Triad Trauma: T2, Coronavirus & Blood Clots - anyone else feeling triggered?

IronLioness

Well-Known Member
Messages
299
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Routine
Hi all,
I've been a little on the quiet side as I've been just focusing on managing my T2, I'm still in remission, 2 years since diagnosis now, but this Coronavirus pandemic is now REALLY starting to trigger me, a LOT.....

I was OK at the start, I've been focusing on lockdown and keeping myself healthy, but having read about various evidence of the deaths and long term damage being caused by or related to blood clots - I find myself (anxiety) rising again.... I had a DVT - a big one (femoral artery in my mid thigh to ankle) in 2015 which then broke off and turned in bilateral Pulmonary Embolisms, both lungs were FULL of clots. It was an horrific experience, it took its toll on my mental health and almost caused me a **** near meltdown, until I flipped it on its head and turned into 'fight' mode. I smashed the clots within 9 months but the whole thing was a trauma on my mind from start to finish.

I'm finding the anxiety rising because I know first hand what it's like to not be able to breathe, the clots were in my lungs.... It's the worst feeling in the world, and 2nd is taking blood thinner, which adds a whole new trigger to the mind, because I was so afraid of cutting myself and bleeding out, which actually DID happen. I broke a mirror on my foot 2 weeks after being on warfarin, the mirror cut right through my foot, and ended in 2 months off of my feet as it damaged tendons/nerves etc.

I'm trying to stay focused on being healthy,and managing my T2, but the more news I see/read which mentions blood clots and T2 are prevalent in provoking the severe symptoms occurring, well, it's on my mind a lot and I find myself being brought back into the mindset when I was diagnosed with the blood clots. I've tried reducing my access to news alerts and general C19 info, but it's there, simmering away in my mind..

I just wondered if anyone else has been through similar and feeling triggered (as heck!) - if you are, how are you coping with being triggered?
 

MrsA2

Expert
Messages
5,574
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi
I'm fairly new to diabetes and haven't had clotting problems, but from your description I would have thought that being wary and mindful is actually quite a realistic outcome after such a frightening experience.
I hear that you are thinking maybe your reactions are now building a bit too high.
I'd recommend a type of therapy called EFT or tapping therapy that is very effective in helping cope with anxiety or trauma. I had some that means I can cope with trauma from over 25 years ago. I spent most of that time thinking I was over it and I was coping but it could be triggered easily. EFT really helped me finally put in a more comfortable place which means I can get on and even enjoy the rest of my life.
I am a very practical person and probably would not have believed tapping could work if I had read about it before, but my therapist just started it on me and it worked.
It certainly can't make things worse.
Theres other kinds of self help such as mindfulness , meditation, yoga etc too.

Well done on realising your anxiety is heading too far. That's a very important first step
 

ziggy_w

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,019
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi all,
I've been a little on the quiet side as I've been just focusing on managing my T2, I'm still in remission, 2 years since diagnosis now, but this Coronavirus pandemic is now REALLY starting to trigger me, a LOT.....

I was OK at the start, I've been focusing on lockdown and keeping myself healthy, but having read about various evidence of the deaths and long term damage being caused by or related to blood clots - I find myself (anxiety) rising again.... I had a DVT - a big one (femoral artery in my mid thigh to ankle) in 2015 which then broke off and turned in bilateral Pulmonary Embolisms, both lungs were FULL of clots. It was an horrific experience, it took its toll on my mental health and almost caused me a **** near meltdown, until I flipped it on its head and turned into 'fight' mode. I smashed the clots within 9 months but the whole thing was a trauma on my mind from start to finish.

I'm finding the anxiety rising because I know first hand what it's like to not be able to breathe, the clots were in my lungs.... It's the worst feeling in the world, and 2nd is taking blood thinner, which adds a whole new trigger to the mind, because I was so afraid of cutting myself and bleeding out, which actually DID happen. I broke a mirror on my foot 2 weeks after being on warfarin, the mirror cut right through my foot, and ended in 2 months off of my feet as it damaged tendons/nerves etc.

