Woman
There’s A Reason I’m Still Here: Barbara’s Story
I am a 2x pulmonary embolism survivor. My first one was in July 2013. I had traveled out of the country, come home, and traveled for my daughter’s soccer games. I was on birth control and overweight. We got home from a weekend tournament, and when I went to stand up, it felt like I…
The Symptoms Were So Subtle: Sonja’s Story
As told by her daughter Kirsten My mother Sonja was a sparkling school principal and 62 years old. She loved her teachers and children. In mid January 2022, she had a pain behind knee that she was used to, as she had mild arthritic chronic pain. She made her usual chiropractor appointment on January 27,…
Things Do Get Easier: Patsy’s Story
One Sunday afternoon, I was giving my daughter a bath when I suddenly became very hot and dizzy. I felt my heart fluttering and then I had difficulty breathing. I called for my husband and we both agreed that I had probably overdone it and gotten too hot. I took it easy the rest of…
I Was Diagnosed with Factor V Leiden When It Was New: Lisa’s Story
In March 1989, I was a sophomore in college and on spring break in Florida when my left calf became extremely swollen and I could barely walk. I also had severe pain in between my shoulders and had shortness of breath. A friend took me to the ER, where I stayed for almost two weeks.…
My Diagnosis Took Away the Excitement of My Pregnancy: Emmy’s Story
I was 13 weeks pregnant when I experienced an awful headache while at work. I went home and spent the evening in a dark room. When I awoke, my head still ached, but it was manageable. Over the next week, I began having headaches and nausea throughout the day, so I contacted my midwife. She…
She Thought She Was Protected: Jessica’s Story
As told by her sister Ashley My sister Jessica was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis that caused her to have a pulmonary embolism when she was 21 and she almost died. She had an IVC filter placed at that time, but it didn’t keep her from developing another DVT in July 2023 that caused her…
I Have to Take Things Slow Now: Reachelle’s Story
I was six months in my new job as an attorney when I felt pain in my ribs and shortness of breath. I went to urgent care and was rushed to the ER after my D-Dimer blood test came back high. At the hospital, they did a CT scan and found the blood clots in…
Every Day Since My Diagnosis Has Been Challenging: Mymoena’s Story
I was working in the chemistry lab when suddenly I experienced a sharp, stabbing pain in my lower back that caused me to fall to the ground. I was rushed to the nearest hospital and, after some tests, I was sent home with the diagnosis of muscle spasms. From that day onwards, the pain in…
I Was Misdiagnosed as Having a Heart Attack: Julie’s Story
In November of 2022, I was driving home from work when out of nowhere, my heart started hammering and went out of rhythm. I made it home and told my partner that I wasn’t okay and needed to go to the ER immediately. We got as far as the local urgent care where I told…
The Doctor Told Her Not to Worry: Marsha’s Story
My younger sister Marsha had many blood clots over the years. She found out that she had protein S deficiency shortly after our father died in 1998. She had veins that were painful and found a doctor who was willing to strip them (phlebectomy). Marsha asked him about her history with clots. The doctor told…
