• Ask your doctor if having thrombophilia would change his or her recommendations about the amount of time that you will take anticoagulant medications.  If the test will not change treatment, the test is not needed.
• Talk with your doctor and insurance agents about the impact the findings may have on your ability to obtain life insurance.
• Consider your age.  Many recommendations state that individuals under the age of 50 that had a DVT or PE without a significantly large risk factor (abdominal surgery, bed ridden, cancer, or other major risks) have tests run to see what may have caused the clot.
• Consider your risks.  Can you and your doctor identify any MAJOR risks?  A major risk may be able to be eliminated so that the clot doesn't repeat.  If you only had a minor risk (weight and birth control are examples) there is a good chance that something else contributed to your clot.
• Ask your medical team what they feel are typical, minor, and major risks for blood clots and figure out where you fit into that list.
• Consider what risks will be in your future.  Are you thinking about birth control, infertility treatments, cancer, hormone replacement, frequent long haul airplane trips, or any other big risks?  You may want to know if you have a clotting condition that will put you at further risk.
• Is there a family history of clotting or miscarriage?  If there is, let your doctors know!
  

"We know what is wrong. You have blood clots in your lungs." These are words that survivors come to be grateful for and to hate. As a survivor we are often thankful that we finally have a diagnosis and a treatment for symptoms that for many of us have been happening for an extended period of time. Others are thankful to simply be alive. They were the ones that collapsed and were returned to life by acts of God, fate, and medical miracles. The doctors patch us up, test us, clear us, and send us home on anticoagulation and filled with questions.

As patients we start off with many unanswered questions. Why did this happen? How long is recovery? What are these nagging symptoms? We are frustrated when we don't have answers to these questions but these questions aren't the real challenge.   These questions will be slowly answered by hiring new doctors, asking questions over and over again, and reading materials from patient support and advocacy groups. The real questions, the ones that are truly a challenge are the ones that nobody can answer. "What do I do now that I survived?" "Why did I survive?" "How do I find faith in my ability to survive?"

If these ruminations sound familiar you are a survivor. Know that your brain is an organ. If your brain survived your PE without any symptoms I would be in shock. Your lungs, heart, body, and brain are all affected when you have clots in your lungs. Common complications include panic disorders, depression, and anxiety. Feeling lost and/or afraid is normal and in many ways these feelings are a healthy part of your recovery.

So, what to do about them? First, let your doctors know that your brain is in need of healing. You may benefit from starting some medication to ease your symptoms. Councilling may also help you to deal with surviving. I used both of these techniques to help myself heal.

Here are some additional methods to assist your mind, body, and soul adapt to being a survivor:

• Track your growth so you can see progress. A fitbit can do the work for you these days.
• Ask your doctors if massage or Yoga would be safe and then try them out if your medical team okays these activities.
• Try meditation. Search for "The Mediation Podcast" or "The Meditation Oasis" as both have free recorded meditations.
• Try an app called "Breathing" to practice deept breathing that will be calming.
• Realize your strength. You survived! You are not weak. Your body wend through the ringer and was OK. You can and will get through recovery.
• Try a support group. Www.dailystrength.org has a great one.

• Warfarin (Coumadin)
• Lovenox
• Heparin
• Xarelto

• The Mayo Clinic
• Medline Plus

• Coughing up blood or blood stains in the sputum
• Sharp chest pains
• Sometimes a fever will be present

1. Tell your doctor that you need financial help.  Doctors often have samples.  With all of the new anticoagulants on the market, you may be lucky.
2. Ask your doctor about manufacturer low income programs.  Most manufacturers have some type of financial aid available for those without insurance.
3. Ask about generics.  Generic warfarin is VERY inexpensive.
4. Try good old fashioned warfarin rather than newer medications.
5. While buying from other countries is illegal, the U.S. typically overlooks individuals who purchase abroad.  Make sure that your pharmacy has some accreditation and that they have a real pharmacist that requires a prescription from your doctor.
6. If you are in the hospital, a social worker may be able to help get that Lovenox prescription filled. When I was being discharged, a social worker came and got my insurance info to confer with my insurance about how I was to get Lovenox.  I didn't have to do a thing.
7. Write an appeal to the insurance company.
8. This is my favorite!  Use one of the new, Internet price comparison sites.  I use www.goodrx.com for migraine medication when I have hit my insurance company's maximum for the month.  I have seen the price go from over $200.00 to around $35.00!  They show the prices in your area and provide discount coupons if needed to get the price.