New Year New Start

First of all I would like to say a huge thanks to all of you who have been stopping by to read my blog and leave comments, I really appreciate it. I haven't been here for quite sometime but that's because I've been writing about a whole bunch of health related topics over on Squidoo and HubPages.

This blog post is really just an update with what's been going on in the last 6 months or so (really nothing too exciting). I'm still on Clexane but my hematologist is thinking about getting my onto Warfarin in the next few months which will be a huge relief because my tummy is so bruised from the injections.

My hair loss is improving and I've started to get some nice growth back. I think I was suffering so much from it due to a combination of Clexane and stress and now that my stress levels are reducing and my body is getting used to the Clexane it's starting to revert to normal.

My weight is still an issue and I'm still overweight by about 50lbs so 2013 is going to be all about the weight loss and getting into a healthy range. In January I managed to lose a few inches and about 2% body fat but I really need to up the intensity a bit and really focus in on my diet. The main motivation being that it will be easier to walk and I will be able to reduce the amount of Clexane I have to take as it is mainly calculated through your weight.

In January I had my IVC Filter removed as my clot has become nice and stable. The procedure meant that I was in hospital for two days and an extra day off work to recovery (that was a nice day off). However, when I went to have the filter out they didn't sedate me this time and it was not a great experience. I was expecting to just feel a tiny tug here and there but it was as if my guts were being pulled up through me and there was a horrible pain in my next but I was strapped down so I couldn't do anything about it. If I have to have that procedure again I'm going to be sedated like the first time.

So, that's pretty much everything that's been going on for the last couple of months really. I'm going to try and get on here more frequently now, at least once a month to give you more updates on what's happening. As normal if you have any questions leave me a comment or e-mail me from the contact us tab.

Wasted Day or Time Spent Recovering - Rehab: Day 31

I've had a bit of a mixed day today - good news, bad news, strenuous activity, resting. I had the day off work to go to the hospital today for my check up with Dr Mannering but that'll be my last one with him as he is leaving the hospital in 3 weeks. My care is being transfered to Dr Kasmi another hematologist who was looking after me when I was in hospital.

Scan and Blood Results

The good news is that my blood results where right were they're supposed to be at the moment but I still had to go for a another test because they changed the clexane dosage. The bad news is that I'll have to be on them for at least another 3 months before they'll even consider the warfarin - I'm sorry tummy, it looks like we'll be stabbing you for quite a while yet.

More good news: my chest pain isn't related to my filter. The pain I've been feeling over my breastplate is muscle fatigue from the crutches and the pulmonary embolism recovery. I had my chest and heart listened too and there's no fluid, crackling or wheezing going on so it's all within the normal parameters. Obviously if I get some really bad pain or breathlessness I need to go straight to A&E even for a bad asthma attack as a clot in my lung could've moved.

On to the scan. Dr was pleased with my mobility and swelling results but the scan results weren't great. The reason the filter is staying in is because the clot hasn't changed dramatically. Like I said in a previous rehab post the clot has a trickle of blood flow in the middle of the femoral vein but that's about it. They can't go in with a clot busting drug because the clot is too old and I would risk having a serious internal bleed if they went ahead with the procedure.

What Next?

I'm scheduled to have another scan in 6-8 weeks to check on the progress of the clot and to have another blood test. In the meantime I'll be getting some better compression stockings to help with the venous insufficiency, meeting with Dr Kasmi and generally trying to get stronger and fight off this fatigue. If I need anything in the meantime then my GP will be looking after me.

Soo, the Title?

The reason for the title is because I had planned to do a few productive things with my day off but as it happens my little trip to the hospital really tired me out. I don't know what was so different this time but I got home, had lunch and could barely keep my eyes open. I went to bed for 4 hours managed to make some dinner and since then I've just been completely knackered. At least I've only got 4 hours work tomorrow then I'm off till Tuesday because of the bank holiday - when you're on rehab hours you don't have to work bank holidays or weekends.

Amazon Shopping

I love Amazon too much. Here's a little contextual widget for some related products. I wonder what it will come up with?

Related Posts

• IVC Filters
• DVT Prevention
• Compression Stockings
• How to Decrease Bruising with Clexane
• What is Heterozygous Factor V Leiden - the reason for my injections and clots
• What is Post-Thrombotic Syndrome
• What is Venous Insufficiency 

Knee Pain - Rehab: Day 27

Another lovely rest day, well, I say rest I mean not much walking but still quite busy. I slept in late - not great for my clexane injections but I needed the sleep - washed my hair, went shopping, worked on some old blog posts, watched a lot of House, got in the bath, and watched more House with some cake. All in all not a bad day.

