True Story: "I Survived a Near-Death Experience Before My Wedding"

It started out just like any other week. My job as a personal trainer keeps me extremely busy. I'm constantly going 100 miles per hour and bringing a ton of energy to my work. But by Wednesday, I was feeling off. Every time I took a deep breath, it felt like someone was stabbing me with a knife. I shook it off as a sore muscle and continued with my day as usual — I even bought a new car and trained one of the local tennis teams. When I finally sat down that night, I knew something wasn't right. It was unlike any other pain I had ever felt before.

Brian and I both shrugged it off and headed to bed, but I woke in agony in the middle of the night. The pain had moved up to my shoulder, and I could barely gasp for air. I woke Brian up and asked him to take me to the hospital; thankfully, it was only two miles away.

When we got there, I told them what my symptoms were. They asked only two questions: "Have you been in a recent car accident?" and "Are you on any birth control?" I explained that I hadn't been in an accident, but I've been on birth control for about eight years. (Disclaimer: I want you to know that these quotes are all according to Brian, because my memory is extremely fuzzy, as I want to preserve the validity of this story.)

They shot me with a blood thinner and gave me a CT scan. After an hour of mild consciousness, my results came back. I was suffering from two blood clots in my lungs, one of which had progressed into a pulmonary embolism. Just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, they told me that a portion of my lung was dead.

When a specialist reviewed my chart, they told me, "I don't mean to scare you, but there is no way you should be alive right now." If I hadn't woken up that night, I would have passed away in my sleep. "You must have a special purpose in this life," the specialist added. Brian smiled and said, "Well, we are getting married in a couple of months." The doctor looked at him, smiled in approval and told him, “God is good.”

Unfortunately, I wasn’t out of the danger zone yet since it takes time for blood clots to dissolve. I spent two nights in the ICU, where Brian never left my side. We fell deeper in love after getting a scary glimpse of what it would be like to lose one another. Thankfully, I recovered, and our story didn't end there.

I never thought that taking that little pill every morning would almost end my life. I didn't have any issues with birth control prior to this incident, and it's also worth noting that I don't smoke or drink, nor am I overweight.

Now, on to the good stuff: planning a wedding! From the very beginning, we wanted our wedding to be something out of a storybook, but with big plans came a hefty price. Literally. (A wedding planner quoted us $75,000 for everything that we wanted.) My perspective changed drastically after my nightmare experience. It opened my eyes to what was truly important — marrying the man who never left my side as I lay in a hospital bed for days. Not keeping up with "The Joneses."

After being released from the hospital, I came to the conclusion that I could achieve everything I hoped for within my $35,000 budget; I just had to take matters into my own hands. I started doing tons of research on different wedding blogs and websites and found Wedgefield Plantation. It’s a stunning wedding venue with live oak trees, and an indoor reception space that was perfect for our blush and gold Southern wedding.

I chose vendors who connected with me on a personal level instead of seeking out the "biggest and best." Our florist has now become one of our most treasured friends. Our jazz band is local and plays at a restaurant every Friday night. Also, our photographer became like family. Working with them one-on-one, I saw how beautiful the outcome of their work could be.

My advice for future brides-to-be is this: if you are willing to put in the time and hours, a do-it-yourself style wedding is a great option. It not only makes the day feel extraspecial and personal, but it can also save you a ton of money. I’m not saying it will be easy or less stressful, but the feeling I got from knowing that all of my hard work paid off was priceless.

My wedding day on April 19, 2015, was everything I ever wanted and more. For someone who almost missed out on this experience, it was truly my perfect Southern fairy tale.