My 2008 Hangover

Wanna ask me how my 2009 is going?

I've started off the year with new vocabulary. I learned the meanings of Deep Vein Thrombosis, Pulmonary Embolism, Greenfield Filter and May-Thurner syndrome.

So, last Friday, January 2, 2009, I wake up and I am in serious pain. My left groin is throbbing. I get up, thinking I pulled a muscle. Nope. Can barely put pressure on the leg to walk to the bathroom. "This is fun," I think to myself. An hour later, I notice my entire left leg is swollen. Hmmm. That can't be good. I tell Manfriend I don't feel well, along with the symptoms, and he suggests a doctor's appointment.

Now, no offense to doctors, but I can't stand going. I have to be uber-sick.

Apparently, I was uber-sick.

By the time I got to my 1:45pm appointment, my entire leg was not only swollen, but it was purple. My doctor took one look at my leg and said go to the emergency room immediately. I drove myself there, they took one look and said, ok - you're staying.

Again, not one for doctors, I wasn't happy with this. What do you mean, staying? For how long?

That depended on the ultrasound of my leg.

I have the ultrasound done, and the technician took one look at me and said, "This isn't good. Are you short of breath? How do you feel?" I reply other than my leg hurting, I feel fine. She informs me I have a blood clot that stretches from my knee cap to the top of my left groin. Ok, that really didn't sound good. With that, I was admitted to the hospital. I called my parents, Manfriend and my best friend, J, who all equally freaked out. Manfriend was the first to arrive. Then the parents. They saw the leg, and all of them freaked out more. I'm placed in a hospital room, and given Lovenox and Coumadin.

The next day, the nurse administered the Lovenox shot, and something happened. I felt like someone had shoved long fingernails into my chest. Ok, that's definitely not good. I get a CAT scan. Turns out some of the enormous clot in my leg broke off and entered my lungs. It did not, thankfully, reach any part of my heart. Otherwise... I might not have been here to type this post.

The CAT scan also brought other news: I don't have cancer. That was a freak-out moment. "What do you mean, I don't have cancer? Since when were we looking for CANCER?" I also have a cyst on my right ovary. Oh, goodie.

After the lovely pulmonary embolism revelation, the doctors inserted a Greenfield filter via my right groin. (Being a sci-fi geek at heart, this is fascinating to me. It kind of looks like a freaky metal spider out of The Matrix movies. ) The Greenfield filter is in place to ensure if I do get blood clots in the future, they do not travel to my lungs or to my heart. So far, the Greenfield filter is my favorite thing that has come from this.

The good doctor also informed me I would have a pulmonary breathing study, a venal exam, and several blood tests to determine if I had a blood clotting disorder.

The next day, I am administered the pulmonary breathing test, which consists of taking a deep breath, holding it in, holding my nose and simultaneously breathing out as hard and as long as I can into a plastic tube, and then sucking in breath again. My tests were within normal range considering I had a pulmonary embolism.

A couple of days later (I think it was the following Tuesday), I was taken down to a place called Interventional Radiology, where they asked me to lie on my stomach as they took pictures (this was the venal study), and then with some local anesthetic, they inserted a catheter via the back of my left knee. The catheter inserted had tiny holes in it. Attached externally, the doctors plugged in two IVs, one for heparin and one for something called TPA. These were both used to bust up the ginormous clot in my leg. Here's the kicker: I had keep my leg flat for 24 hours. This led to a lot of back pain and a lot of Dilaudid, a serious painkiller of which I took full advantage. It also messes with your head. At one point, I was convinced someone was stocking shelves all around my bed. Manfriend also said I got into an imaginary argument with him about Indians, as I asked him, "What about the Indians?!?!" Yeah. Nothing but fun and giggles.

The next day, I was carted back down to Interventional Radiology, where they said the treatment was working well, but they wanted me to remain on it for another day, which meant another day of lying flat, and more Dilaudid, and one shot of Ativan, because my nerves were completely frayed. One note, I got to see the Greenfield filter. X-rays of your body are also kind of cool.

More Dilaudid. More Ativan.

My final day in Interventional Radiology, I got to see more pictures of my leg, and it looked like it was all clear. They removed the catheter, but told me I had to remain on the heparin for a while.

Two days ago, Friday, January 9, I was sent home with a Lovenox kit (which I hadn't looked at until I got home and realized it was the Spanish version of the literature), compression 'leg warmers' (that's what they look like! I feel like I can relive my 80s childhood!) and prescriptions for Lovenox (which came in syringes), Coumadin, Prilosec, a follow-up ultrasound, and PT/INR blood tests to check my "levels." The doctors and nurses wished me luck, and one nurse continually reminded me "someone was watching over me last Friday" and "I had no idea how lucky I actually was."

After all the blood tests were completed, it was determined I do not have a blood clot disorder. I was told that I have something called May-Thurner, which means that on my left side there is an artery that crosses over a vein. This is normal in most people. However, in the case of May-Thurner, as I understand it, the artery compresses the vein, which can sometimes lead to DVTs.

I am home now, and grateful to be at home. My parents, friends and Manfriend have all been wonderful.

I am still getting used to the concept that I am not invincible. I was all gung-ho on returning to work this Wednesday, but I'm not so sure after yesterday. It took me a good two days to type this post. The Lovenox makes me dizzy and it gets difficult to look at a computer screen for too long as a result. Ironically, my left leg feels like nothing happened to it, but my right leg is another story. Due to the Greenfield filter insertion, my right groin and surrounding area is very tender, which makes it difficult to sleep and to get comfortable. I feel run down after showering. Yesterday was a big day, as I took my first shower post-hospital stay (the word "orgasm" comes to mind), paid my bills, fed the dogs, had my parents and my friend L came over with her five year old daughter (who is a riot, very well behaved, and along with my niece Lily makes me want to have kids of my own) to visit. By the time they all left, I felt like I had run a marathon.

On a positive note, I lost seven pounds while in the hospital, so I'm at least tackling one of my New Year's resolutions.