Hailey Bieber, 25, recalls her blood clot experience: 'Scariest moment of my life'
Hailey Bieber just recounted the details of her recent blood clot experience.
The model, 25, took to her Instagram Wednesday to share a video about her health scare, which occurred on March 10. At the time, Hailey and her husband, singer Justin Bieber, were having breakfast when she felt a sensation travel from her shoulder down to a fingertip, leaving her finger numb. When Justin asked her what was wrong, Hailey found herself unable to speak properly. Justin then called for a doctor, who was nearby at their undisclosed location, to check on his wife.
“Definitely the scariest moment of my life,” Hailey recalled. “I had so many things running through my head, number one being, ‘I’m having a stroke. I’m really scared, I don’t know why this is happening, am I going to have permanent issues from this?'”
By the time Hailey arrived at the hospital by ambulance, most of her issues were resolved. She was diagnosed with having had a transient ischemic attack, or a TIA, which is sometimes referred to as a “mini stroke.”
Hailey said her doctors came to the conclusion that the TIA was caused by a “perfect storm” of factors, which included her recent bout with COVID-19, being on birth control pills despite having a history of migraines and flying to and from Paris, France, in a short span of time. However, it wasn’t until she went for further testing that she learned she had a patent foramen ovale (PFO), which is a small opening in the heart.
“What happened with me is, the blood clot escaped through the flap, or the hole, in my heart, and it traveled to my brain,” she explained.
Ultimately, she went through a procedure to have her PFO closed, which she said absolved a lot of her anxiety around the situation.
“I just was really nervous a lot of the time about having another TIA, or experiencing those symptoms again,” she shared. “I would get really bad anxiety, and my anxiety was making me feel funny, it made my fingers and hands feel kind of tingly, and I just honestly had a really hard time in between.”
Hailey concluded by saying that if anyone has experienced the same thing, she can “really empathize” with how “life-altering and scary” the situation is. She also encouraged people to take control of their health if they sense something isn’t right.
“If there's anybody out there who sees this and has experienced similar things but doesn’t really know the reason why, I would definitely encourage you to talk to a doctor,” she explained.
Hailey first shared her story on Instagram on March 12. At the time, she wrote, “I’m so grateful and thankful to all the amazing doctors and nurses who took care of me. Thank you to everyone who has reached out with well wishes and concern, and for all the support and love.”
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