Blood Clots (DVT and PE) Archives - Page 3 of 7

If You’re a Runner and it Hurts, See a Doctor

April 8, 2013 by Sara- Words to Run By Blog

Maybe it is because I am studying to achieve my RRCA Coaching Certification or because of my personal experiencing coaching sometimes less experienced runners, that it becomes a very big (not to mention personal) issue when I see others not only giving bad advice, but actually discouraging individuals who may be injured from seeing a medical professional. This is a huge concern and major problem in my opinion. If you’re a runner and it hurts, see a doctor.

As you may know, I’ve been having trouble sleeping. I know I shouldn’t (because then it makes it nearly impossible to fall back to sleep), but I tend to get online when I am awake at night and write, check email or work on this blog. In the early hours of Saturday, I woke up to a Facebook message from a friend asking me to check out a post in a popular running forum. His concern was that one of the people looking for advice may have been experiencing a blood clot.

I immediately found it (Please note, names have been concealed to protect the not-so-innocent). My main concern is highlighted in red (and no, it is not the glaring typo, because I make those too).

Forum concern don't see a doc original edited

If it hurts, see a doctor.

It says, “don’t see a doctor, they might just advise you not run at all.” And there are Likes after it. I think something in my brain exploded. And, even though I was furious and it would have been easy to tag this one particular person in regards to what I see as a grave error, I responded with a link to Could You Have a Blood Clot? and advised that Jennifer please see a doctor just to be sure, especially if she was continually experiencing intense pain.

WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD YOU ADVISE SOMEONE NOT TO SEE A DOCTOR? Because you might not be able to run. Because you might have to take a break. Because you might hear what you don’t want to hear. Because it very well could impact your training. Because the months and months you spent training could have to take a back burner to a bigger flame. Because no one, not even myself, thinks it could happen to them.

I understand. Really, I do.

BUT IT IS NOT WORTH IT. No race, no training schedule, no event is worth what I went through. Jennifer describes “experiencing intense pain in [her] calf. [That had been] hurting since [her] last run on Wednesday which was 6 miles.” This post was three days later.

I ran two miles on a Saturday and by Sunday night I was in the hospital with blood clots in my leg and lung that nearly claimed my life. I had intense calf pain. I was convinced it was a muscle pull due to an extended break or laziness or anything else. I couldn’t have been more wrong. In 25% of the people who experience a pulmonary embolism (or blood clot in the lung), the first symptom is sudden death. A pulmonary embolism comes from a blood clot, most often in your calf. This is serious, people. And I am outraged.

Sure, Jennifer could be experiencing muscle soreness. She could have pulled or torn a muscle. Her body could be fatigued or dehydrated.

Or it could be a blood clot.

I realize I don’t know any other thing about Jennifer’s training or injuries or well, anything. But just what if. Even if it’s not a blood clot, even if it’s nothing, I will always, always recommend my runners, my friends, my family; my acquaintances get it checked out. Listen to your body. It won’t lie to you. It tells you when something is wrong, sometimes gravely and sometimes not. Take the time to find out. You can always decide not to do what the doctor recommends if you believe your training is more important. You can’t just bounce back from a blood clot or something worse.

I don’t know what happened in Jennifer’s case. Maybe her doctor would have encouraged her to rest, not to run or to walk it off. Maybe her doctor would have ordered an imaging scan to rule out clots. Maybe her doctor would have determined it was nothing. Maybe her pain is gone now. Maybe none of this would even make a difference. Who knows? I do know most people wrongly assume athletes or runners or active people do not suffer from blood clots. And that simply is not true.

I do know many, many posts in this forum centered around injuries and please don’t misunderstand me, there is absolutely nothing wrong with engaging in a forum or website to find out about potential injuries, but always, always follow up with a trained medical professional. It could save your life.

