I’ve been asked multiple times “How did you know something was wrong?” since finding out I have a blood clot in my lung this pregnancy. I figure it’s time to share a bit of what my experience was like. This seems to be something that is more common than I knew. As so many others have messaged me saying “I had the same thing happen!” but I didn’t even know this was a possibility during pregnancy. Apparently they can affect every 1 or 2 pregnancies in 1000.
REALISING THAT SOMETHING WAS NOT RIGHT
I had been feeling off for about a week before the day I finally went into the hospital. On the Sunday prior, I had asked my husband his thoughts letting him know I wasn’t feeling great and that I was debating going to emergency. We both decided to wait and see if I felt better, which I did on and off. All of Saturday night I tried to sleep but could not. I was having a hard time getting a full breath of air in. I just couldn’t catch my breath. It also felt like I was being stabbed repeatedly in the middle of my chest. It hurt! Having just completed my level 2 first aid in January one of many things that were drilled into us was to not mess with breathing and to seek medical attention.
We contacted my family, it was now Sunday morning, and they watched the girls for us as my husband came with me to the hospital. I’m a bit anxious when it comes to hospitals now because of all the time we’ve now spent in them. I really didn’t want to go by myself. Thankfully, this was also before every with covid-19 increased.
WHAT HAPPENED AT THE HOSPITAL
Have you ever gone to emergency and been taken right in because it was not busy? I have now. I was taken through right away and seen by the nursing staff. It wasn’t long before I was taken to a bed to wait and then seen by the doctor. He was very quick to come to the conclusion that it was likely I had a pulmonary embolism (blood clot). At this point, I was only 9 weeks pregnant. The doctor didn’t want to have to do a CT scan, to try and avoid exposure for the baby, but because of what was suspected I need it.
Off to the CT scan I went. Getting the high contrast dye sent through my IV was the oddest experience. You feel warm throughout your body and like you have to pee. The staff were amazing and made sure I was comfortable and that my lower abdomen was covered as much as possible with the apron. Trying to limit exposure to the baby as much as possible.
Sure enough, a pulmonary embolism was found in my right lung. It was caught pretty early and was small, but still a problem. It had traveled from my leg to my lungs at some point. I had no other warnings except for what I was feeling when it reached my lungs. No swelling in my legs, or pain of any sort. Now, when you hear pulmonary embolism it can be frightening. This diagnosis can be life-threatening. Which is why I am so thankful this was caught.
I was seen by the thrombosis specialist at the hospital which waiting at the bed I had been taken too. He confirmed everything again and admitted me to the hospital to be observed overnight. He also calculated out the dose of blood thinner I would need. Being pregnant, I have only one option for medicine. It comes in injectable form. I was given a dose right away, being stabbed in my arm by the nurse.
STAYING OVERNIGHT
After the nurse gave me the first dose, I was given the opportunity to learn how to do it myself right away. Some have a fear of needles, I do not. I was quick to say yes because I knew I’d have to do this on my own at home anyways. The nurse was a little surprised at my ease about it all. Honestly, everything was so out of my control except for doing the injections of the medication myself. The injections sting for a bit after. Not as bad as being stung by a bee or wasp, but still not a pleasant feeling.
My husband was able to come with me as I was transferred to my own room to stay for the night. Once I was settled, he left and went home to pick up a few things to keep me comfortable for the night. Lesson learned, bring everything with you just in case. He came back with a pillow, the iPad, a blanket, and comfy socks. After that, he left to get the girls and take them home.
I can remember it being so quiet in the hospital that evening. Though, I could hear some coughing. I was in a room a few doors down from one my husband was admitted to during his cancer journey. I had some flashbacks to those moments while there. One of the amazing nurses managed to get a late dinner ordered for me. She also grabbed me milk and crackers in the middle of the night after learning that dinner hadn’t sat well with me… the joys of pregnancy.
I was able to leave the following day in the afternoon. I had a new prescription in hand, plus the nursing staff and doctor made sure I was sent home with a few doses just in case it took some time for the pharmacist to get everything in for me.
HOW THINGS HAVE BEEN SINCE THEN
Since then, I have to take two injections each day. One in the morning and one in the evening. I’m on this dose for the duration of my pregnancy and afterward for several weeks and possibly longer. The blood thinners do impact what delivery will be like this time, but that’s for another blog post. As you can see from the photo below, I have some epic bruises from the injections of medicine. I bruise like a peach as it, the blood thinners have definitely intensified that. Recently, I have been given permission to switch from my stomach to my thighs to give my stomach a break.
After being in the hospital, I actually became very sick for two weeks. I ended up staying in bed and sleeping almost all day every day during that time. It wasn’t until my husband set up the humidifier and our essential oil diffuser beside me with oil in it to help with breathing that I started to get some rest and feel better. That part of the whole experience has left me wondering if I was also dealing with covid-19, or something else beyond the blood clot in my lung. I woke several times gasping for air. Though the specialist had drilled it into me that because I was on the blood thinners, I did not need to worry about the blood clot any more.
The big lesson from it all is that if you suspect something might be wrong… GO IN! Go see your doctor, go straight to emergency if you are concerned about your breathing. Don’t mess with that. Talk to your doctor about the risk of a pulmonary embolism during pregnancy. Get to know the signs just in case. I hope my sharing my experience, might help others if they every go through something similar.
