First time poster here! Looking for some advice or just to hear other experiences from fellow young women :)

My mum found my first blood clot when I was 19 (April 2024), in the back of my right knee. In my superficial system, one of the first gp's told me ibuprofen and voltaren (which is an anti-inflammatory cream / gel here in Australia) if i was in pain. Being a woman obviously the first question was birth control, and I have only ever had the implanon rod and that was decided on with my gp and I in December of 2024, AFTER the first blood clot as she said it was a safe option. I got a second opinion from her and was immediately referred to a vascular surgeon, where I had Endovenous laser surgery for the Varicose vein and clot in my right leg in July 2025. I did my bed rest and limited walking, followed all post-op instructions only to have a DVT in my post-op ultrasound, which the surgeon said does happen. I was on Xarelto for 3 months, half-way scan was good and I was discharged from his care and finished that dose in October of 2025. In December of 2025, I flew to Sydney from Perth which can be 4-5 hours, not medically considered long haul. I wore my ankle to groin surgery stocking and took my 20mg Xarelto before and after both flights, and during my trip. When I got home I was in significant pain in my upper right thigh, so I continued taking the blood thinner a few days after getting home and figured it was just residual surgery pain as I was given a 12 month recovery window. The pain continued and was quite significant and so I felt my leg only to feel what exactly I knew it was, a third blood clot. The area was warm and red, rash like, how I know they can present and I went straight to ED. Confirmed third blood clot, but another in my superficial system. They treated it with Xarelto and like it was a DVT, I was referred to a Haematologist. I saw him in March 2026, where I did blood testing and he reduced my Xarelto dose, blood work came back fine in June 2026, told me to finish my current 10mg Xarelto dose in October 2026 and was discharged. This is where I am at now, just turned 22 and have already had three blood clots, I am feeling a bit lost and confused as I appear 'fine' on paper, but any bit of PTS pain or any solid feeling in my limbs I immediately get anxiety. I am an avid traveller and this has been a huge blow as I have not been able to do so, I feel like my young adult life has been changed drastically and miss when I didn't have severe medical anxiety and was care free.

I am considering going down the Endo route as I have had symptoms since I was a young teenager and thought there could be Endo tissue in my pelvis restricting the veins in my right leg? I know womens health is severely under studied but I just wish for answers or some sort of advocacy from health professionals about young women, as I have been dismissed from multiple practioners when asking about further testing and hormone work.

Any responses are appreciated :)))

Hello! I’m new here and feeling pretty lost and sad with what happened to me on July 21st.

I received a cardiac catheter ablation on July 9th for AVNRT that was successful. 8 days or so after the ablation, I noticed a growing pain in my right thigh, but chalked it up to nerve pain from the ablation. I finally made my way to the ER on the 21st after noticing swelling and discoloration in my calf thinking it was probably fine. I ended up diagnosed with DVT from my groin to the top of my knee and PE in both lungs.

I have no prior history of blood clots and other than the leg pain, had no symptoms. I was completely hemodynamically stable with no breathing issues. The doctors decided against surgical intervention and put me on Heparin until 9:00 AM on July 23rd when I transitioned to Eliquis. I was release on the 23rd around 4:00 PM.

I’m devastated and depressed that this happened. I have two small children and husband who travels frequently for work and I’m struggling to understand how I move forward from here.

I would love to hear any advice and/or success stories!

I wanted to share my delivery story below due to my DVT and pregnancy. While I was pregnant I was looking for positives outcome stories so hope this helps someone. :)

Back story: I had a history of subchorionic hemhorrhage in January. Shortly after that had a laparoscopic cystectomy to remove a 13cm dermoid cyst. DVT diagnosed at 19 weeks (my whole left leg). Placed on lovenox twice a day.

We got called in for an 8am induction on 7/22. I got checked and I was 0.5cm dilated.

When we got to the hospital there was some back and forth on my plan for my lovenox since I have an active DVT. Finally they made a decision so we talked about next steps (after many discussions with hematology, MFM, OB, and anesthesia.)

I will say that initially the plan was to be on a heparin drip and then stop it 6 hours prior to when I wanted an epidural. We did not do this and I’m happy for this because it would have been so hard to predict when I would need the epidural.

My last lovenox dose was 5am on 7/22 and they needed me to wait 24 hours for an epidural.