Walking around today, especially around ASDA, I noticed that I've got some knee pain sneaking through the pain killers. It's on the inner side of my knee which suggests it has something to do with the clot as the pain is radiating from that area. I'm going to get Dr Mannering to take a look at it in the week and compare it to the scan I just had. In the mean time I'm just going to have to take the pressure off my leg when I walk and to use the crutches more effectively.

Since coming out of hospital I have found it quite difficult to wash my hair and shower/bathe all in one sitting. My strategy for the time being is to wash my hair one day and shower the next or do one in the morning and the other at night. I find that if I do them all in the one sitting it makes me feel quite ill. I don't know if it's the heat or the excursion that makes it difficult or something else entirely but the point is that I can't do it at the moment. I'm thinking about getting a bath seat so that I can sit down whilst I have a shower, that means I probably be able to wash my hair at the same time without spending too much energy.

Energy wise I'm feeling pretty good. I think the last couple of days of rest has done me good and I'm ready to go back to work tomorrow for 4 hours a day. I've also got to go and get fitted for some more compression stockings tomorrow and to see Dr Mannering the hematologist on Thursday for a check up and to review the Doppler scan on my clots as well as the IVC filter.  

I've been sleeping without compression stockings for the last couple of nights as well and it's not as bad as the last time I tried. The swelling is minimal in the morning and I seem to be sleeping a little better at night too. 

My injections are playing havoc with me at the moment. I've got little hematoma (little lumps at the injection sites) all over my tummy which are quite sore to the touch and a fair amount of bruising to go with that. I've had to stop doing them myself at the moment as all of the pain free sites are damaged so my partner in crime is having to do them on the really painful sites which means I normally end up bleeding or in pain for a while. I should be back to self-injecting in a week or so once the bruising and hematoma have healed up.

One of the other side effects of clexane is hair loss. I noticed this morning that I'm starting to lose quite a bit of hair when I brush (20 - 30 strands compared to the 2-5 normal) and I've got a couple of small bald spots near my forehead. Luckily I've only got 20 days left of clexane so I'm hoping that my hair will start to grow back once I switch over to Warfarin.

Have you ever suffered with hematoma? If you have leave me a message with any tips you might have.

Related Posts

• IVC Filter
• Compression Stockings
• Side Effects of Clexane

Life Can be a Pain in the Clotted Vein - Rehab: Day 24

She Canny Take It Captain! (Pretend I'm Scottie from Star Trek [Original])

I've clearly done more than I can manage this week - I'm absolutely knackered! My pain has been right up this week and my sleeping patterns have been off the rail, for example, I woke up at 10 to 9 (8.50am) this morning when I'm supposed to be leaving at 9am to get the bus to work. Well, I can certainly say that I still got to work on time but I didn't have any breakfast so I had a tummy ache with my pain killers. Needless to say I am currently not a fan of Factor V.

Pain is a Bitch (OK you can stop pretending I'm Scottie now)

For those of you out there who suffer from any form of chronic pain (pain that's lasted more than six months otherwise it's known as acute) it can be very persistent, no fun and a really pain in the ass! I couldn't get comfortable last night and this evening my muscles are just seizing up left right and centre. I'm thinking of upping my pain meds for a couple of days as it's clear that I'm not as well as I thought I was, I'm still going to go to work (for one I need the money) but I can't be galavanting off all over town like I have done this week.

I've also been getting a bit of discomfort in my chest as well. I'm not sure if it's my asthma playing up or the filter. To be honest I have been very, very, very bad with my asthma medication this week, I haven't taken my long acting filter for at least two weeks and it might very well be catching up with me - SHAME ON YOU (ME)! I think it's best to start the inhalers again tomorrow to get that one sorted, at least I'll then know if it's asthma or the filter acting up then.

Actual Rehab

I'm going to be having a good ol' stretching session this weekend to lengthen out my muscles and do some work on my thoracic spine and maybe with a roller to work out some kinks in my back and legs. As for rehab this week I've mainly been focused on getting to and from work, so walking basically. I've been averaging about 2 miles a day if I go into town afterwards (as we've established that's not a good idea at the moment) but only about a mile if I only go to work. I have a neat little pedometer (like the one below) that sits in my pocket all day counting up my milage - they're actually pretty motivational as I set myself little goals to accomplish during the day.

