'Listen to your gut': Woman, 29, turned away by two doctors now 'bed bound' in hospital
A woman has credited her instinctual feeling that something wasn’t right in her body for persevering in getting answers to her bizarre medical symptoms.
Katherine Farley, 29, from Perth, presented with suspected clots on her foot to two different doctors, but had her unusual symptoms dismissed on both occasions.
Not willing to give up without an answer, she sought advice from her regular GP, who proved that her gut feeling was correct and that she was right to persevere.
She was sent straight to the emergency department where scans revealed she had four clots on her legs and a pulmonary embolism on both lungs.
“I’m pretty much bed bound because my heart is straining due to the embolisms. I have no idea how long I have to be admitted to hospital for or how long I have to be on medication,” she wrote in a post to Facebook.
“I’m so lucky that someone took what I was going through seriously, considering the high mortality rates of pulmonary embolism. It’s pretty scary to think where I’d be a week from now had I not listened to my gut and been my own advocate.”
Speaking with Yahoo News Australia, the mother-of-one, who studies and works in retail, said she was “pretty annoyed” doctors hadn’t picked up on the severity of her condition sooner.
“Had they also done a full blood check it would’ve come up. It’s just reckless for doctors to dismiss someone quickly without making sure or putting a patient’s unease at rest.
“Had I not asked the sonographer to take a look at the large inflammation on my foot, nothing would’ve happened, and I would’ve gone to work and continued normal activities not knowing how serious my condition actually is.”
Ms Farley’s message to others who suspect something might not be right with their health is to “listen to your body and your gut”.
“If you feel something isn’t right, don’t take no for an answer. It honestly can be the difference between life and death.”
She said it was her difficulty breathing paired with her suspicions there was something else connected with her superficial clots that caused her concerns.
“When I had the first clots I found some information on them online and thought ‘that can’t be me, the doctors pretty much brushed it off’,” she said.
Something still didn’t feel right though, with her breathing having become strained and like her heart was beating out of her chest.
“I could’ve put it down to getting sick during winter, but I knew in my gut that is was more than that – I couldn’t do my groceries without feeling like I had just finished a 5km run.”
Road to recovery
Ms Farley is currently bound to her bed at Armadale Hospital for an indefinite period of time.
“They don’t know what’s caused it, but they’re thinking that I’m one of the unfortunate few women who’ve had a negative reaction to the contraceptive pill.”
Depending on results of blood tests, she could be on medication anywhere from the next three months to the rest of her life.
“I’ve already been warned about playing contact sports, rigorous exercise and that my periods are going to be a lot heavier than normal,” she said.
Ms Farley said her condition meant she would need to seek advice from her doctor before travelling for extended periods, and would be restricted from eating food high in vitamin K.
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