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Nicole
I was recently diagnosed with Factor V Leiden. I am only 17.
I was at school a couple weeks ago and I passed out at gym. I couldn't breathe and my body felt crippled. I couldn't hear anyone but I could see them...
I then passed out on the floor..The school nurse came to get me and took me to her office. I decided to go back to gym and try again because I could breath
better, I walked half way down the stairs and got really lightheaded.The nurse came to get me and we both called my mother to get me.
My Mom made an appointment at the doctors and we left shortly after she picked me up at school. The doctor took an MRI of my heart and found nothing wrong.
The doctor thought that I had asthma. He also thought I was just hyperventilating because I also take depression pills.
The doctor called the Carlisle hospital, but they couldn't get me in for another week to take tests... The doctor told me to go home, take it easy, and
wait for my test date. No other hospitals around could get me in any sooner.So my dad just opt to take me to the ER.
When I got there I was still out of breathe. They took a CAT scan of my chest. A couple minutes later, the doctor came in and told me that I had three
blood clots in my lungs...I was terrified. It wasn't simply asthma or me hyperventilating. They said the next 24 hours would be critical.
I was in the hospital for a little over 4 days, and during those 4 days, I found out that I had a rare clotting disorder...Factor V Leiden... I got it
through genes...my family was tested, and no one in my immediate family had it. I'm really young to have this disorder. I was on birth control and my parents
smoked around me, which increased the risk of my blood clots. I am now on 5 mg of coumadin.and I probably will be on it for the rest of my life.The hospital
said that it was a miracle that I didn't die...and it was..most people die from 1 blood clot, let alone me having 3. The doctor said that when I passed
out at school, is when the blood clot may have gone through my heart...its a scary thought...
I just wanted to share my story...maybe it could help someone in someway.
Thank you, Nicole of Newville, PA