What about you? What do you think about the advice given in this case? Do you tend to seek professional medical advice or shrug it off if you can until the pain is unbearable (we’ve all been there)? Do you see bad advice being given in running forums, especially pertaining to medical issues? Does this type of advice make you angry like it does me?

Until the next mile marker,

Leave a Comment Filed Under: Blogging and Writing, Blood Clots (DVT and PE)

Post-Thrombotic Syndrome: ‘Good Things in Life are Hard to Find’

April 3, 2013 by Sara- Words to Run By Blog

I try to see the good in life, but good things in life are hard to find. Especially when facing the unknown of post-thrombotic syndrome.

I was blown away. It’s been almost ten months since I was admitted to the emergency room in the middle of the night with a DVT (blood clot in the leg) and PE (blood clot in the lung). That’s almost one year. That’s almost halfway through the projected recovery time.

Not a day goes by that I don’t think about, wonder about, feel or cope with what happened to me. Even when I try not to think about it (or happen not to), something reminds me about it. I get a pain in my calf or out of breath walking up the stairs. I sneeze and my lung cramps or I laugh too hard and start coughing. Usually, I’m reminded of what happened as soon as I wake up in the morning and stand on my feet before I can hobble down the stairs. One aching step at the time. The pain starts in my toes and spreads up my calf from there, a dull throbbing before the blood gets circulating as best it can.

My groin area is clear of blood clots now and should continue to be as long as I am on blood thinners, which is good – the farther away from my heart, lungs and brain the better. But, you see, I still have a chronic clot in the femoral vein of my left leg, right behind the knee cap. It may never go away. It is completely up to the body to either a) dissolve the clot, b) turn it to scar tissue so it can bore a new path through it or c) neither of these. Blood thinners don’t “heal” a blood clot. They just prevent more from forming, hopefully. I’m still waiting to see what my body decides to do. Neither I nor the field of medicine gets a say.

A constant reminder.

You’ve taken away everything, and I can’t deal with that. Just when things start to get better, another layer of worse gets thrown in the mix. I am dealing with the early effects of Post-thrombotic Syndrome or Venous Stress Disorder or PTS.

While some people who have had a DVT recover completely, others may be left with some symptoms in leg like swelling, pain, aching, heaviness, and cramping due to disrupted blood flow. The pain and swelling can be disabling. Symptoms in the legs are typically worse after standing for a long time. A compression stocking, although very unfashionable, helps the pain and swelling. In severe cases, breakdown of the skin and fat may occur and ulcers may form.

For me, the emotional effects are most overwhelming right now. I’ve had to adjust my level of expectations, at least for the time being, and allow for my leg and lung slowly recover. I was already bad at adjusting expectations, in particular lowering them. I hold myself to a high standard – in life and in running. I can’t expect to run like I did, yet, I do. As I get closer to the anniversary of my PE, I can’t sleep; I toss and turn or wake up gasping for air, afraid I am suffocating again. My mind is hard to quiet; my pulse races and I have to remind myself of where and when it is.

Being strong, holding on. Can’t let it bring us down. As I move through recovery – sometimes things are foggy, and other times, things are clear as day. I spend a lot of time thinking and wondering and hoping things get better. And I have no choice but to look at this as a new phase of healing, something I have to go through to get to the end result. I can’t let my mind wonder “what if” for very long. The what if’s are unimaginable and the things that tend to keep me up at night.

It’s not over.

Until the next mile marker,

Leave a Comment Filed Under: Blood Clots (DVT and PE), Running

Spring Fitness Products 2013

March 29, 2013 by Sara- Words to Run By Blog

It’s spring, but you wouldn’t know it in Central Ohio from the most recent snow storm that moved through over the weekend (really, it was Much Ado About Nothing), but there is a little snow on the grass and trees. Needless to say, I am ready for spring! I’m kicking off the start of the new season with these spring fitness products 2013.