Side Effects

I'm getting some more side effects from my meds so on Thursday I'll be reviewing with the hematologist about alternatives even though I'm fairly sure I'm stuck with the clexane injections for at least another month. Anyway, the side effects I've been getting are:

• Sore throat
• Lip, tongue and mouth slits/cracks
• Hair loss - starting to come out in clumps again (sad face here)
• Hematoma - lumps on the injection site that get quite tender when touched at all
• Bruising - I have a random bruise on my right (good) shin and I have no recollection of hitting it
• Bleeding - where I'm running out of space on my tummy I'm starting to nick the artery/vein areas and draw blood from the injection site, I'm thinking of injecting on my thigh but at the moment I can't grab enough fat to avoid the muscle with the current 120mgs but tomorrow's my last day of them so I'll try on the 100mgs.
• Mood swings - I think this is mainly to do with coming off of birth control (aaarrrrrggghhh)

Anyway, that's my little rant over. Go have a look on Amazon for funky stuff to buy (you might have guessed that I LOVE Amazon, it's just that I have soooo many vouchers for them) or go and check out some related posts if you really wanted to. For now though I am off to bed to see the wooden Indians (a phrase my Grandmother used to say when putting us to bed) and hope that Mr Insomnia doesn't pay a visit - I NEED SLEEP!!

Here are some things you might like from Amazon

 

What's your favorite thing to shop for?

Related Posts

• Insomnia
• What is Factor V (5)?
• IVC Filter
• Bruising with Clexane
• How to Use Clexane
• Coming off of birth control
• Rehab: Core
• Improving Upper Back Pain

Rehab: Day 9

CC courtesy of Tayrawr Fortune, Flickr

This is how my stomach feels. The bruises aren't that dark, they are still light red - yellow but the skin underneath is so sore. I'm rapidly running out of places to inject, I might have to start using my inner thighs but that is a risk for the clots that are there - what would happen if I nicked the major vein in my groin?

My planned rehab for yesterday just didn't happen because I felt so rough. Then pain was starting to come back in my left leg so I have returned to my stated dose of pain meds, clearly now is not the time to be reducing. I did, however, end up going out for an impromptu lunch with the other half and his uncle which was nice. I ended up having a small walk whilst we were looking for somewhere to eat so I don't feel that guilty about missing some rehab.

I'm going to the hematologist at the hospital today for my pre-op consultation. I really don't want them to take out the filter, I feel so much safer knowing that there is something preventing my death if a bit of clot comes off. I also need to talk to the about the heavy periods and sore stomach - there has to be a solution to these, I can't go on forever like it, it's just not possible.

I'll provide an update with the hospital, returning to work, and how my rehab went either later or most likely tomorrow.

Have a great day!  

Part 2c: IVC Filter - Preventing Deep Vein Thrombosis Clots from Killing Me

What is an IVC Filter?

My IVC (inferior vena cava) filter is a wonderful little safe guard that I'm really very grateful for. The basic function of it is to essentially work as a tea strainer; it allows blood to pass through but traps any clots that might have broken off and attempting to lodge themselves in my lungs, brain or heart. It can also work as a warning mechanism in the future but causing swelling in my legs if there has been a clot caught in the filter.

The Procedure

Actually having the filter fitted was a strange experience. I was taken down to the radiology department on my bed and transfered across to the 'operating' table which had what looked to be a mobile CT scanner. I was then hooked up via my cannula to a sedative and contrast fluid (so they could see where they were going) whilst they were explaining the procedure to me. The sedative was the oddest sensation I have ever experienced, it was like being asleep yet being perfectly aware of what was going on at the same time but not caring about the pain or tugging feeling.

The procedure was fairly simple and uninteresting. The surgeon opened up the big vein in my neck and put in a catheter, using the image-guiding equipment, that went down through the venous system until it got to some where around the bottom of my rib cage and the top of my tummy button. It was uncomfortable during the procedure but the sedation and the two lovely nurses talking me through it really helped: one thing I would recommend is that you find a lovely nurse to come with you, it'll be great experience for them and you'll have someone to comfort you during a scary time.

Once the bleeding had stopped (my blood was still quite thin from the heparin even though it was stopped a couple of hours beforehand) I was wheeled back up to my ward where I slept off the sedation for a couple of hours. I was woken up by my vascular surgeon who reassured me that the procedure had been a success and that he wanted to leave the filter in for a least 4 weeks although he was unsure whether or not to keep the filter in permanently, but we would cross that bridge at my review.

Thoughts on the Filter

Having the filter really made a difference in my recovery as I could assure myself that I was getting further out of the danger zone and I could actually start to move around again, at least once the catheter was out. It's like having an emotional and psychological support that no-one else can provide, one piece of plastic that's keeping out the death clots. To be honest I'm all about keeping the filter in, mainly for the early warning system and security that it can give me.

Here's part 2b, part 2a and part 1 for your reading also.

-->