Patient Stories

In July of 2019, I nearly fainted in my lobby on my way to work. My roommate was gone all summer, so I phoned my parents who talked me through the symptoms I had and advised me to call an ambulance. I met the emergency medical technician outside and after a quick electrocardiogram of my…

November 2 is a day that will forever haunt me. The previous day I got up from my work desk and was extremely lightheaded. It was almost as if I couldn’t walk, I was so dizzy. I grabbed a snack thinking maybe my blood sugar was low, but it didn’t help. I chalked it up…

In March of 2020, I had my second child via C-section. The surgery went well, and my baby was healthy. However, afterwards, I had a significant postpartum hemorrhage, which caused my body to have to work very hard to clot. About a week after coming home from the hospital, I developed a low-grade fever and…

On a Sunday evening in February, I got into bed and noticed I had a headache on the right side of my head. I felt pressure in my ear and thought I might have an ear infection. I couldn’t sleep much, but I got up on Monday and went into university assuming it would settle.…

Super Bowl Sunday in February of 2016 seemed like it was going to be just a normal day of eating great snacks, laughing at commercials, and judging the halftime show like I was a professional critic. I woke up that morning with what felt like I slept wrong or pulled something in my shoulder. I…

Everything started when I was 16 years old, which was six years ago. I couldn’t breathe, and even while walking a few steps, I was out of breath. I was taken to the hospital for what they thought was a chest infection. They did not think it was blood clots because I was so young.…

My story began after a total right hip replacement at 36 years old. What was supposed to be a routine and life-changing surgery, due to only being in my thirties, turned out very differently. I developed a rare, but serious complication that resulted in the loss of my right quadriceps function. I had no feeling,…

At just 23 years old, I have suffered with not only a DVT (deep vein thrombosis or blood clot in the leg), but also a PE (pulmonary embolism or blood clot in the lung). I was taking estrogen-based birth control pills for two years when I had a visit with my primary care physician due…

At 32 years old, I had my meniscus repaired and a Fulkerson osteotomy (surgical procedure to restore knee stability) was performed to prolong the integrity of my knee. It was my fourth knee surgery and I expected everything to go according to plan. However, I found myself wondering, could this surgical procedure cause me to…

One spring morning in 2016, I woke up from a long, deep sleep in my California apartment. I turned on the morning Los Angeles news and saw that the musician Prince had died. I also simultaneously realized, in that moment, that I could not feel my toes in my right foot. I had been limping…