot of heparin just in case, due to my past clots.
But that didn’t stop the clot they found on July 5. This time, I had pain in both my legs, more in my left than my right. The Doppler scan found a clot in my femoral vein in the groin of my right leg, but nothing in the left.
The vascular lab tech didn’t tell me anything, and my doctor sent me home. I thought everything was fine until they called 45 minutes later to tell me I did have a clot and they wanted me to start enoxaparin sodium right away. Now I’m on apixaban and I’ve had to beg my doctor for a hematology and vascular consult to find out what’s going on.
My biggest fear over the last 13 years had come true. Just like back then, my doctor isn’t very proactive in helping me. NBCA resources are wonderful. They answer so many questions that my healthcare provider doesn’t even try to.
In terms of lifestyle changes, I no longer drink alcohol, and I have to be more careful now not to hurt myself so I’m hyper-focused on that. I am depressed. Life is so very precious and I make sure my husband and my children know how much I love them every day.
Resources
Women and Blood Clots
Psychological Impact of Blood Clots
Know Your Risk