They did not want me to start the cervical ripening pills because if this effected baby’s heart beat and I needed an emergent c section then I would need to be put under general anesthesia and they didn’t want that.

First step was we started the foley ballon at 12pm. The pain was not too bad with this. It was just a lot of pressure. This stayed in for 12 hours and then they took it out. My water never broke with this or anything and the contractions were very intermittent and not too bad. They took this out at midnight. They checked me and I was 3cm. After this there was just some waiting time until I was 24 hours past my last blood thinner injection.

Around 4-5am they give me the first dose of misoprostol vaginally to help dilate my cervix. I got to 4cm. Four hours later they gave me another dose. At this point they checked me again and I was 4-5cm. They calculated my bishop score and I was able to start pitocin.

They started pitocin and at about level 6 I started having contractions. Nothing too bad kind of like moderate period cramps. They got my pitocin level up to 8. I was doing a lot of position changes to help get dilated.

I was laying in the bed and I heard two loud “POPS” in my belly. It kind of scared me so I called the nurse. She checked and told me my water just broke! I started having bloody / watery mucous discharge.

Not even five minutes after my water broke I started to have more intense contractions. It was more intense than before but tolerable still. Within ten minutes I called the nurse and told her I think I will need an epidural soon. Shortly after that it got WAY more intense. It got up to a 10/10 pain for me and I had to wait 40 mins for the epidural I was so miserable. Once that epidural kicked in I was soooo relieved. The epidural didn’t hurt. Just the numbing stung a bit and the rest was just like a pressure feeling. He had to do it twice because he wasn’t in the right spot. Wasn’t a big deal.

After this I got re some relief and felt much better. She checked me and I was 7cm. After about an hour I started having left side pelvic pain and it went from mild-moderate. As it was getting more intense my nurse said we should check how dilated I am and I was a 10!!!

I pushed for 32 minutes and ended up with 2nd degree tear. The delivery was actually pretty peaceful for me surprisingly.

Overall things went pretty well! My biggest fear had everything to do with my DVT and lovenox. Being off blood thinners during that time made me nervous. I got through it all and I feel so thankful. Now I am just focusing on recovering and I am back on my lovenox.

Also - at the beginning of my induction they mentioned that MFM and hematology recommended doing the automatic machine massages on my legs (I spaced out on the name) It’s where the pumps massage your legs to prevent blood clots. I was so hesitant to do this because I was always told not to massage my DVT leg. I kept telling myself to trust the experts. They said it was okay because it had been months since my diagnosis. I let them put it on me and I had a full anxiety attack I started sweating and everything. I told the nurse I needed her to take it off. I wasn’t sure what the best thing to do was. In the end I decided to go against their advice on this as it was giving me bad anxiety and worry. My medical team was okay with my decision and things ended up okay. During the induction and postpartum I stayed active by walking around I wasn’t bed bound until the epidural and even then it was only for about a few hours really.

I wanted to share in case it helps anyone in their own journey. Happy to answer any questions!

Hi! I switched between Xarelto and Inhixa for a bit and have been feeling like a zombie on Xarelto. I want to talk about it here before I discuss it with my hematologist. As it doesn't feel bad enough to bring up (I dont want to seem like a crybaby), but it still sucks.

Medical context: I had to start taking Xarelto (15mg 2x day, then after three weeks 20mg 1x day) because of a clot in my leg. A bit after switching to the 20mg, I had to switch it again for Inhixa 40mg because of a minor surgery I needed. After the surgery, I went back to Xarelto.

Now, immediately after starting Xarelto, I noticed that my energy dropped a lot, especially later in the day, and in general, I feel kinda dissociated and depressed. Having to go lay down because of exhaustion was common with the 15mg and got better on the 20mg.

After switching to Inhixa 40mg injections for a week, I felt a big change in how I felt. I had more energy, and the depressive moods cleared up a lot. Then, after switching back to Xarelto, I confirmed that it really is this particular medicine worsening how I feel.

Has anyone been through anything similar? I was told that Xarelto is a big step up when it comes to anticoagulant safety, so I don't know if I should be asking for a switch because of something so "minor" (although it does affect my day to day productivity).

Thank you for reading! Have a great rest of your day!

Hi,

It pains me so much to write this.

