Out of commision for a while (whine)

I haven't had time to post here lately because I've been working three (3) jobs. What can I say, I have a daughter going to one of those Big Eastern Universities That Everyone's Heard Of And Nobody Can Afford. Bills happen.

Well my vile work schedule came and bit me on my largest part.

To cut to the chase, after a long car ride in the rain (11 hours, 2 stops for gas) I developed a DVT which showered a constellation of clots into my lungs. Otherwise known as bilateral pulmonary embolism. Yes, I was a very sick puppy.

So, I'm off my bike for a while until the last of the clots go away, and I'm going nuts. We are having some lovely fall days, and I CAN'T GET OUT ON WILLIAM AND ENJOY THEM!!!! (ahem, sorry. I'd take deep breaths, but, well, you know)

As someone who bikes everywhere she goes in town, this getting in the car thing to go to the store feels just weird. I'm stuck on the couch and I'm getting twitchy. And I'm getting tired of everyone treating me like a &%##@+*** invalid. Yes, I'm whining. No, I'm not sorry.

What I did do, though, is update my Road ID to reflect the fact that I am now on blood thinners - AKA rat poison or Coumadin, take your pick. When they let me, I'll be back biking, though not on days that could easily lead to a spill. DH is stressing moderate speeds going down hills, but . . . And I'll keep the helmet on.

Oh, and Road ID sent me a coupon code for the first 20 of my closest friends to get a discount on their Road IDs. Of course, I thought of you guys first. So, if anyone needs a Road ID, I've got a deal for you. Something good has to come of this.

Also, I'm quitting the really sedentary job. The veins in my legs just aren't up to it. So now I'm down to just two jobs, which is an improvement. (In this economy. What am I thinking?)

One more thing. Unless you come up with a new something to yell at me about regarding all this, please don't; either my family, doctor, nurses or random strangers on the street already have. I don't think I'm listening any more.

Thank you for letting me get this out of my system.

Sorry to hear you're out of it for awhile and hope all will go well. I'll not say anything about you wanting to get back on the bike--heck, my doctor told me not to go biking alone after one episode with a diabetic low when I almost passed out while riding. But I told her if I don't go alone, then I don't go because my DH doesn't ride and there's no one I know around here who does. Sometimes, we just gotta do what we gotta do!

Anyway, I'd love one of those coupon codes. I've been wanting to get one of those IDs but have been holding off due to costs.

Thanks and heal quick!

Wow, I'm glad the DVT wasn't more serious! Think how much you'll appreciate it when you finally get back on the bike.

Karen

Actually, it was Very Serious. Think no waiting in the ER. Think immediate CAT scan. Think vampire (phlebotomist) leaving the room with a double handfull of blood tubes, some of which are the honkin' big purple top tubes. Think docs with Serious Faces.

I was a Very Sick Puppy. Oddly, except for the breathing problem, I really didn't feel all that bad. That's the scary part, DVTs don't hurt.

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Originally Posted by MomOnBike

Unless you come up with a new something to yell at me about regarding all this, please don't... random strangers on the street already have. I don't think I'm listening any more.

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Tough neighborhood!
I don't know what to tell you except I'm sorry you have to go through this.
Don't be too hard on yourself.

M on B- People shouldn't be yelling at you anyway. You have a condition that happens to many folks and it's one of those situations where some of us get this and some of us don't. You are about the 5th person I've heard about with this condition (all cyclists BTW).

I'm glad you got into ER and that they were able to help you right away. The important part of all this is that you are alive. The bike will wait- amazing how patient our bikes can be in times like this. :):)

Please let us know your progress- may take awhile to clear up. We're good listeners here, so feel free to rant once in while if you need to.

Wow. wild. I had the same thing 2 years ago, only by the time they found the PEs, there was no DVT left in my legs and just a bunch of clots in my lungs. (No wonder I couldn't breathe when I was riding. :rolleyes: )

You were a sick puppy and it sucks to have to take 6 months off riding for the treatment, BUT know that you WILL recover. When were you diagnosed? I assume you did lovenox shots for 2 weeks or so?

I also assume they did the standard genetic tests, etc., to ensure there's no predisposition to clots? If they didn't be sure to follow up on that.

If you want to PM me or ask questions re my treatment, recovery, etc., I'm happy to share. Good luck. take your meds and see the vampires when they tell you to.

I really hope that this passes quickly and I'm really sorry about it happening.

I may be misunderstanding, but was the car ride a ride to college or work related?

Oh yeah, Lovenox, Coumadin, genetic tests, the whole nine yards. With my deep family history of vascular issues, it will be interesting to see how the tests turn out. The crisis was this weekend.

Thing is, I would have (maybe, I was in deep denial) been diagnosed about two weeks earlier - right after the DVTs formed if I hadn't been feeling so icky anyway from overwork. Icky was my normal state. If they had been caught earlier, a filter could have been put in the vein and the PEs and hospital stay could have been avoided. There is a whole semester's worth of lessons in there somewhere.

