Exercise 6 months after blood clot in lung

hezzy85
hezzy85 Posts: 4 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with training 6 months after a PE. I keep getting worried I'm gonna do too much. I was on blood thinners for 7 months but been told that's me done and now want to get fit and healthy.

Replies

  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    Has your doctor recommended any limitations for exercise?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    That's a question for your doctor, no?
  • CafeRacer808
    CafeRacer808 Posts: 2,396 Member
    Only your doctor can answer this.
  • doodlebeh
    doodlebeh Posts: 4 Member
    My husband has had blood clots in the past. His fitness regimen only consists of walking, so I don't have any advice for you there, but the specialists emphasized that exercise was very important for anyone who's experienced them. Did the doctors determine why you had a PE? If not, I would recommend regular visits to a hematologist until that's determined (and also to get an exercise program from them). My husband's doctor took him off blood thinners because the DVT clot was "gone", but then he had life threatening PE a few months later. Turns out he has a genetic condition and is now on Xarelto for life.

    Sorry you had to experience that - I've seen how scary a pulmonary embolism can be. Wishing you well in 2017!
  • hezzy85
    hezzy85 Posts: 4 Member
    Doctor said I'm fit for exercise but I get chest pains only little ones when I do workout. Others have said it could be the scarring. I was just wondering if anyone had ever been through it and how they coped from their own experience
  • Gisel2015
    Gisel2015 Posts: 4,164 Member
    If you have chest pain after exercising is probably because your lungs are still weak; you may need the help of a respiratory tech in order to develop good breathing habits and increase lung capacity. Your doctor or hematologist may be able to give you more recommendations; they should. Please talk to them because all depends on the size of the clot/clots in your lung and how much damaged you had. Did your doctor ordered a chest Xray and a scan of your lungs with contrast before stopping the blood thinners, and was the PE a "provoked" event or do you have a predisposition for PEs.?

    I am recovering from a large DVT in my left leg and a small clot (PE) in the base of my right lung post knee replacement surgery. I am also in blood thinners for six months. So far, I am only allowed to walk (hard to do while recovering from knee replacement) and do PT exercises. But I sent today an e-mail to my doctor asking for authorization to go back to the gym to start light upper body workout since I am losing upper body strength and I am bored to death. However, I noticed that I get very tired (not SOB) after doing my PT exercises and walking or standing for awhile; it seems that the PE and DVT knocked my energy and stamina so I need to regain them a little bit at the time.

    Please talk to your doctor and what ever you decide or are allowed to do, star slowly. Good luck!
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    I can't advise but want to wish you well -a close friend is recovering from PE and it's a scary experience. She's still on blood thinning meds and has been referred to a haematologist. Best of luck
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    What does your doctor say about the chest pain?
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,444 Member
    edited January 2017
    In 2009, I ended up in hospital for 2 weeks with DVT in my left leg ... it was so full of clots, it had swelled to about twice its size. Fortunately I did not develop PE, but a leg full of clots sure takes its toll on breathing. I was on Warfarin for a year ... it took that long for the last of the clots to disappear.

    But my Dr insisted that I get exercising immediately after diagnosis. Even though I was in the hospital, I was allowed out (well, almost shoved out the door) to walk around the block every day. In the beginning, my 95 year old grandmother could have run circles around me!! In fact, I had to stop and rest between my room and the front door of the hospital about 100 metres away (small country hospital). But I built up gradually and about a month after I was released, I was walking 2 or 3 km quite regularly, and had started to cycle again. About 2.5 months later, I was working at a job where I had to stand and walk for 6-8 hours a day.

    However, all that said ... talk to your doctor!
  • jarambar
    jarambar Posts: 10 Member
    I've had two separate DVT-PE episodes (genetics). Had no problem recovering from them under my doctor's supervision. Suggest that you visit with an internist if you have any reservations about the advice from your general practitioner.
  • yayabeaks
    yayabeaks Posts: 107 Member
    How are you now? I had a pe two and a half years ago and had pain and breathlessness for a long time after, and even now if I have a cold. Listen to your body but I found as I got fitter my lung capacity massively improved.

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