I ran my first 5K in years the Sunday before all this happened. During the race, I injured my right knee. On Monday, I went to the doctor and was told to try rest, ice, compression, and elevation, and to use crutches for a few days.
The first day on crutches wasn’t bad, but by day three I was getting out of breath just hopping from my desk to the bathroom — maybe 100 feet.
By Saturday, I still felt off, but figured I was just out of shape and needed to get back to the gym once my knee healed. On Sunday, I was moving a little better but still didn’t feel right. That afternoon, I took my husband to get a haircut and collapsed on the floor.
He rushed me to the ER, where they quickly diagnosed me with a massive saddle pulmonary embolism and a DVT in my right leg. After a thrombectomy and three days in the ICU on heparin, I was sent home on apixaban for six months.
I’m still in the early stages of treatment, still learning, and honestly still terrified that it could happen again, or that I could die and leave my daughter without me.
What I do know is this: I’m not taking my life for granted anymore.
Resources:
Know Your Risk
Signs and Symptoms
Blood Clot Treatment