My Blood Clot Awareness Band

Blood Clot Awareness Band

March, as I hope you know, is Blood Clot Awareness Month! You can read about it HERE. I wear the “Get A Clue, Clots Kill” awareness band from The Clot Must Be Fought. It is important to me to spread the awareness of the the signs, symptoms and causes of blood clots, because they can injure anyone at anytime. It doesn’t matter if you are fit, healthy, young, old, slim, overweight, male or female. We are all at risk! You can help spread the word by ordering your own wristband for $2.00/each.

Shubeez 13.1 Shoe Tag

Shubeez 13.1 Shoe Tag

Want to get motivated this Spring? Shubeez are for you! This inspirational shoe tag goes on any pair of laces and really stands out. Enter my current giveaway to win your own. Shubeez retail at $4.99 for one.

Blistex Moisture Melt Lip Balm

Love, love, love this lip balm! It is silky and subtly shiny, but not so much that it is sticky and overly glossy. It has a slight shimmer to it and smells almost minty. I wear it alone when I don’t have lip gloss or I don’t feel like wearing something with a lot of color. This balm feels so good on your lips and has sunscreen protection. It also lasts with very few reapplications (unless you love it as much as me and just have to put on more). Find it at your local grocer/pharmacy. I think it was around $3.

Ello Percy Glass Water Bottle Pink

Ello Bottle

The Ello Bottle is perfect. I just found it the other day. It is a glass water bottle with a stopper top and I like it much better than the plastic ones. The stopper is secure and the grip is pink, so I loved it from the start. I like the way it feels in my hand and I like that it is environmentally friendly. I have been considering switching to glass storage in my kitchen for some time so I thought I would give this a try. It is dishwasher safe and BPA free. It retails at about $9.99, which is pricy, but you can use it for an endless amount of time. I got mine on sale. Check out the website to see all of their products.

Cuties Juice

Cuties Juice is so good – the best juice I have had in a long time! (Who doesn’t love Cuties, right?!) While I have greatly cut down on juice in my diet, I have been enjoying a glass of this one or two times a week. Cuties juices are all natural, 100% fruit, with no sugar added. Only fruit goes into our bottles- orange, tangerine and mango. None of the flavors are manufactured in a lab. It is all natural, non-organic and non-GMO. You can find it at Walmart or Target.

Victoria’s Secret Pink Spring Break Backpack

Victoria’s Secret Pink Backpack

I wish I was going somewhere to take this fun (neon!) backpack with me because it is perfect for spring. Check out Victoria’s Secret for all the different colors and patterns options – they also have a mini version! This bag is roomy, but not so large that I couldn’t carry it on a daily basis. The straps are adjustable, slightly padded and comfortable. They didn’t dig into my shoulders when I was carrying a backpack and notebooks this past weekend. Perfect for a blogger or writer on the go or even to take to the gym! It has a buckle flap closure with interior drawstring and front zip pocket and side flap pocket. It costs about $50 with no sales, coupons or promotions.

Relic Wallet

This Relic wallet is one of my favorite things because it holds all of my stuff, but isn’t too bulky or cumbersome. The color is a textured brown/gray so it goes with just about anything. I like that is has a quick access pocket on the inside (so you don’t have to unzip the whole thing) to store essentials like a debit card, driver’s license and cash. I got it at Kohl’s and it was on clearance for about $12 or so.

What about you? Tell me what some of your favorite things are right now. Is there anything you can’t live without that I must know about? Have you teried any of these products?

Until the next mile marker,

Leave a Comment Filed Under: Blood Clots (DVT and PE), Nutrition and Food

My Paleo Staples

March 15, 2013 by Sara- Words to Run By Blog

I recently read and wrote a review of It Starts With Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. It Starts With Food is a nutritional plan (Paleo at it’s core – quality meats, eggs, vegetables, fats, fruits and not much else to begin with) that shows you how certain other foods may be having negative effects on how you look, feel and live – in ways that you’d never associate with your diet. More importantly, the Hartwigs outline their life-long strategy for eating good foods in a clear and detailed action plan designed to help you create a healthy metabolism, heal your digestive tract, calm systemic inflammation and put an end to unhealthy cravings, habits, and relationships with food.

