Pulmonary Embolism Support Group

By far the most common form of pulmonary embolism is a thromboembolism, which occurs when a blood clot, generally a venous thrombus, becomes dislodged from its site of formation and embolizes to the arterial blood supply of one of the lungs. Symptoms may include difficulty breathing, pain during breathing, and more rarely circulatory instability and death.

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COVID resulting in PE

Modelcitizen63
Modelcitizen63

Hello everyone,


    I'm a 58 year old man that was recently admitted into the hospital 2 weeks ago with Covid 19 with pneumonia and was put on high flow oxygen to get my oxygen levels into the low 90's. Day 2 they lowered my oxygen flow and I did fine until I started feeling like I was trying to breathe through a wet towel and my oxygen levels sunk into the upper 70's which prompted the staff to get me back on high flow oxygen. After investigating the doctor told me that I developed a pulmonary embolism in both lungs brought on by Covid and would need 3-6 months minimum recovery.  I was immediately put on blood thinner injections to the stomach and was finally started on Eliquis tablets 3 days prior to being discharged on oxygen after 11 days in the hospital. I didn't really get too much info from the doctor on what the recovery was going to consist of besides I'm not going to be able to get back to normal activities for a while because of the damage done to my lungs by Covid, pneumonia and the Pulmonary embolism. I'm going to need to rest and not push myself. I was like OK, when do I go back to work and will I need to go out on short term disability? He told me that I will Need to see my primary doctor this Tuesday 10/19 for the transition of care from the hospital and we will have to come up with a plan for my recovery. I did find after 3 days of being home that I'm having a hard time believing how much energy I don't have. After a few minutes moving around the house, I'm getting winded, light headed and feeling a little tightening in my chest. My body is definitely telling me to take it easy. I tried not using the oxygen to see where I was because the respiratory specialist at the hospital told me that I shouldn't need it for too long and while resting I pretty much stay in the 90's but it only takes about 3 minutes off oxygen walking around the house to get in the mid 80's. With that I'm gonna stay on until I see the doctor this week. I just thank God that my wife is able to be here with me everyday even though she doesn't want to let me try to do too much for myself. 
     Has anyone else got a PE due to Covid?

rmb
rmb
Hi I have not had a PE due to COVID but glad you are ok. Even without having had COVID, being in the hospital that long can really deplete your energy and the recovery from PEs can take time. You have been through a lot. Hang in there. Take it easy.
Modelcitizen63
Modelcitizen63
Thank you rmb
notsopatient
notsopatient
Hi my PEs were non-COVID as well. The recovery can be quite lengthy and frustrating but focus on doing a little bit at a time and not overdoing it to the point of being too tired the next day. I was advised to write down what I could do so that I could see that I had made progress, it was only people who didn't see me every day who noticed it. Look up a video for pursed lip breathing, it's very helpful with keeping your oxygen levels up. Try some chair exercises 3-4 times a week and slowly build up your endurance. Try 1 minute at a time off the oxygen, several times a day. Your breathing muscles will need to get back into shape too. I went to a physiotherapist to get some post+hospital rehabilitation exercises and it helped enormously - the main thing is to start small and slowly build up your muscles, energy and endurance. It's very hard to predict how long your own recovery will be. Some people are back at their desk job in a week, some people need months before returning to a very physical job. It will probably take longer than you'd like but keep at it and focus on small improvements.
Modelcitizen63
Modelcitizen63
Thank you so much notsopatient, very good info to get me started. I go see my primary doctor today and hopefully will get a little better idea on what’s going on with me. I left the hospital 5 days ago and haven’t seen a doctor since.
hapmeal
hapmeal
Yes, I was diagnosed with PE due to Covid on 2/15/22. No DVT, clear blood work, good EKG, heart not impacted. I’m about 2 weeks into recovery. The only info I got from my doctor was to take the blood thinner for 3 months and rest. I am 52 years old, female, non-smoker. I had flown home from the Dominican Republic 22 days before pain hit. Tested positive for Covid 3 days after my flight.
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