My first pulmonary embolism was on August 15, 2015. I was on birth control for irregular cycles and began having pain in my lower right side, which I thought was a pulled muscle. A week after the symptoms, the pain was unbearable. I went to the ER and was diagnosed with a right lung pulmonary embolism.
I had a six-month course of blood thinners and genetic blood work done which was negative for clotting disorders.
A year later, I began having terrible calf pain in my left leg. It progressed over two weeks, and I went back to the ER. An ultrasound was done on my leg, which was negative for DVT.
After about a week of barely being able to walk, I woke up on a Monday morning and knew I was dying. I felt an intense sense of doom. My oxygen was 87, and I could not breathe. Back to the hospital I went. This time, after another ultrasound, the nurse entered my room with a bag of heparin. I stared at it in disbelief. I was told a week earlier nothing was wrong. But something was wrong — I had a DVT.
A few hours later, the doctor ordered a chest CT, where my worst nightmare came true. I wasn’t merely suffering a DVT, but also a pulmonary saddle pulmonary embolism. The DVT had broken free and traveled.
I lay in bed while cardiologists, pulmonologists, and surgeons debated whether to leave the massive clot intact to dissolve or do surgery to burst it. They decided to leave it intact.
Two weeks later, I had more genetic blood testing done, where it was discovered that I have three genetic factors. I am so lucky and so grateful to be alive. I have a hematologist whom I trust and who went the extra mile to dig into my issue and get to the root of my problem. I am now a lifer on blood thinners.
Please, and I can’t stress this enough, be your own advocate. Only you can truly look out for yourself. Know the signs, and get help. I took medical professionals’ diagnoses at face value and walked out of the hospital knowing something was wrong. They couldn’t find a clot, which was there all along, and it was the closest to death I’ve come. Love yourself. Use your voice.
Resources
Living Your Best Life on Blood Thinners
Birth Control
Signs and Symptoms
