Story Time: Blood Clots

This could be triggering so if you don't like hearing medical stuff don't watch this video.

Two Years Today

Two years go today I walked into the lobby pictured in the picture below to get a chest x-ray. It says in the picture just how bad off I was. They told me both lungs were full of blood clots and to get back to my dr immediately. So I got my husband so he could drive (he works in the immediate area) and we went to the dr. I was on the phone with my dad explaining what was going on I heard hospital out of the corner of my ear and told my dad I had to go because I heard something I didn't like.

For those that don't know, I've had big issues with hospitals since my gall bladder removal in 2000. Anyway, the doctor said I had to go, as it was had I waited 3 more days I woulda been dead.

So, we drove across the parking lot to the hospital and started the week and a day stay in the cardiac unit at that hospital waiting for a bed at UNC because apparently I also had a clot in my right atrium and a 13cm long one in my lower vena cava vein which if it broke free would have killed me.

UNC used thrombaletics for 24 hours keeping me flat on my back which was excruciating with my lower back injury to break up the lower clot with a filter protecting my heart, lungs, and brain. The next morning they went in manually with a filter in my neck to break up the last 40% of the clot.

The picture with my sister was from my stay at the first hospital. She came up as my family all live in GA and were scared so if I didn't let her up they all woulda,come up wink emoticon but I was thankful she came!

The last Picture was me this last January as my lungs were still healing from all the damage from the clots.

I'm happy to say that today, the original diagnosis of right side heart failure is gone, all the oxygen equipment is gone, and I'm living my life to the fullest! I still get winded from time to time, but I'll take that over the way I was 2 years ago! OH! The best part is I lost 40 lbs and have kept it off!

I am 40 years old. These were not my first clots. Listen to your body for the warning signs. I was getting weaker, I was needing to sit more frequently when walking, if I did a flight of stairs I had to sit to recover. You aren't lazy, get it checked! I had pain in my chest but didn't realize it. It doesn't discriminate age, gender, race, etc. I lost a HS classmate right after my incident and recently another classmates brother had a huge clot in his lung cut out.

Listen to your body!!! Let my story be a lesson, let my friends stories be lessons. Don't ignore the signs.

I am happier and healthier today because I went to the doctor and continue to when something doesn't seem right. I live each day to the fullest and as if it's my last cause you never know....I was told had I waited 3 days I wouldn't be here today to help y'all.....don't put things off that you want to do! Live with no regrets....I now do!

Sincerely, 

Jeanne

You Think You Know Me?

Throughout my lifetime I have been put through a lot of trials and tribulations when it comes to my health. People have told me that my body is so weird and the things that have happened could have only happened to me that I should write a book. I told them I didn't think anyone would read it.

The current thing I have been dealing with since December 30, 2013 is blood clots, lots of them, all over my abdominal area. I attribute them building up from the fall down our basement stairs the December 2012 wherein I sprained both ankles very badly and my tailbone (which we are just figuring out). I had to be in air boots on both legs and a wheelchair for about 3 months and we did several road trips while my legs were in them and didn't take enough breaks apparently. I had gone down to Atlanta at least 2 times which round trip was about 1000 miles before mid May.

In mid May, we sold our 4 door sedan on the way out of town and had a really cool rented Mercedes to drive up to my husbands family to celebrate his b-day etc. in Iowa. When we left them, we headed across to Queens, NYC where we picked up our new, used Lexus IS-C which Bill drove home while I drove the Mercedes home. The whole road trip was 3300 miles.

I was having problems breathing prior to this trip but we didn't think anything of it.  When I got back I checked in with the doctors and there was nothing on x-rays etc. So we move forward to August when I go down to GA for the court case of Andrea Sneiderman in Dunwoody, GA.I drove to the court daily and back to my folks. I was down there for about 2 weeks. so probably about 2500 for that trip.

We went down for my birthday to celebrate so that was 1000 round trip on mileage. We went down again for Thanksgiving and I was starting to have issues but not as obvious as later. so another probably 1500 given all the shopping I did.

By the time we head to Iowa for Xmas I can't move 5 feet without needing to sit.  I can't walk up a set of stairs without needing to sit to catch my breath etc. It was extremely bad. By the end of the trip my in laws were scared and my husband and I were as well.

I went a total of probably over 10,000 last year road tripping and it caused blood clots galore. I got an x ray and the x ray reader actually came in and said both lungs were full.  I went and picked my husband up at work on my way back to the Dr.'s office as they are all around the same area.

They told me flat out that had I not come in on December 30th, 3 days later I would have been dead. I apparently had clots in both lungs, one in the right atrium, and one in the lower abdomen in the vena cava vein that was 14cm long.  I had gone right from the dr.'s office to the hospital across the parking lot.  From there a week and a day later I was transferred by ambulance to UNC due to the 14cm one so they could do a procedure with what they call thrombeletics  to break up that one clot.

I was brought into the surgical area and the stuff was started and then I was to stay flat on my back and not to move for 24 hrs.  If you know me, you know I have a low back injury and can't lay flat on my back so I whined all night and drove my roommate batty! The nurse came in and scolded me for something I couldn't help.

When they came in to put a pillow under that side to try and make it better that same nurse grabbed my shoulder which had a torn ligament from another incident pre hospital and re aggravated it so I was then in tears and going into a panic attack.

Needless to say I was glad to get out of that hospital after 20 days total in the hospital. I had a job with the Census Bureau and went back to it 10 days after the hospital but ultimately was made to quit.  My lungs are very damaged from all of the clots I had and apparently are still having form so I'm not able to continue to the job I was doing with them.

I am currently on 3.0 liters/hr of oxygen and not sure if that isn't gonna go up. If I don't have it on, my memory goes kaput, forming sentences is harder, etc. I have finally gotten portable cans that are much easier to carry around to go out etc.  I am also on a travel ban by the doctors. I got one pass and that was to go down for my dad's 73rd b-day and to go be with Vinnie Politan for a day at CNN.

You can imagine how much cabin fever I have right now with all the travel I have done in the past :) but my health is more important. It did make me miss my husbands grandfathers funeral which I really wanted to be at and my uncles 50th anniversary of being a priest celebration.