In the fall of 2023, I was a healthy 21-year-old college senior busy with graduate school applications and interviews. I was working out multiple days a week and going to class, trying to enjoy my last year of college. One night, I went bowling for the first time in a while and woke up the next day with extreme pain in my back. I thought it was a pulled muscle and managed the pain with acetaminophen until it went away four days later.
Within three weeks, the same pain returned in my back, but it was worse and more painful to breathe this time. I went to the emergency room early Sunday morning, where they did a chest x-ray and blood test that showed my D-Dimer level was elevated. I had an abdominal and chest CT scan, which revealed a large pulmonary embolism in the lower lobe of my right lung.
I returned to the hospital twice more, where they found more clots in my right arm. Following seven months of anticoagulants and genetic testing, it was determined that the estrogen-based birth control that I had been taking for almost nine years was most likely the cause.
I learned that although this is relatively uncommon for people my age, there are others who have gone through this. I wish I had found NBCA resources sooner because it would have helped me feel supported and inspired that I would recover.
My PE took a toll on me mentally and physically, when a single flight of stairs felt impossible. I didn’t feel back to my normal self until five or six months after diagnosis.
But here I am, a year and a half later, healthy, strong, and living life to the fullest. There is light at the end of the tunnel, but it may take longer than you think to get there. Stay resilient, listen to your body and advocate for yourself!