I'm trying to stay focused on being healthy,and managing my T2, but the more news I see/read which mentions blood clots and T2 are prevalent in provoking the severe symptoms occurring, well, it's on my mind a lot and I find myself being brought back into the mindset when I was diagnosed with the blood clots. I've tried reducing my access to news alerts and general C19 info, but it's there, simmering away in my mind..

I just wondered if anyone else has been through similar and feeling triggered (as heck!) - if you are, how are you coping with being triggered?

Hi @IronLioness,

I'm with you on this.

Right about the same time as you (end of May 2015), I also suffered from DVT and a pulmonary embolism. This was also the day I was diagosed with diabetes.

Did you know that high insulin and high blood sugars contribute to clot formation? Here is an article on this https://professional.diabetes.org/a...se-blood-coagulationthrombosis-healthy-people. It says that if insulin levels are high and blood sugar levels are high, there is a ninefold increased risk of blood clot formation.

So being in remission for the last two years, you are already doing everything to reduce your risk of this happening again. This having been said, I really get why you still worry. I can empathize with you have been through. It must have been horrific.
 
Last edited:

IronLioness

Well-Known Member
Messages
299
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Routine
Hi
I'm fairly new to diabetes and haven't had clotting problems, but from your description I would have thought that being wary and mindful is actually quite a realistic outcome after such a frightening experience.
I hear that you are thinking maybe your reactions are now building a bit too high.
I'd recommend a type of therapy called EFT or tapping therapy that is very effective in helping cope with anxiety or trauma. I had some that means I can cope with trauma from over 25 years ago. I spent most of that time thinking I was over it and I was coping but it could be triggered easily. EFT really helped me finally put in a more comfortable place which means I can get on and even enjoy the rest of my life.
I am a very practical person and probably would not have believed tapping could work if I had read about it before, but my therapist just started it on me and it worked.
It certainly can't make things worse.
Theres other kinds of self help such as mindfulness , meditation, yoga etc too.

Well done on realising your anxiety is heading too far. That's a very important first step

Thanks Mrs A2, appreciate that suggestions and I'll have a look into them. I've heard of tapping before, I need to investigate it a bit more and suss out how it works. All the news across all platforms really got to me this week, it might be a build up from lockdown situation too, I'm genuinely concerned if this thing peaks again. I let my mindfulness go, but I've got back into it this weekend and have started meditation in the mornings again. I'll look into EFT, and yes, tapping it is! Thanks again.
 
Last edited:

IronLioness

Well-Known Member
Messages
299
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Routine
Hi @IronLioness,

I'm with you on this.

Right about the same time as you (end of May 2015), I also suffered from DVT and a pulmonary embolism. This was also the day I was diagosed with diabetes.

Did you know that high insulin and high blood sugars contribute to clot formation? Here is an article on this https://professional.diabetes.org/a...se-blood-coagulationthrombosis-healthy-people. It says that if insulin levels are high and blood sugar levels are high, there is a ninefold increased risk of blood clot formation.

So being in remission for the last two years, you are already doing everything to reduce your risk of this happening again. This having been said, I really get why you still worry. I can empathize with you have been through. It must have been horrific.
Good to know there are others out there, thanks Ziggy, and thanks for the link, I'll look into that and read up. I had the clot and PEs 5 years ago this October and I remember the Specialist I spoke to about it who said that if either does reoccur it'll happen within 5 years, after that there's a greatly reduced risk. I've got that at the back of my mind when I keep hearing this darned news of Covid basically manifesting blood clots, i thought I was ok, mindset wise, but it's now on US and UK news networks I've watching so I might have caught the fear-factor. I didn't know that about high insulin and BG levels increasing risk, but that totally makes sense. And it worries the bejezus out of me! I'm trying to keep focused on working out to keep that blood pumping and pancreas doing what it needs to do, I might increase it to x2 workouts a day though. I've tried to cut down on the news I hear/read, too... I know a lot of it is media hype but because I work in healthcare, it's so much harder to 'turn off' where I see the information. It's kind of like a triple-whammy, when you have T2 (non insulin) and trying to manage that, you've had a DVT & PE's and now we all have to deal with Covid which seems to be targeting diabetics, along with other conditions and other comorbidities, yeeeeeesh.......... I'll stay positive, but it's good to know I'm not overcooking this and there are other folks out there that are feeling like this too. x