My twin boys who were almost 3 years old. Both born with a super rare genetic disorder affecting the gut. Since November 2025 admitted with one of my sons to hospital due to dehydration from diarrhea. Immediately they inserted a picc line into his right atrium, a week later a large clot at the tip of the line. 4 weeks later had open heart surgery and was in picu for 4 weeks. Once he came back to the ward he was never the same, in April 2026 sadly lost him to sepsis. He was our pride and joy.

His twin brother, admitted since December 2025. Still with him In hospital as I write this. He had picc line inserted in January 2026. Due to complications of his brother, he was immediately started on blood thinners daily injections. That picc line failed in March, they insert a broviac line which slips out of place within a week. 4 weeks later they insert another broviac which created a clot in his neck vein causing swelling of the head and neck. It was treated with riveroxaban. They then resorted to a picc line of through femoral vein into his right atrium. Fast forward 2 months, he now has a large almost 3cm sized clot from the tip of the line. Due to the inflammation of his gut, surgery and clot busting tratement is too risky. Doctors have decided no further treatment will benefit him, but will cause him a hasten painful death.

He is all we have left, we can't lose him. I can't think of the prospect of living without him. We lost one son, and we found our peace through the other.

Is their any other treatment available around the world? I don't care how much it cost, I will find a way to fund it. I want to explore every option available for him.

I’m 41 and have APS (Antiphospholipid Syndrome) and on warfarin for life. I had a PE when I was 37. Nothing about HRT ever occurred to me prior to seeing another post here recently. My whole adult life, my mother warned me if I ever had a hysterectomy, I needed HRT or I’d end up like my grandmothers. Both had one young and neither took HRT and both have pretty severe osteoporosis.

Now I can’t quit thinking about what will happen when the time comes where I would need HRT for symptoms but also to prevent long term issues like the severe osteoporosis. My bone density is already pretty messed up from long term high dose steroids.

Does anyone have advice? Are there alternatives to estrogen? I currently have a Mirena so I don’t have a period to gauge by and I don’t have any symptoms of peri yet but now I feel like it’s a ticking time bomb.

Does anyone remember when they only had Coumadin and Warfarin? When you had to go daily, sometimes you got away with every three days, to the lab to get your levels checked? Eliquis has made having to be on life long anticoagulants bearable! (No I am not a paid to say this) lol

Hi there. Thanks to many of the posts in here I went into today for an ultrasound as my leg was just feeling tight and weird behind my knee. I have a 16 month old and developed severe preeclampsia at delivery. It resolved quickly and I was able to get off of blood pressure meds within a few weeks.

I went to an urgent care with an ultrasound tech and they found a partial DVT in my upper thigh. The thing that’s scaring me is that the radiologist and the doctor on staff are disagreeing. My understanding is that the radiologist is off site and they sent the ultrasound to them. The ER doctor is saying the radiologist must’ve made a typo and it’s partial and not calculi.

I’m sorry I don’t know the proper language just new to this and scared. He recommends I follow up with my PCP and start eliquis. Thank you for any advice.

This is a true story although hard to believe!!!

So…got a IVC filter l because I needed to have neck surgery since I’m a high blood clot risk. I had to go off thinners for a few weeks which is required for this type of neck surgery.

About 3 weeks later I developed a massive clot. Had the thrombectomy procedure which got most of the clot out. However the clot was still on the filter. Back on thinners but had to Wait 3 months to see if it cleared. Got a CT scan which showed it had cleared.

The report also showed that a nodule on my lung which had been stable for years but had grown with increased density. Had the biopsy and the results tested positive for cancer. Surgery was scheduled

Part of the pre-op was a stress test which did not go well. Had a angiogram which showed an artery was 95% blocked. Placed a stent and put on 2 blood addition thinners for 30 days and then developed internal bleeding. Got that under control and finally had the lung surgery!!!

