Pulmonary Embolisms

[Petra888]

So January 2022 I started my couch 2 5K. For various reasons I got to week 7 but then that was it as this Jan I was diagnosed with multiple blood clots on my lungs. I so miss running and was wondering if anybody else had been through the same thing?

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Oh goodness...how worrying...

I am assuming that your medical consultants have given you the clearance to begin exercise again now that the clots have cleared? ?

Obviously we here in Admin cannot give you any medical advice, as you know, but I do know that this issue can be a problem in very healthy runners !

Not sure that I have come across this with any of our running friends, before on the forums...but will be interested in any replies.

[Petra888 in reply to Oldfloss]

The clots wont be completely gone yet but awaiting results from the scan an ESG. If ok ill build up gradually ie 10 feet at a time! Many thanks for your reply - i love this site😊

[Comte Graduate]

Sorry to hear about this. Get well soon.👍👍👍👍

[Instructor57 Graduate]

So sorry to hear this !This is certainly the first time I have come across this particular situation.

However, I have certainly seen many different medical situations here on the forums.

And although as Oldfloss has mentioned we are not in any position to give medical advice here what we would always advise if to have the 'Running' discussion with your professional health care advisor .

Who knows ! Is this something that can be eliminated or at least controlled?

I'm personally in a position at the moment where I can't run .

But my healthcare team are all aware that I would like to when I can .

All we can do is to take their advice .

Good luck 🤞

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate in reply to Instructor57]

...that's right! 😀 You'll be back🙃.🏃‍♂️ x

[Instructor57 Graduate in reply to Oldfloss]

I will my friend xx

[Petra888 in reply to Instructor57]

Thanks to everyone's replies

[dazwatson]

I started C25K a couple of years after my PE but the advice I would give (and received) was to take your time. You’ll be surprised how much the PE takes out of you, and how psychologically it affects you (as you can’t see the injury). I was told, even with blood thinners the lung clots take 8 weeks+ to dissolve and the cause (mine was DVT) and lung damage longer. You’ll also need to factor in that you haven’t run for a while which also has its effects. I would consult your doctor to get the all clear and perhaps test your fitness by starting start the C25K plan again to build yourself up (you can always skip weeks if you’re feeling good). But most of all make the most of enjoying running and enjoy what you can do, you’ll get there. It’s been 5 years since my PE and 3 since starting C25K, but I ran 1300km last year. Good luck and keep going!

[Petra888 in reply to dazwatson]

Wow thats a brilliant achievement! Yes it does get me down as I've always been very active. It's certainly a lesson in patience. And I'm trying to lose excess weight to put less pressure on my body. My goal today is to do some stretching. Thank you for your reply it really helped.

[markbrom]

So annoying - I haven’t had that condition but did develop a muscular skeletal issue which the clever admins on here did gently insist I got professional advice on. Unfortunately despite best efforts the final advice was not to run and I was disappointed but glad I’d done it for a year. Sometimes we have to give in but if your medical adviser says you can do a bit a day then good luck and enjoy 😊

[GoogleMe Graduate]

It might be worth looking to see what people in the Long Covid community have to share on this.

[Petra888 in reply to GoogleMe]

Actually thats a great idea and i'll check it out

[JessPix Graduate]

hi I’m sorry to hear what you’ve been through. I just wanted to share my own experience with you as when it happened to me it felt like a frightening and lonely thing to have to deal with, as we are the lucky ones who have survived it! Before I started my running journey I had multiple PE in both lungs. Cause was never found and I spent about 3 weeks in hospital as I was very ill as a result. I don’t know about your treatment, but I was fitted with a filter through my IVC vein and am on blood thinners for life. It started my journey to getting fit and healthy and I luckily found this forum. But it was a long time before I felt well enough to run so I started with walking and even then I would still get dizziness and breathlessness. You will feel so tempted to want to get stuck in and get fit but allow your body some time to recover. Definitely walk and exercise but listen to your body. You should be being checked up on by your GP so tell them you are going to do C25K. It takes a couple of months for all the clots to dissolve and you might have some nerve pain/lung pain for a while. I still do when it’s cold! But the good news is, you will definitely sooner rather than later achieve your C25K goal. It would be a good idea to start again at the beginning as your body will feel initially weaker than it did but start by just getting in a daily walk if you can. I promise you though I am fitter and stronger now than I was before my PE and have much more respect for my body! I wish you well in your recovery and hope this doesn’t come across as lecturing. Just keen to offer support as I remember how overwhelming it felt when it happened to me. Good luck, you will definitely get there and keep running too, but be gentle for now with your recovery.

