Blood clots from driving and prevention?

HOTWAVE Portable Workout... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJ55LCX4?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

It's not the ultimate gym, but it's more than most do on the road. I refuse to become the guys you seen who can't wear anything other than terry cloth sweat pants or shorts, can't reach around to wipe their own arse, and hasn't seen their own junk without a mirror in years.

Research stretches for your legs and lower back, your body will thank you.

 

Every 2 to 3 hrs you'll have to pee anyway. Pull over and take a leak on the side of the road, or hit a rest area or truck stop. A pee break goes a long way in preventing blood clots.

 

I'd say give it a try, I've heard that they work as well. It still helps to have some movement

 

I am an EXPERT on blood clots. When I finally hobbled into the ER and got diagnosed, the doc that gave me the good news was white as a sheet and had a pleading “don’t drop dead on me” look in his eyes, Multiple, bi-lateral lung embolisms and both legs full of clots to my crotch. Any one of those clots in my lungs could have killed me if they went left instead of right and on to the brain. Which is exactly what happened to my uncle. Dropped dead from a clot to the brain after a root canal. He was 46, left five kids under 14. My episode was at 49. Both parents had DVT’s (deep vein thrombosis, or blood clots), one of my siblings has them. I come by them honestly!

Three days in the ICU, $60K in TPA, a couple of vein procedures to get blood flowing in my legs again. Good times, good times!

My plea to you: please take blood clots seriously! About 20% of people of Northern European descent have genetic mutations that greatly increase your likelihood of blood clots. If you feel stinging pain in your legs (like being poked with a needle); if you need a larger size in shoes or if you start getting short of breath……. Go see a doc. This is serious stuff. It can kill you as easily as it can cripple you.

So, what do I do? First off, I only drive part time anymore and I mostly stay away from the long, tight runs if possible. If I can’t, like when one of our drivers was ill last week, well, I got there a little later than he usually does.

Second, when I drive, I stop every two to 3 hrs. Most often just pull off at a rest stop, use the potty and take the long way back to the truck. 200 steps is enough to get the blood flowing, so to speak. Takes maybe ten minutes.

Third, on the open road with cruise on, I do toe lifts and stretches every 30 minutes. Again, a couple of hundred is enough to stimulate circulation.

Fourth, I drink enough that I have to stop every three hours, lol. Dehydration makes things worse.

Fifth, I take Xarelto, which has done the trick as far as preventing recurrences.

Finally, I DO wear compression socks, which are necessary because the vein surgeries destroyed the ability of my veins to keep from pooling blood in my feet. They work absolutely great for keeping my feet and calves from swelling up. HOWEVER, compression socks DO NOT PREVENT blood clots. They prevent the symptom (swelling) but not the cause (clotting or edema).

Please take blood clots seriously, ESPECIALLY if your family has a history of DVT’s.