I got home from work and found it very painful to walk up the stairs. It felt like I pulled my groin. The next day I was supposed to see my mom for her birthday, but I could not get out of bed because I couldn’t move my legs.
My mom told me to call an ambulance. The EMTs thought I was faking and made some remarks but apologized later. I got to the hospital and did not understand what was wrong with me. I am very active and just became runner-up in a singles tennis tournament and won a mixed doubles tournament.
I had a blood clot in my leg and was diagnosed with factor V Leiden. I had no idea what that was. I ended up staying in the hospital for a week and was in an enormous amount of pain.
After I got out, I developed post-thrombotic syndrome, which added to the misery.
I could not sit down or lay in my bed without having so much pain for about a year. I was doing physical therapy, eating healthy, and exercising. Nothing was working. I was so scared of dying and constantly went to the ER.
One Saturday, I went to church and prayed my heart out. The next day, I went to a doctor who told me to get an MRI of my back. It indicated I had a herniated disk. That and my post-thrombotic syndrome was ruining my life.
I ended up getting a steroid in my back, and that helped so much. I was able to play tennis shortly after that and eventually got better. I am lucky the clot did not go to my lungs and that I called the ambulance. Now I am playing tennis every day and I am so happy to be alive.
Resources
Athletes and Blood Clots
Post-Thrombotic Syndrome
Factor V Leiden