Interesting that cyclists seem to be prone to PEs. Is is just because we are aware of our own? I wonder if there have been statistical studies.

As for yelling at me, you don't know my family. That's how we communicate. It's the only way to get through to me.

Anyway, thanks for listening. I do appreciate it.

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Originally Posted by MomOnBike

Actually, it was Very Serious. Think no waiting in the ER. Think immediate CAT scan. Think vampire (phlebotomist) leaving the room with a double handfull of blood tubes, some of which are the honkin' big purple top tubes. Think docs with Serious Faces.

I was a Very Sick Puppy. Oddly, except for the breathing problem, I really didn't feel all that bad. That's the scary part, DVTs don't hurt.

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I'm sure you were very sick. I meant the *extremely, ultimate* kind of serious. I'm glad you're here to tell us about it! :)

Karen

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Originally Posted by MomOnBike

Thing is, I would have (maybe, I was in deep denial) been diagnosed about two weeks earlier - right after the DVTs formed if I hadn't been feeling so icky anyway from overwork. Icky was my normal state. If they had been caught earlier, a filter could have been put in the vein and the PEs and hospital stay could have been avoided. There is a whole semester's worth of lessons in there somewhere.

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I would have been diagnosed a couple of months earlier if I hadn't caught an honest to god chest cold which turned into "bronchitis" which turned into 2 - 3 months of "breathing difficulty" which was actually PEs. Don't beat yourself up. Even the most vigilant can't catch everything.

:eek: eeegads!!!

MOB..I sure hope you give yourself time to heal. Be nice to yourself, don't forget the meds and ask if you need help.

Your bike will be there for you when you get the clean bill of health. Until then, just talk to it and *breathe*..

Now, go and have a rest, get a good book, have a cuppa & snuggle on your couch.

Yoicks! :eek:

Poor you :( Being sick sucks, being off your bike sucks, being seriously sick sucks big time.

MOB - here's to FLUID flowing through your veins and not blobs. Blobs are bad. :mad:

Healing juju coming at you from the Big Easy.

Wow, that's scary. Glad you're through the worst of it - healing vibes coming your way.

Mr Silver, actually, the car ride that did me in was coming home from my aunt's funeral. I was hurrying home so I could get to work Monday. So it kind of was work-related. And you're very sweet, asking if it were college related. My elder daughter is in grad school. Ah, to be a co-ed again. . .{sigh} (cough, pant, pant - still can't breathe all that well - gasp)

As for beating myself up, no, I'm not, that's what I have family, friends and strangers on the street for. It would be redundant. I was offering up my tale of "shoulda" in hopes that someone else would learn from my mistakes. Nothing more.

Anyway, progress report. I quit the sit-in-one-place-and-move-only-the-fingers job today. Went in and cleaned out the desk, all that. It feels. . .liberating. Then I took a nap, 'cause the morning wore me out.

And one last thing, the absolute worst thing about this whole experience is that the fall days now are fabulous! Why couldn't this have happened in, like, February when I have to drag myself out of the house using dire threats? It ain't fair! :mad:

Thanks, all, for the healing vibes, I can feel them helping.

I have a colleague and neighbor who had lung embolisms last year. We were all VERY worried! She is, however, now doing fine and is back on her bike. She bike commutes pretty much year round, and walks when she doesn't bike. Slowly and carefully now, and no longer forgets her helmet, but biking's what keeps her weight under control and her heart and lungs in shape so she is not giving it up. You'll be back on your bike too. We're all root'n for ya!

Wow. I'm sorry to hear about your clot.

Weirdly enough, my husband just went through the same thing (days before our 20th wedding anniversary). A clot developed in his ankle, which he ignored despite my nagging at him to get to the doc (he had a DVT 10 years ago). It moved to his calf, so he went to the doctor. Shots in the tummy & cumaden. A couple days later, he has trouble focusing, a headache, and chest pains. Ignores it. Finally, goes to the ER and gets diagnosed.

Part of the clot in the leg broke off and moved to the lung. He had no problems breathing and it apparently did not affect his heart. He spent two days in the hospital on a heparin drip. They put in a ICV Filter so if more pieces of the clot moved, they couldn't get to his lungs/heart.

He's now doing better and is on cumaden. The hematologist told him that he has at least FIVE genetic factors (still some test results pend) that predispose him to the clots, so he likely will be on blood thinners for the rest of his life.

He's allowed to ride his bike, so long as he wears a helmet. Apparently, when Brian asked about it, citing the potential for a wipe out, the doctor said, "well you might get in a car wreck too."

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He's allowed to ride his bike, so long as he wears a helmet. Apparently, when Brian asked about it, citing the potential for a wipe out, the doctor said, "well you might get in a car wreck too."

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Yeah, that's pretty much my attitude. I'm being good (twitchy, though) right now so the clots I do have go away without migrating to fatal places. When I get the OK to ride, I will, with a big smile on my face.

I'm still planning my Vancouver-to-Key West ride. That hasn't changed. If I end up on Coumadin for the rest of my life, as I might, I probably will do it on a trike for stability reasons - but I'll still go.