In the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving 2018, Blake was experiencing pain in his right leg, which he attributed to a pulled muscle. On Thanksgiving, he seemed to have mild cold symptoms and a slight limp. We discussed that he should go to the doctor if he didn’t feel better soon.
That was the last time we saw him. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, November 25, 2018, he experienced trouble breathing and was rushed to the hospital. We arrived shortly after, and he was on life support with no diagnosis yet. We found out later that evening he had a saddle pulmonary embolism. We stayed by his side and held out hope and prayed for a miracle all week and we lost him on Friday, November 30, 2018.
We don’t know if he had any risk factors for blood clots. Family members were tested for blood clotting disorders and were negative.
There are no words to explain how the loss of a child has impacted our lives. Our family has a void that will never be filled. His smile, his loud laugh and his hugs are just a few things we will never experience again.
Our advice is to be overly cautious with any medical symptoms. We found out a week before his PE that he had researched DVT on his phone. If we had any idea that there was a possibility that something serious was going on, we would have been sure he was seen by a doctor immediately.
