Amidst a Near-Death Pregnancy Experience, Serena Williams Was Deemed ‘Crazy’ for Being Persistent With a CAT Scan in 2017 – ‘I Fought Hard..’

Published 11/16/2022, 11:30 AM EST

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Even if Serena Williams has one of the greatest tennis careers of all time, it did not shield her from having difficult times in her life. Giving birth to Olympia in itself was a life-threatening ordeal that the player barely managed to get through safely. However, after that, she knew she needed to get back on her treatment for preventing blood clotting.

But the hospital staff did not comply and blamed her over-arching concern. The player knew better and ended up saving her own life at a crucial point.

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Serena Williams saved her own life by being adamant about her point

After giving birth to Olympia through a C-section, Williams suggested she should go back to her medication. It was to prevent blood clotting in her lungs which was discovered in 2010. However, they did not comply, and eventually, the situation worsened. She detailed her experience in an interview and said, “I spoke to the nurse. I told her: “I need to have a CAT scan of my lungs bilaterally, and then I need to be on my heparin drip.” However, her response was completely opposite, and Williams narrated. She said, “I think all this medicine is making you talk crazy.”

via Reuters

Even when Williams insisted the nurse paid little heed. Instead, Williams narrated, “she told me I just needed to rest.” But the tennis player knew what she was going through and finally arranged a meeting with the doctor. She said, “She listened to me and insisted we check. I fought hard, and I ended up getting the CAT scan.”

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And the player was absolutely right. She said, “Lo-and-behold, I had a blood clot in my lungs. They needed to insert a filter into my veins to break up the clot before it reached my heart.

Tennis players and their pregnancy issues

One such player is a well-renowned rival of Serena Williams. The Russian player, Maria Sharapova, too went through an arduous childbirth. After giving birth to her son, Theodore this year, Sharapova took a few weeks before recovering and only recently started her fitness regime again. After that, her recovery has been quick, and she recently went out to spend quality time with her fiance Alexander Gilkes at the Antelope Canyon.

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WATCH THIS STORY: Will Smith Shows How King Richard Cast Trained Like Serena and Venus Williams

Apart from that, the tennis star couple, Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils also welcomed their daughter Skai into the world.

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Written by:

Shivali Sharma

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Shivali Sharma is a tennis author at EssentiallySports. She has pursued her Master's in history from Himachal University, but her love for the game has driven her to write about tennis. Shivali is a huge fan of Naomi Osaka and admires Osaka not only for her on-court performances, but also for her off-court actions.
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Edited by:

Hitesh Nigam