As told by her mother, Noelle.
My daughter passed at age 27 from a saddle pulmonary embolism on February 28, 2024. She stayed home from work with a headache. She got up after a nap, came downstairs and passed out. She came to and was clammy and sweaty. She said she was fine but we called 9-1-1.
We attempted to move her to the couch, but she collapsed and began to have seizure-like activity. I turned her on side and her lips were blue.
The ambulance arrived. She could tell them her name and that she had asthma and ADHD. They got her into the ambulance and I was directly behind it, observing someone on top of my daughter administering CPR. She had a pulse when she arrived at the hospital.
I was taken into what they call a quiet room. Ten to 15 minutes went by they came in and told me she was still unresponsive, but they were working on her. I said that I needed to be with her, so they brought me and her four siblings to her, where we proceeded to watch them administer CPR manually for over 50 minutes.
Since she was so young, they thought she might have had a chance to make it. We are devastated.
Shelby had no known risk factors. Doctors recommend that I and her siblings undergo testing for genetic clotting disorders.
My advice is to make every day count. Tomorrow is never promised.
Resources
Signs and Symptoms
What is a PE?
Genetic Testing for Clotting Disorders