[Petra888 in reply to JessPix]

Hello - your email is a massie help! I've always been active and it's been a complete shock as apart from Covid (third time last September and it was awful) which I think is when my breathlessness started but I put it down to age. But it wasnt until 5 weeks ago that it was diagnosed. Stairs are a nitemare and I can manage about 45 mins up and around before having to come back to bed. I permanently feel as if someone is sitting on my chest. Most of the time I'm ok and grateful but yesterday was a bad day. I really appreciate you taking the time to email and I will DEFO start back at the beginning when I can run again. X

[JessPix Graduate in reply to Petra888]

You are so welcome. I am so sorry for what you have been through. I want to stress to you that you will become fit and well again but not to underestimate right now the ordeal your body has been through and to take your time to just heal from it. It’s a slow process and initially I couldn’t believe how much even getting out of the bath exhausted me!! The feeling of someone sitting on your chest is very real and awful, I had that too. One day when you are running 5k you will be in complete awe of your amazing body and how it has recovered. But you need to get strong and well again first. Rest and recover for now and know that when you are fully back to normal, you will be able to achieve your goal. All the best and here if you ever want a chat.

[Petra888 in reply to JessPix]

Thank you so much

[Over60sRunner Graduate]

Petra888 Are you in the UK? If so, there is a fantastic charity called Thrombosis UK (I work for them as their Patient Information and Support Lead) dedicated to raising awareness and educating on all things venous thrombosis.

The website is thrombosisuk.org and there is a fabulous closed peer support group on Facebook that has many runners as members. I you search Thrombosis UK, click on the closed group, and ask to be moderated into the closed group I or my colleague Clare can moderate you in.

Even if you are based in another part of the world, we can still provide information and suuport, it's just that treatments are different in other parts of the world so you might find some differences there.

HTH, Annya

[Petra888 in reply to Over60sRunner]

Hello! Yes I'm based in the UK so I will definitely ask to join this morning as I feel a bit all at sea with it and alone and not really seeing any progress😔. Thank you so much!

[JessPix Graduate in reply to Over60sRunner]

very helpful to know about. Just looked at your website as knew nothing about it and really good to see somewhere addressing the psychological aspect which I found very difficult.

[Over60sRunner Graduate in reply to JessPix]

Thank you Jess. We are the only UK charity to deal solely with VTE (venous thromboembolism) and I am proud to have been part of the charity for nearly 16 years now.

I helped to develop the psychological side of the service as there's nothing out there for patient support in 95% of Clinics and the waiting list for counselling via the GP in most areas is up to 2 years!

I do the patient counselling side for people who are struggling with their diagnosis or impact and also bereavement support. My colleague does the in-depth psychology side for the patients with deeper challenges as I'm not a trained psychologist. I'm a counsellor, hypnotherapist, and mindfulness teacher - but we make a powerful team 😀💪😀

Thank you for your kind words 🙏

[Petra888 in reply to Over60sRunner]

I have a crumbling mental health and very affected by what seems an impossibility ie to regain the fitness I once had (or up to week 7 anyway!)I'm down alot of the time and at times a hopeless depression.

[JessPix Graduate in reply to Over60sRunner]

Absolutely amazing work that you do! 🙌

Thank you as even just reading some of the other people’s experiences in there today and knowing that I’m not alone has helped x

[Over60sRunner Graduate in reply to JessPix]

I'm so glad you find the support useful 🙏It's a horrible disease that many people just don't "get" at all, and the impact for some can be devastating 😥

[Over60sRunner Graduate]

Have you joined the private Facebook group yet?

[Petra888]

I'm on it now....on the discussion?

[Over60sRunner Graduate in reply to Petra888]

Fab! I hope you find it useful. If you'd like to have some one-to-one contact with me, you will find contact details on the group. I'm not sure rules allow me to post my email details here?

[Petra888 in reply to Over60sRunner]

Are u over60s runner on FB group?

[Over60sRunner Graduate in reply to Petra888]

No. I'm Annya Stephens-Boal. I'm one of the admins.

[JessPix Graduate in reply to Petra888]

hope you find it helpful. Sending love and encouragement