Yesterday I had the appointment with the hematologist. It went very smoothly. Time was good, no extra waiting, etc. I didn't really get a lot of new information, but did get things confirmed a bit more. The cause of the blood clot(s) is still "unprovoked." So, on one hand, no genetic things to worry about, no other tests required (other than the normal ones I'd get from my primary care physician on a yearly basis), and no particular behavioral changes required on my part. The unsatisfying part is, at least for now, an indefinite / lifetime use of the blood thinner I'm currently taking. I don't relish the idea of indefinitely taking medication, but it is better than the alternative of getting more clots.

I suppose another part of that is not knowing the cause, I don't feel as confident as all the doctors that this medicine will take care of the problem. I did ask that question directly and they were pretty solid about it - multiple doctors. I do feel I can trust them and conduct myself according to that assessment. BUT, it's just not as satisfying and doesn't feel as safe as knowing "THIS is what caused things so you can avoid it completely in the future." It's also a little disconcerting because there aren't really scans / tests that can be done to make sure things are good - it's based on my own measure of whether there's something wrong. That doesn't jive well with my history of body-anxiety and hyper-vigilance. I've found myself irritated at the seeming lack of curiosity in all the doctors. It's definitely come off to me as, "Well, you have this issue that this medicine fixes, so who cares why it happened?" I doubt that's the actual attitude they're feeling (or least the entirety of the attitude). More "probably" and "we don't know" than I wanted to hear at the "resolution" of this thing.

What do things look like from here on out? I guess pretty much how they were, but with extra care paid towards not cutting myself / bashing into things given the lowered clotting ability. I intend to get some sort of maintenance on my left hip - I've gotta do something to improve things there (impingement & flexibility). I could stand to stay more hydrated - that definitely won't hurt. And, I can be more conscientious about how I sit and stand for baseball photography. Bottom line, though, there's just no real hard and fast answers or guarantees. That's annoying and unsatisfying to me, but it is how things go - maybe more often than we might think from popular ideas about how things go in the ER / doctor's offices. "Life lessons" I suppose. At least it wasn't distinctly bad news, though. I do appreciate that. Fingers crossed for the next 3 to 6 months that things continue improving and feeling more stable.

Onward.