I can't speak to recovery from the benign tumor. You should check with your doc for what to expect on that.

As for the PE recovery, everyone is different. I think most of us suffer from a lot of anxiety and severe exhaustion for a while. Not everyone has pain (this depends on the clots and how much damage they did) but some have very severe pain and some (like myself) have almost none. Shortness of breath (SOB) also can come and go for a while. For me, my most severe symptom when I went to the ER was SOB, and it took a while to fully resolve. Also, you'll have good days and bad days. You might do well for a while, push yourself a little too hard, and wind up exhausted and SOB again for a few days. This is pretty normal.

PE recovery can take a really long time, very few people bounce back in a few days. I was probably mostly normal at about six months, and had my last "episode" of increased exhaustion and SOB at around 11 months. Some people heal faster than that, but others are slower. Again, depends on the clot and the person.

Going back to work is also personal preference. I went back four days out of the hospital, but I was on a reduced schedule (slowly increasing my hours) for about five months. Others went back full-time right away and others took even longer.

Definitely read around on the site. There's a lot of experience and questions answered here. I imagine that you're still reeling from everything that has happened to you recently, so definitely make a point to baby yourself for a while. Also, if you read about PEs on the internet, you will find tons of terrifying, scary facts about how deadly they are, mortality rates, etc. Keep in mind that clots are most dangerous before they are diagnosed. BUT, you've been diagnosed and you're taking anticoagulants and you're already on the road to recovery, even if it doesn't feel like it. Every hours that passes, the clot gets more stable and you're less and less likely to have any further issues. It's just the healing and recovery now.

And the healing does take a while, just because a PE can stress/damage some of the largest and most important systems in the body (circulatory, respiratory). Even if your clot disappeared in the next five minutes, the damage it leaves behind will take a while to heal.

Hang in there! Keep us posted on how you are doing.

TossNTurn had a lot of good advice. Hopefully the worst is behind you now and you can concentrate on healing. I am four months out from my massive bilateral PE. I was in the hospital for 3 days and then the doctor required that I stay home for two weeks (I also had a broken leg, which precipitated my blood clot issues). I did go back full time after those two weeks, but it was a good while (close to 6 weeks) before I could do anything but go to work and come home and sleep. At around 3 months I started exercising again, using a heart rate monitor. I found that I was way out of cardio conditioning (as TNT said, there are definitely residual side affects even after the acute condition is treated). I am having to do less intense exercise, but I can do it. I do sometimes have spells of SOB still, but they are more infrequent than when I first got out of the hospital (I tell my family and friends all the time that the first few weeks out of the hospital that I had symptoms that on a "normal" day I would have gone to the ER for...chest pain, SOB, shooting pains in lungs...but they did all subside for me eventually. I can still get to the point of exhaustion after a really long day, but at least I can participate in the long days again. Here is to health and happiness for you in the coming year.

TNT: I did 5 hours of bridesmaid dress shop/luncheon and it wiped me out for 3 days! LOL. I guess I need to start out a bit more slowly.


Wilssteph.........THREE months before exercise? I worked SO hard to keep myself in shape. BLAST IT! I should probably return to work on a reduced schedule - at least my bucket will be OFF THE SOFA....

Yes, I will have some cheese with my WHINE!
Very frustrating.

Thanks for your support.

I was in the gym about 3 weeks after my PE. I was in th hospital 7 days, my PEs were classified as massive, in both lungs. So it's different for everyone and if you have an injury, on top of the PE, that's going to hinder when you start exercising. My advice, if your doc is ok with it, is to start very, very slow, just walking, swimming or a stationary bike soon after you get home from the hospital.

Yes, I can't imagine you will have to wait long to exercise again. I still had a broken leg when I got out of the hospital, so it was another 6 weeks before I could even start PT. Good luck!