My Journey with God

Blood

A while back I wrote a chapter on my Aspergers and how it helped me become a stronger and more confident person. Well recently I discovered I had a life changing health issue. In August of 2021 I was experiencing some lower back pain that made it difficult for me to move or do anything. Two days go by and the pain hasn't gone away so I tried stretching. That was a mistake. I twisted my back thinking it might help when suddenly all the pain in my back shot through my entire left leg. I thought it was a muscle cramp and thought nothing of it but throughout the day it got worse. I was finding it harder and harder to move. My mom and dad tried helping me stretch it out but nothing worked. My mom eventually told me to go home and take an ice bath and try to relax. So I did, unfortunately my apartment was on the second floor so walking upstairs was extremely painful. When I finally made it to my place I immediately started my ice bath. While I was trying to relax I noticed my left leg was really swollen, I thought it was the ice and once again thought nothing of it. The day went on and walking around was so painful I was practically screaming bloody murder. I decided to waited on my bed until my friend came over. When he arrived at 1 am I told him everything. He too tried helping me stretch and relax my leg but I did nothing but scream in pain. At this point I knew something was wrong and we call 9-1-1. At 2 am I was laying in a bed in the hospital trying remain as calm as possible. I told the nurses what was going and they put me on some pain killers, took some blood and had me do an ultrasound. After waiting for a while, the nurses came back with bone chilling news. I had 3 major blood clots in my left leg. I was trying to stay calm in front of my friend but inside I was screaming in fear. " How could this happen? What caused it? What do I do?" I was terrified. The nurses needed me to stay the night so I could talk to one of the doctors the next day. They made me comfortable and were very nice to me but the whole time I felt nothing but fear and confusion. The next day I called my family and told them what happened and they rushed over as fast as they could. When the doctor came in he told us to go see a vascular physician to find out what was going on. After I discharged my mom and I made a appointment immediately. When we got there the doctor, he  instantly knew what it was .... May Thurner Syndrome. May Thurner is caused when the left iliac vein is compressed by the right iliac artery. Fortunately it was treatable with surgery which we scheduled within the next 2 days. As happy as I was to be rid of the pain and swelling I was terrified for the surgery. I've never had surgery in my life and I didn't know what to expect. The surgery of course went well and I was back at my parents house 2 days later. I' m not gonna lie, the road to recovering was absolutely brutal and emotional. Every time I looked in the mirror, I felt disgusted by myself. I didn't take care of myself and it showed. I was so disappointed in myself. I felt like a freak. But I knew I wasn't. I had friends and family reminded me that this was just a tiny bump in the road. They encouraged me to press on and live my life healthier and happier. I then realized that I couldn't let this one thing bring me down and keep me from doing what I love. I remembered how much I enjoyed cooking and baking. Whenever I visited my grandmother we always made chocolate chip cookies. When I was very young I wanted to own a restaurant and I asked my parents if I could cook for them and create my own restaurant for a day. I made everything by myself; spaghetti, garlic bread, salad, I even decorated the dinning room and had my own ribbon cutting ceremony. Throughout the years I continued to cook for my family and I didn't realize how much I loved cooking until now. After thinking about it for a while I decided I wasn't going to let a blood clot stop me from doing the things I love. I love swimming, hiking, cooking, singing, etc. and I wasn't going to let this tiny thing stop me. I have recently enrolled into Auguste Escoffier Culinary School and I'm loving it. I've learned so much about food, knife skills, how to run a business and I'm just getting started. As for my leg, I just graduated physical therapy and I'm working out and getting healthier. This experience was scary and life changing but it was an awakening. It made me appreciate life more and live it to the fullest. I'm proud of how far I've come and I'm just getting started and I have God to lead the way.