Postpartum
I Suddenly Lost All Vision: Haley’s Story
I was 23 years old and 40 weeks into a high-risk pregnancy. I was considered high risk because of a cyst cutting the circulation off to my right ovary, and I also had endometriosis. I had a C-section on August 17, 2020. After the surgery, I returned to my hospital room and cuddled up with…
Life is So Very Precious: Daisy’s Story
I’ve experienced deep vein thrombosis twice in my life so far. In 2010, when I was six weeks postpartum, I had cramps in my calf that lasted for three days, but I had no discoloration or swelling. I called my doctor and they had me come in “just in case.” An ultrasound of my right…
Not Knowing What Caused my PEs is Frightening and Frustrating: Kaprena’s Story
I’m 47 years old and grateful to be alive. This is because I experienced pulmonary emboli (PE) on three separate occasions. About six weeks after giving birth to my second son, I began to feel tired and thought I was coming down with a cold. My mother suggested that I go to the emergency room…
I’m Thankful to Be Here Today to Advocate for Maternal Health and Blood Clot Awareness: Patsy’s Story
My son was stillborn on March 2, 2023. Almost immediately after, I started having chest pains, which I attributed to stress from my son dying. My doctor prescribed anxiety medicine and I was discharged that day. However, for the next eight days, I experienced throbbing chest pain as if the world was sitting on my…
I Was Told My Pain Was a Pulled Muscle: Giggie’s Story
I was 22 and two weeks postpartum after having a complicated delivery of my first and only baby. I began having intense back pain when breathing or moving, so I contacted my midwives, OB/GYN, and PCP. They all told me that it was a pulled muscle and prescribed muscle relaxers. I took one dose and…
Blood Clots are a Huge Problem in the Postpartum Community: Lindsay’s Story
A few days after delivering my second child in February 2021, I found myself back in the hospital with stomach pain and a fever. A CT scan revealed a massive blood clot in my inferior vena cava, the largest vein in the abdomen that collects unoxygenated blood from the lower body and brings it to…
I Thought I Was Having a Heart Attack While Holding My Newborn: Megan’s Story
When I was 37 weeks pregnant with my first child, I began experiencing a painful, pressurized cramping sensation in my upper thigh that was dismissed by three different OB/GYNs during my weekly appointments. They assured me it was just the baby putting pressure on nerves and ligaments in my pelvis. However, at 17 days post-delivery…
An Article About Serena Williams May Have Saved My Life: Nisheera’s Story
I had my youngest son on December 26, 2019 via C-section. Recovery at home wasn’t too bad outside of the normal pain from having a baby. But at about a month postpartum, I began to have chest pain and found it hard to do simple tasks. I ignored the pain and convinced myself it was…
The Hospital Was Baffled By My Symptoms: Tyler’s Story
In 2018, when I was 21 years old and just over three months postpartum, I was diagnosed with multiple pulmonary emboli (PE). I started having trouble breathing in the early evening which I assumed was just my asthma acting up. This continued all through the night and into the morning. I was using my asthma…
The Last Thing I Remember Was Trying to Say, ‘Help me:’ Heather’s Story
My blood clot story started at a time that should’ve been the happiest of our lives — we had just become a family of four! A few days after giving birth to our second child, I developed a severe headache. Unfortunately, at the ER, I was misdiagnosed and treated for post-partum pre-eclampsia. After a few…
