Patient Stories

March 2015 was the start of a health journey that would impact the rest of my life. Earlier that month, I was experiencing a slight, nagging pain in the back of my calf. After a few weeks of dealing with the symptoms, I made an appointment with my primary care doctor. Later that afternoon, I…

I am 19 years old right now, and in my second year of university. The school I attend is about 3.5 to 4 hours from home, so I live on my own with a few friends. In the beginning of November 2019, when I was still 18 years old, I started coughing a lot and…

When I was 19 years old, during the first week of my sophomore year of college, I awoke one morning with a strange, tight pain in my right shoulder. I assumed I had just slept on it funny, and continued about my day as usual. The pain didn’t seem to let up, even after I…

I was 41 years old when I was headed in for a right knee meniscus repair on September 25, 2019. I had a similar repair done on my left knee in June of 2016. As a machinist and mechanic, I have always had to rely on my knees to push through the days. The physical…

My two pregnancies were marked by dangerous blood clots – the first time when I was 23 weeks pregnant and the second time when I was 27 weeks pregnant. These were my first blood clots, which started in my leg as a deep vein thrombosis or DVT and moved from my ankle to my groin.…

In 2013, I graduated from high school and was all set to join the military in July. I was extremely active, running every day, and lifting weights. A couple weeks prior, I woke up to the worst pain I have ever felt in my right leg. It felt like an over-the-top muscle tear. Over the…

I am a 23-year-old female from South Africa who was on the hormonal birth control pill for skin purposes. As a human physiology and genetics graduate, I knew the risks of taking contraceptives and how it increases blood viscosity, or thickness, but I never thought that it was going to happen to me, even though…

I have always been someone who believed I could overpower being sick— at 31 years old, a hot shower, big glass of water, an over-the-counter pain medication, and a fresh face of makeup could still solve just about any ailment I experienced. But, when I broke my ankle in late November 2018 and started experiencing…

After I broke a bone in my foot, I was put in a leg cast up to my knee. I was told to keep it elevated, don’t put any weight on it, and rest. Ten days later, I felt lightheaded and my cast was feeling tighter, so I went to the doctor. They put on…

When my symptoms started, I was 34 years old, a bride-to-be and an avid runner. In fact, I was going to run a half-marathon the week before my wedding. Training had been going well, but as race day approached, I noticed I was feeling unusually tired. To save energy for the wedding, I skipped the…