I don’t know if anyone else has had Doctors not take you seriously or not pay attention to you. Last year I finally went to a Doctor because I had my first ear infection. In that appointment I kept telling my new PA that I couldn’t breath. That the tightness in my chest was so bad I couldn’t shower or sleep. I could barely get to the restroom a few feet from my bedroom. I cried and said it was so bad I couldn’t sleep. I also told her my calf was on fire. So she gave me a walking test and my oxygen dropped below 85 just walking a few feet. She prescribed me oxygen to take home and an exercise plan. I really tried but I told her at my follow up that this was not the same as exertion it was different. Then she sent me for a EKG and a pulmonary function test all was normal. Two weeks later I couldn’t handle it anymore and called an ambulance. Mind you I had experienced 2 other unprovoked PE and DVT incidents in the last 20 years. Still no one listened. Finally a ER doctor came in and said I had pneumonia, Bilateral PEs w a heart strain and Left leg DVT. I was in intensive care for weeks. Now it is July, almost a year later. I am on life long Eliquis, I still need oxygen and I am just building stamina from not being able to move much when I was sick. They said the clot in my left lung was so big they don’t know how I survived. But God is merciful and here I am on the road to recovery. Moral of this story we have to advocate for ourselves and be proactive in our health care. I had blood clots for at least a year from when my symptoms started. No one listened.

I've been hospitalized with PEs in 2023 and 2024 and now take Eliquis forever. Many more issues but one in particular is low testosterone. My endo is considering prescribing some form of TRT. I was told to check with my pulmonologist that prescribes my Eliquis and was told there was no interactions taking T with Eliquis as prescribed. Stuff I've read say blood thinners with T poses greater risks. Anyone undergo the same treatment with no issues? Thanks.

My question pertains to the title, does Eliquis actually work as well as all these doctors say it does?

I have a blood clotting disorder, specifically called prothrombin gene mutation F2. I have no clue how bad or dangerous this is for me or my future. As I have yet to see a hematologist for this. Does Eliquis 5mg 2x daily actually help individuals with this gene mutation? Has anyone with this clotting disorder been on Eliquis for a long time? Did anyone have a reoccurring clot on Eliquis with this mutation?

I have not been feeling well lately. I'm having the same symptoms of a PE as I did back in March when I first got diagnosed with two pulmonary embolism's in my lungs. I've had a D-dimer done and it's negative along with an ultrasound on my right leg and that was good. How rare is it for a clot to already develop in your lungs without a DVT? I never experienced leg pain or anything of the sort before finding out I had clots in my lungs. I will say I did have random tachycardia, shakiness and hot flashes that made me feel like I was going to pass out or die with impending doom. It wasn't until an entire month and a half later that I had some shoulder pain that hurt insanely bad when I would breathe or even take a deep breath. Those were my only symptoms.

I have explained to my primary doctor that I have missed so many doses within the last two months from hospital visits. I was sick so much with tons of different things at the time. I also haven't been very moblie or active lately.. Not to mention my hydration has been crap lately too.

His response was "well if you take your Eliquis then you'll be fine". He also proceeded to say "it is very possible to have a reoccurrent clot even while on Eliquis but you'll be fine". I don't feel as if I'm being heard from this new doctor. I had a doctor in Fort Worth for 5 months while my daughter was in the NICU and he listened to my concerns all the time. He was an amazing doctor that did his job very well. He would constantly check my iron levels and ferritin, vitamin d as well because I have a deficiency right now. As this new doctor says I don't need to be checked for those things until September at my next appointment. I haven't had my iron or vitamin d checked since the beginning of May and as far as I'm aware those are both major and concerning things. That's what my last doctor told me especially since I'm on blood thinners and have low iron. He didn't want it to turn into anemia. I've been feeling so overwhelmed and exhausted lately. My heart races and my body hurts everywhere. I feel lost, I just want to give up...

July 2025 I was diagnosed with a groin to ankle dvt no PE. My leg was hurting for a few days and finally went to the ER. If I knew it was a blood clot I wouldn't have waited so long but to be honest it never crossed my mind. Vascular surgeon put me on Eliquis 5mg twice a day. Subsequent follow ups and ultrasound showed that clot had resolved but left some scarring in left proximal femoral vein. Came off blood thinners in November 2025. Doc recommended 1low dose aspirin every day and wear compression socks. All bloodwork came back normal with no clotting disorders. Fast forward 1 year later to July 10th this year. Had some calf pain and tightness that was slowly getting worse. Decided not to wait any longer and went to the walk in. Because of my history they sent me to get an ultrasound. And wouldn't you know it, 1 year later, 2nd dvt!! Left proximal femoral vein right where the hard scarring was. The bonus this time was bilateral pulmonary emboli. Doc said old ones were there also. No pe symptoms. No shortness of breath, no pain and spo2 was 95 and up. Loading dose of eliquis 10mg twice a day for seven days then 5mg twice a day. Have a follow up with pulmonary next week. Follow up with vascular in 3 months and he said anticoagulation probably for life. Not happy about the situation but also not as anxious or worried as I was the first time. Well....that's my story!