While my Whole 30 challenge to rid dairy, sugar, grains, beans, processed and packaged food got off to a great start, the last week has been rough. Not because the Hartwig’s plan is complicated or unmanageable – the book actually outlines food plans and recipes in detail – but because it does take more planning and thought than I am used to and let’s face it, sometimes it’s just easier to grab an old standby staple (like brown rice) at dinnertime rather than find, prepare and cook a new meal. I have done well at eliminating most grains and sugar from my diet, almost all dairy (I did have a small serving of cheese). all beans and all things out of a bag or box. We did eat out over the weekend, which was a total wash in terms of my plan.

I have enjoyed shopping for my new, paleo(ish) lifestyle and have found some things that will become a new staple for me as I continue in my journey to health.

Bone Broth

It’s healthy, primal, healing and good – for your body and your soul. I made my own Beef Bone Broth using the Whole 30 recipe found in It Starts With Food, but you can find many recipes online. If I have been hungry, I sip a cup of this broth and feel satisfied and content.

Clarified Butter (or Ghee)

It’s what your great-grandmother used to cook with – golden in color, rich and oh-so-good. Ghee has the healing benefits of butter without the impurities (saturated fat and milk solids). Many also claim that Ghee may be beneficial for the whole body and helps to reduce inflammation. Don’t be afraid of fat, your body needs it – Ghee, Olive Oil or Coconut Oil are the healthiest kinds and the only three I have been using since starting the Whole 30.

Coconut Oil – Specifically Ziggy Marley’s Coco’Mon Curry Coconut Oil

I’m learning it’s all about healthy fats and I have been enjoying cooking with coconut oil (and the fact that my house smells like the islands on a weekly basis), but THIS curry coconut oil is delicious. I’m addicted. I might make everything with coconut curry from now on! Seriously, get some today.

Lamb

I have always struggled to get enough protein in my diet – which is a very big problem. I am not a huge fan of beef, I get burned out on chicken, I don’t like pork at all and I get bored with shrimp and fish. I recently discovered lamb (that was not part of a gyro, which I don’t like) and really enjoyed it. I sautéed it with a little ghee and salt and pepper and served it with roasted root vegetables. It was so rich and healthy.

Eggs

I need to eat more of them – especially when I am in a hurry or am not feeling particularly “meaty.” They are so versatile and can be easy to prepare. I’m working on perfecting the art of poaching.

Jasmine Dragon Green Tea

This tea is slightly sweet and I have been enjoying a cup before bed each night. I love loose leaf tea and enjoy brewing it myself. It makes me smile.

What are some of your paleo (or healthy) staples? Do you have any new ways to cook an egg? How do you get enough protein in your diet? What healthy fats do you enjoy? Tell me in the comments!

Until the next mile marker,

Leave a Comment Filed Under: Blood Clots (DVT and PE), Nutrition and Food

Know the Facts About DVT

March 13, 2013 by Sara- Words to Run By Blog

March is DVT/Blood Clot Awareness Month

Deep vein thrombosis or DVT is a condition that involves blood clot formation in the veins, typically of the legs or groin areas. The most serious risk associated with deep vein thrombosis is that part of the blood clot will break off, travel along the veins, and get lodged in the lungs or heart, causing a potentially fatal pulmonary or coronary embolism.

According to the American Heart Association, as many as two million Americans are affected by deep vein thrombosis each year. Of those who develop pulmonary embolism, up to 300,000 will die every year. More Americans die each year from DVT/PE than from breast cancer and AIDS combined. Pregnant women are five times more likely than non-pregnant women to develop DVT. Yet, according to a national survey sponsored by the American Public Health Association, 74% of Americans have little or no awareness of DVT. (Source)

Here’s what you need to know:

Courtesy of: Horizon Vascular Specialists in Maryland