MARCH IS BLOOD CLOT AWARENESS MONTH
This is the month in which raising awareness, celebrating blood clot survivors, and remembering those along the way really comes into focus so that we can make an EVEN BIGGER difference.
BLOOD CLOT SURVIVORS CAN DO ANTHING! #STOPTHECLOT
Blood clot survivors inspire us all every day.
This month we get the wonderful privilege to read about an incredible individual who is willing to share his story with us.
Take some time to read this story because it is one that you are going to enjoy.
I can't wait to see JOHN in the CLOT BUSTER @TeamStopTheClot polka-dots racing along as we celebrate that he is overcoming the challenges of his blood clotting incident. No blood clot is going to stop him!
Please read on and enjoy...
What is your sport/activity of choice? Why do you enjoy it?
For over 40 years my activity of choice is running. I also love open water swimming and biking the country roadsides. I began running on Jan 3, 1980. I started with .5 miles and over the coming months and years I’ve completed 45+ marathons, numerous ½ marathons, hundreds of 5 and 10Ks, and a few dozen Sprint and Olympic triathlons.
Running
brings me joy and peace in my body, mind, and spirit. I believe in the body, mind, spirit model as
working together for optimal health. Once in the ‘zone’ I can breathe, relax,
and often process life’s challenges.
How did you get started in that sport?
I got
started at the age of 30 after looking in the mirror and understanding what I
saw was not healthy for me. I was
married and my wife and I had six children.
Deciding to start running was a plan to regain my health for a future
with my wife and children and now 10 grandchildren.
What is the latest milestone you achieved or plan to achieve?
This
past summer I completed a Sprint and Olympic Triathlon and a ½ marathon. I
placed first in my age group in the Olympic distance and 2nd. in my age
group in the Sprint. I place 7th.
out of 27 in the ½ marathon in my age group. (*1st. place in the
triathlon should be noted that I also came in LAST. I was the only participant in my age group of
70 -74!)
One
milestone in my running career was qualifying for and running in the Boston
Marathon in 2005.
Tells about your clotting episode.
Are you on blood thinners now? How long were you out of commission?
The Thursday before Thanksgiving 2020 I went out for a 4 mile run. A few hundred yards down the road I experienced labored breathing and needed to stop to catch my breath. I took a few breaths and started off again. A few more yards and I needed to stop and walk again. Then I bent over and observed that my right ankle and calf were extremely swollen and tight as a drum. I thought, ‘Well, this is a no brainer. This needs a doctor’s attention, NOW!’
I
was not able to jog back to my house so I walked as quickly as I could and
phoned my doctor. I found out from the
office that my doctor is not in on Thursdays.
(wouldn’t you know it!). The
office advised me to head straight to the Emergency room.
As
my wife had an appointment within the hour, I decided to drive myself to the
Emergency room housed in the Ohio Health medical facility a few miles from my
house. (*note: People should NOT drive themselves to the Emergency
Room!)
Upon
arrival to the Emergency waiting room filled with patients waiting to be seen
with possible Covid, I checked in and sat a far distance down the hallway to
avoid the coughing. In about 15 minutes
I was seen by a triage nurse who immediately put me at the front of the line
for being seen by a doctor/s.
Within
an hour I had an ultra-sound finding a DVT in my right leg and a CT scan
finding multiple ( whatever that means)clots in all quadrants of my lungs. Soon I was on an IV drip of Heparin.
The
Emergency Room doctor and PA shared with me the serious nature of my condition
and that I was very fortunate to be in the ER and being treated. I asked what might happen if I wasn’t being
treated. The ER doc said, “You’d be
dead.” What a wake-up call that was!
Informing
my wife, Roseann, of my condition was pretty emotional. We’ve lived well in our 48 years of marriage
and desire to have many more. This
incident had the potentiality of changing that.
This emotional realization led me to know this event was more than just
a physical challenge. Having a serious
health event like PEs bring to the forefront the fact that we are all beings of
body, mind and spirit. In the coming
weeks I came to realize dealing with the emotional impact of a PE and recovery
and healing.
It
was decided to have me transported to a larger hospital across town and to be
admitted. After calling for transport I
was informed that all the area hospitals were swamped and getting a room in the
desired hospital would take some time. I
spent the night in a room in the ER and transport was finally arranged the
following morning.
Once
I arrived at the ER in the hospital I was to wait another 5 hours before a room
was ready. The ER doctors at this
hospital also wanted to do an echocardiogram of my heart to make sure there was
no collateral damage to my heart.