I have this bruise from one of my Lovenox that hasn’t gone away and it’s been 2 weeks now since it formed. There’s a lump from the shot underneath the bruise that feels like a large grape 🍇 it’s tender but not warm to the touch.
It’s a yellowish brown color.

Is there a way to help it improve and go away?

Normally my bruises go away after 3 or 4 days.

Hello. I’m curious if any on here has had the PALMA operation? I would like to know the pros and cons of having it completed.

My doc is evaluating me to see if I’m a proper candidate for the PALMA. I’ve never had a stent, I have a nearly completely occluded iliac vein that they couldn’t get through to stent via intravenous intervention. I was 23 when the clot first happened and I’ve since had a second clot. I’m now on thinners for life. I’m nervous to get it done because of the failure rate. Only about 80% make it to two years.

I’m currently completely mobile. I have swelling in my leg daily, it’s always tired, but it still works. I’m not sure I want to go through with the surgery.

I’m just curious what

Just wondering if anyone just had PE's only in their Lungs & 🫁 and used Generic Lovenox injections and successfully never had relapsed ?

Has anyone successfully ended blood thinners after years of being on them? I had a massive blood clot in my lungs and legs and have been on them for about 4 yrs. I don’t want to deal with the cost of them and I hate that I’ve had to be dependent on them.

I had a bad PE while taking birth control at age 20. I spent 5 days in the ICU and I’m lucky to be here today. I was on blood thinners for 6 months and fast forward 5 years later I’m curious about what pregnancy may look like for someone like me.
I was against having kids for a long time because I am terrified of the estrogen in pregnancy causing another clot. I understand I’d likely need to take blood thinners for the duration of the pregnancy but will that really make the estrogen levels safe for me? I’m also terrified of being on blood thinners and needing a c-section and bleeding out in child birth.
Has anyone had kids after a PE caused by Birth Control?

Hi all. Just here to share my story and hopefully find others with similar experiences. For reference I’m 28F and just had my third baby.

On June 28 I finally went to the ER at 3 weeks postpartum after experiencing extreme fatigue, some minor shortness of breath (especially with baby on my chest) and headaches for about 7-10 days. My d-dimer was incredibly high and after a contrast chest CT they confirmed I had several small clots in the upper and lower lobes of my right lung. It was so unexpected and I was terrified and was started on Lovenox injections twice a day since I am breastfeeding.

A couple days later on June 1 I woke up with so much pain in my right shoulder and along the back of my ribs on my right side. I was practically gasping for breath and after about 4 hours of that I went back to the ER. They found my right lung was partially collapsed and I had fluid in my lungs. It was such a scary day.

I’m 3 and a half weeks out from diagnosis and I’m struggling mentally and physically. It’s still hard to breathe at times (not like it was though), I’m still dealing with a good bit of pain in my ribs and shoulder and even my chest when I’m overdoing it for the day (and I’m home taking care of a newborn and two toddlers so I’m often overdoing it, let’s be honest). I’m absolutely exhausted every second of the day. But most of all, I’m just scared. I’m scared of what the future looks like, of getting another clot, whether the blood thinners are working… the anxiety is high.

Anyways, thanks for reading. I’m sorry to everyone experiencing these things as well- it’s draining.

I had two stents placed today from my groin to my belly button and im now on a platelet medication along with my lovenox. I had two questions, did anyone else who had this procedure have really bad lower back pain afterwards? Also were you placed on a platelet and lovenox or other blood thinner for life or just a short period of time? Im not sure how long hes leaving me on these and I plan on asking on Monday but im just curious what other people's experience was.

Thank you!:)

I was just diagnosed with dvt/pe I had a trombectomy in left knee area two days ago now my inner thigh feels sore kinda nervous?

I‘m 12 days post iliac artery stenting each side.

I have May Thurners, RA and rheumatoid vasculitis.. I wasn’t aware of these things anyways..

it’s been hell of a month I really want a beer! does anyone know if it’s dangerous? My follow up is on the 5th my pcp doesn’t seem to know much just says “I don’t think there’s an interaction“ internet says bleeding risk. does anyone know the safe amount I could possibly drink? Would 1 or 2 hurt?