Birth Control & Blood Clots (Cross-Posted)

[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

On Saturday, I developed pain in my calf. I thought it was a strained muscle.

It continued throughout the weekend, so on Tuesday I went to the doctor, who in turn sent me to the emergency room.

I developed a DVT (deep vein thrombosis) which is a blood clot deep in a vein in my calf. It was caused by my birth control, Ortho Tri-Cyclen. I'm forbidden to ever take birth control pills ever again.

I knew one of the side effects was blood clots, but I figured "What are the odds it will happen to me?"

Apparently, the odds were not in my favor.

I was ordered bed rest in the hospital and was put on an IV of a blood thinner and taking another blood thinner orally. They had to make sure that the clot did not dislodge and go to my brain or lungs, which could kill me.

When my blood was finally to the proper level of thinness, they released me. That was today, at 5:00 pm.

For the record, I'm a healthy, 20 year old non smoker. Take heed to the warnings and possible side effects. I still don't believe this happened to me.

Comments

[creepypanda.livejournal.com]

I'm very glad you're all right!

[retrodee.livejournal.com]

What blood thinner are/were you on?

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

I was put on an IV of Heparin, and now I'm on the pill Cumatin (sp?)

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[retrodee.livejournal.com]

Coumadin, sorry to say, killed my father. He was not watched on that medication. Just make sure you are watched regularly. That can cause severe damage.

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry to hear that... the doctor mentioned that if I start getting random bleeding or I bruise too much that I should go to see him. I have to take a blood test every week, so I guess that would mean he is monitoring my levels. Not to pry, but what about the medication made it dangerous to your father?

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[retrodee.livejournal.com]

He was not checked regularly....His Comadin level went to 9....This was a VA he was in. His blood was thinner than water and he had a subdoral hematoma, which was caused by the med.

You are not prying, hun. I am glad to give you this info. Helps you learn. :)

When he had Heparin, he became allergic to it and got Heparin induced Thrombocytopenia. That is blood thinning and no clotting.

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

Wow... I will definitely be very very observant of what my levels are. I know my blood needs to be thin for a while so it doesn't clot, but not it's hard because I worry about the problem and I have to worry about the cure as well...

All I was told thus far is to be careful of excess bleedine, bruising, and blood in my urine & poop. Yesterday, when they took out my IV and put the big gauze pad n taped it on, they had put pressure on it for a while because they knew I'd bleed, and then they let go and I was looking at the TV or something, and not more than 10 seconds later, I looked at my wrist and I had COMPLETELY soaked through the thick gauze pad.

I'm paranoid about everythhing that could possibly be wrong with me... so now I'm not shaving so that I wont cut myself and bleed to death in the shower.

What is a "subdoral hematoma" and is that one of the side effects, or is it more common in older people?

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[retrodee.livejournal.com]

Subdoral Hematoma is a big clot in the right side of the brain. It can be drained if it does not grow. His grew so much, it got to pressing up against his brain stem.

I was wondering if you were ever checked for ITP or Anemia. ITP has to do with platelets. Go to www.itppeople.com to readu up on ITP.

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

I don't know if they checked me for those. All I know is that they said they would do tests to see if I had a tendency to clot, and they didn't report any negative test results.

Since I'm a medically paranoid person, any little thing is going to get reported to my doctor. I'm sore in my left elbow, but I think it is just from keeping it in one way all week (due to the IV).

Thank you for all that information, I definitely will check that out about ITP and then ask my doctor about it...

and I'm really sorry about your father... mine passed away too a few years ago :(

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[retrodee.livejournal.com]

Add me to your friends list and I'll add you to mine. I can help you a lot, hun. That is if you want.


Also, thank you, my father may be gone but, he is here in spirit. :D

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

I added you to my friends list :)

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[retrodee.livejournal.com]

Rock on!! :D

[seren.livejournal.com]

That's so scary :( They do make the risk sound really low.. and I guess it still is, but it's very scary :(
A week or so ago I kept waking up with my legs really aching. I started worrying about a blood clot but it's since gone away so maybe it was from lying in one position for so long. What sort of pain was it..? Was it constant or did some things make it better/worse?

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

Well at first it was like the sore pain you have after you get a really bad leg cramp. It was hard to extend my calf muscle at all. It progressed and got more painful and made it harder to walk and I had the kind of pain that you get after you run for a long time and get all tired and winded that makes your muscle ache... I'm guessing that was due to a lack of blood/oxygen flow to my muscle.

My gyno mentioned the side effects, but never told me anything I should look out for. They will prescribe the pill to ANYONE. I think there should be more testing done on the individual, like blood work, to see if they might have a tendency towards these sort of abnormalities.

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[seren.livejournal.com]

I think they are more careful if the person has high blood pressure, smokes or is older.. but they'd still take the risk :(

[kittyfaerie.livejournal.com]

i'm glad they caught it early and that you're ok! BCP almost kiled me last year. i was having trouble breathing and my doctor sent me to the hospital by ambulance where it was discovered (after an MRI) that my lungs were FULL of blood clots. My heart was enlarged (because it was working so hard to compensate for my lungs)and I was kept in bed (not even allowed up to go to the bathroom) hooked up to the heparin iv, heart monitor, oxygen meter (on my finger), catheter, and oxygen mask for a week. when i was released i had all the appointments to test my blood levels (coumadin) plus appointments with pulmonary specialists and a cardiologist. the coumadin made me so SICK (it's actually rat poison you know - but there aren't any alternatives), my stomach bled... because my lungs weren't working properly i was tired all the time and could only stay awake for a few hours at a time. anyway, what i'm saying is I SYMPATHIZE!!! not one of my friends who came to see me in ICU is stil on birth control pills (YAY!!!). And my MD doesn't prescribe them anymore!! She thinks the incidence of blood clots is vastly underreported and according to the doctors and nurses at the hospital, it is. they say they see 1 young girl a week with the same problem!!

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[one-more-grrl.livejournal.com]

I feel the same way. Now, I believe that the statistics of blood clot incidents in young women is dramatically underreported and the doctors do not do enough to educate you about statistics and the side effects. One of my nurses had the same problem when she was my age.

I'm worried a lot about being on cumadin now because I'm not hearing much good about it. I have to get my blood test tomorrow. I hope that I don't get the stomach bleeding problem ... since cumadin is a blood thinner, I imagine that could lead to my tummy filling with blood..?!

[kittyfaerie.livejournal.com]

don't worry about the coumadin! it's the best option and with all the blood tests they KNOW if you're taking too much. also, the stomach pain i had was a sign that i was taking too much, so they lowered the dose and added an ulcer medicine to stop the bleeding. so you wouldn't just suddenly bleed to death, it's all strictly monitored. i did have several rough periods (makes you bleed more) and one time when i had alcohol the resulting stomach pain was UNBEARABLE (just a warning). also, if you're prone to nosebleeds in the winter (from the dry air) you should get a humidifier to help prevent them, because STOPPING the bleeding is tough. GOOD LUCK!!! Hang in there! I was on the meds for a whole year and it worked out fine!