Patient Stories

  Tara Robison was startled at age 20 by 21 blood clots in her lungs. She was misdiagnosed at first, but her persistence in seeking further care saved her life. In June 2010, I felt a pain in the right side of my upper chest that I thought at first was just gas pain.  I…

I was a healthy 25-year-old who ran numerous half marathons, sprint triathlons, and I am also an active Crossfitter. I never in my wildest dreams thought that I’d battle life-threatening blood clots in my calf (deep vein thrombosis/DVT) and lungs (pulmonary embolism/PE). I noticed lingering calf pain in my left leg in September 2011. There…

If someone would have told me a year ago that my birth control pills were killing me, I would have laughed. At 25 years old, I was on the top of my game. Professionally, I had just started my dream job six weeks prior as a meteorologist at NBC 6 in Miami. Physically, I was…

I noticed I had a cough that would not go away in November 2007. I knew it wasn’t a cold, because I didn’t have any other symptoms of a cold.  I went to my doctor the next month, and she couldn’t identify a cause.  She suggested that I try allergy medication for a week, but…

Cassie Sheffield and her birth family were affected by blood clots, and discovered that the family has a genetic blood clotting disorder, Antithrombin (AT) III deficiency, that carries a high risk for blood clots.  Cassie not only developed multiple pulmonary emboli in her teenage years, she learned that her mother and two brothers had AT…

Samara McAuliffe gave birth to a daughter by what she thought was an uncomplicated C-section until she developed a pulmonary embolism eleven days later. I gave birth by emergency C-section in 2006 to a son, and the surgery was life-saving for both of us.  My daughter was born by a routine C-section on Christmas Eve,…

Mr. E. Anonymous was healthy and active when he had an unexplained DVT while he was pursuing a Master’s degree in Physical Education.  His DVT detoured him from his goal, and he was also laid off from his job soon after, so he is coping with many unforeseen events. I was a completely healthy 29…

Lisa was an active 27 year old woman when her life was interrupted by blood clots in both her left leg and her lungs that she found out were related to May Thurner’s Syndrome. My name is Lisa Jensen and I am a fortunate survivor of both a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism…

Amanda Liimatainen was caught by surprise when she was diagnosed with a DVT.  Her mother had a pulmonary embolism at age 46, and she tried to make healthy choices to prevent them. My mother, who is a nurse, had a pulmonary embolism (PE) when she was 46 and I was 16.  After her treatment with blood…

Brianne Paisley is pregnant and has Protein C deficiency.  She had a large DVT in her groin during this pregnancy for which she self-injected with low molecular weight heparin, but is now awaiting the birth of her second child. My name is Brianne Paisley, and I want to share my story with anyone and everyone…