At 30 weeks pregnant, we took a road trip 10 hours away. We drove through the night, and I slept the entire drive.
On our way back, I got an excruciatingly sharp calf pain and started crying. I called my midwife and she said it was from dehydration.
A week went by. My leg turned purple and I couldn’t walk. I went to the ER and they said the baby was on a nerve and to massage it. After massaging it at home, I couldn’t breathe.
The next morning, I went to my primary doctor. They ordered an ultrasound and I found out I had a totally occluding DVT and was transferred to a bigger hospital.
They did a CT scan and found acute bilateral pulmonary emboli. I was then put in intensive care on heparin for four days. I was sent home to do enoxaparin injections twice daily for the remainder of my pregnancy and six weeks postpartum.
My baby and I are okay. I have no clotting disorders, and I also had a previous pregnancy that had no complications, so it was most likely provoked by travel and pregnancy.
Through this experience, I’ve learned to advocate for myself. I have constant anxiety, though. My advice is to listen to your body. You know your body best.