So,
long story short… my heart imaging came out with no damage and I was released
the following day with a prescription for Eliquis and orders to have a follow
up with my PCP/Sports doctor.
In
a few days I had a follow-up appointment and was prescribed walking only the
first week with short swims at my YMCA the second week. My doctor and I consulted closely and we
worked out a 2 month plan resulting in: 25 minute swims 2x a week, running
every other day starting with 2 miles and getting up to 4 miles, periodic free
weight training, and all the walking I could comfortably tolerate.
When were you able to get back into your activity? How did it feel that first time?
After my hospital discharge I had my first follow up with my PCP/Sports doctor within a few days. We discussed the seriousness of my condition and he recommended I walk one mile at a time for the first week. The plan from there was another follow up 3 weeks later. On my 2nd. follow up visit the plan was to keep the walking and resume swimming but for only 15 minutes. A stationary bike could be added for 20 minutes the following week. I could resume running/jogging 3 weeks after that.
So,
basically, over a 7 week period I progressed from walking to swimming to biking
to running. On week 8 I began running a
5K every other day.
At
first my runs had me constantly monitoring my breathing and pace. I realized getting back into running was not
just a physical activity but a mental one as well. The constant monitoring of my breathing and
legs took away from the joys of being back on the road. Still, even with the nervous cautions, I was
grateful to be back to on the road allowing my body to move as it had for over
40 years.
I
must include an element of concern in my initial recovery process and back into
activity. I had not prepared myself for
the mental health component in my recovery.
Having had a skirting with the possibility of sudden death, I was having
some concerns for my mental health and how I would ‘recover’ to a state of
confidence in my physical/sport activities.
Up
until my DVT and PE diagnosis I pretty much felt I could do just about anything
I wanted to do: walk anywhere, run anywhere and for hours if I wanted, swim in
a pool, a lake, an ocean, and bike country roads to the horizon.
Now,
there was a lingering caution I had not experienced before. Well, maybe when I’d swim during a ‘red flag’
in the Gulf of Mexico. There was caution
in my mind during that swim! This
lingering caution, I felt was emotional and I classified it as a mental health
issue. Was I going to have a clot move
and give me a stroke or stop my breathing?
I
discussed this ‘mental health’ issue with my doctor and he affirmed, as I
suspected, that it was part of my healing process. Our bodies are integrally linked to our minds
and of course to our spirits. My doctor
said he could recommend a sports psychologist if I thought I needed one. I appreciated that suggestion as it assured
me my doctor didn’t think ‘it was all in my mind’.
Mental
health issues during PE recovery and healing is real and I encourage survivors
to begin talking about it with their doctors if they experience this.
What is your favorite piece of gear for your favorite activity?
I’ve
been running in Mizuno shoes for nearly 30 years and will continue with
them. Don’t fix what isn’t broken. I ride the Cannondale CAAD12 and it suits me
just fine at this point. Recently, a
friend and I had trisuits designed and produced with logos representing our
home town. We wear these when we do
triathlons. I also recently ordered my STOP the CLOT t-shirt and hat. I will wear these this coming spring and
summer.
I’m
out almost every day. Stationary bike
once a week, swimming twice a week, running 3 times a week, walking daily. I also do some free weight exercises a couple
times a week.
What is your favorite food?
My
favorite food after a very hot summer long distance run or bike is cold
watermelon. There’s nothing like cold
watermelon upon returning from a very hot workout.
If you could go some place to visit and explore, where would like to go?
My
two ‘bucket list’ locations are Machu Picchu, Peru and the native land of my
ancestors – Slovenia.
What
would like to say to someone who is going through a clotting episode, perhaps
very similar to yours? How can people return to
do what they enjoy? Tells about your concerns and what you look out after.
As
I noted above, the surprise I did not expect in my recovery was the ‘mental
health’ component. I think most people
with their doctor will be able to discuss, design and implement a physical
recovery program.
But,
I’m guessing most people will not be informed or guided about the emotional
component that will spring up unexpectedly. For me this is a part of the body,
mind, spirit recovery/healing process and needs attention just like the
physical body needs attention.
As
founder of USAHealthNation, I have ,for over a decade, advocated for physically
active people to consider the reality that we are more than our bodies when we
are out on the road or in an organized event.
We our body, mind and spirit and each component deserves equal
attention.
