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.
I was diagnosed with a PE in Oct 11, since then i have had some ups and downs but seem to be on the mend. My biggest issue is the lack of energy when i try to do anything. If i feel good and go out the house for an hour or so, maybe a trip to the shops, one or two, maybe three maximum then i start to feel uncomfy (lungs) and short of breath and have a complete lack of energy. If i do this for 2 or 3 days in a row then i really suffer - for approx 7-10 days with extreme lack of energy and feel rubbish. I just wonder if anyone else experiences the same, i am currently trying to pace myself and not do too much - im not very good at deciding what too much is! What exercise would any of you recommend to rebuild my strength. Ive been off work now for nearly 4 months - i am fine if i stay at home and just potter around with plenty of rest in between, i just wonder how long it takes to get back to normal as no dr seems to be able to answer that question. A drop in INR to below 2 seems to make me feel sluggish and when i am above 2 i seem to have a lot more energy - has anyone else noticed this? Also i have very littlea rubbish apetite when my INR is low but once its in the 2-3 range then i want to eat everything - which probably knocks it back down again!
It really is a learning curve to figure out how much you can do and for how long. I remember there was a point where I was excited to walk out to the mailbox and back without feeling SOB. You do what you can and I know lots of people start with just a short walk every day and work up from there.
It does get better! Hang in there!
I think walking or maybe jogging would be good to build up your strength.
I find I feel ok, I do too much, I feel crappy. vicious cycle. I just wish there was a warning sign when I START doing too much so I'd know to lay off. I do think though that I need to do more, to improve my lung capacity. So, having said that, I'll continue as I have been. Also off work since October (PE and DVT diagnosed November). and I will keep telling myself, I WILL get BETTER!!