Patient Stories

I had a very important job interview that I had to drive an hour away for. I was experiencing back pain, but I figured I just needed a massage and booked one for the next day. On my way to and during the interview, the pain got worse. I was sweating and struggling to think…

Last July, I started feeling tightness in my chest when I breathed in deeply. I ignored it for awhile, as it didn’t seem to cause any real issues. A month or so later, I went to my doctor to make sure it wasn’t Covid or another respiratory infection. The doctor ran basic bloodwork, which came…

In April 2022, I was a normal 18-year-old preparing for graduation and college. My world would soon flip when I was diagnosed with a DVT that went from my hip to ankle. I was an active high schooler. I was a part of the varsity cheer team and marching band. When the pain in my…

I had lower right leg pain for more than a month. I finally went to urgent care in October 2022. I described the pain as a pinging inside my leg and I thought it was a stress fracture. The provider asked a few questions about medications. I told her I took tamoxifen to reduce a…

I was home from college on winter break when I started feeling a cramp in my leg after working out at the gym. I thought I may have pulled a muscle. I kept stretching and it felt like it was never going away. The pain ended up moving all the way up to my lower…

I’m 43. My first DVT experience was at 19 years old while in college. Long story short, I was sent home by two different doctors over two months even though my leg was in excruciating pain and eventually could barely walk. The third doctor knew what was wrong with me within minutes and sent me…

I’ve always had a history of health anxiety, always expecting the worst whilst hoping for the best. It took many years for me to manage my fears and understand when I was being rational or otherwise. Toward the end of April 2024, I had this horrible chest pain, directly along the left side of my…

My family has an extensive history of DVTs and PEs leading up to my teen’s blood clotting episode. I have three grandparents with confirmed clots, one of whom had a filter placed. One of my parents and their sibling both had multiple clots. My teen had spinal fusion with rods for scoliosis, and because of…

On Sept. 7, 2016, I escaped sudden death by bilateral pulmonary emboli, a side effect of taking hormonal contraceptives. That morning, my heart was racing when I went to the bathroom to get ready. I was winded when I stood up. Denial had kept me from going, but I knew I needed to go to…

After having provoked blood clots from hip surgery (the symptoms I experienced included leg pain, shortness of breath, and chest pain) I asked my primary care physician if she would order bloodwork to determine if I have a clotting disorder. I was detailing my family members with similar issues: my mother had an unprovoked pulmonary…