Woman

My husband and took a trip to Destin, Florida for a long weekend after finding out my breast biopsy surgery was benign. We drove 14 hours in one day from Michigan and returned a few days later, only stopping twice for gas. I returned to work and walked to my office up two flights of…

I was diagnosed with a DVT and bilateral pulmonary embolism on April 10, 2024. I underwent a biopsy for a uterine cyst in November 2023 and subsequently had my menstrual period for almost 30 days. My gynecologist prescribed me birth control to stop my period. From mid-January until April, I was taking four birth control…

In November 2023, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl via C-section. It was our first child and we were so excited! A few weeks after giving birth, I had extreme pain in my stomach. I called my OB/GYN and they told me to take an anti-gas medication and see what happened. The pain…

I had an appointment with my PCP on October 5, 2019 for shortness of breath. I could barely walk to my car from his office door. My lower legs were hurting. I was 56 and on no medications. He referred me to a cardiologist. The following day, after my morning coffee, I could hardly walk.…

Written by Judy Boyd, mother of Monica Boyd Ashworth, who died of a pulmonary embolism on March 7, 2024, 12 days after giving birth to her son. I want to advocate for new moms-to-be so they don’t die as our daughter did—right here in Northern Virginia. The United States has the most advanced health care…

In 2022, I was running three times a week training for my first half marathon when I noticed swelling and cramping in my left leg . I shrugged it off as overtraining or a Baker cyst behind my knee. Until that point, I had been a very healthy 44-year-old wife, mom, and teacher. I never…

When I was just a few months shy of turning 24, I traveled to Mexico, which included a four-hour drive to the airport and four-hour flight. Once I returned, I got sick with a gastrointestinal bug and was off work for three days. The night before I returned to work, I had some chest pain…

I am a healthy 30-year-old woman. Or at least I thought I was. This summer, I was getting my 1-year-old ready for the day. I lifted him onto the changing table and started to feel light headed. I grabbed him and put him on the floor and sat down to catch my breath, but I…

I was an active 40-year-old woman. I ran every day and had three sons who were keeping me busy. I had noticed for over a month that I would have calf pain during my daily runs. Since I only had pain while running, I figured it was related to exercise and gave it little thought.…

I was walking my dog when I suddenly felt weaker with every step. I needed to sit down on the ground repeatedly throughout the walk. I had chest pains, shortness of breath, and I felt faint. I called my family and went to the emergency room. It turned out that my D-dimer levels were high.…