If you had high blood pressure at the end of a pregancy...what happened?

[5wolfcubs]

I'm due in 2 weeks, but tend to be 10-14 days over due. I've never ever had high blood pressure. I'm planning a homebirth with a midwife (just like last 5 children) and also seeing an OB.

 

Last Thursday at my OB appt (37 weeks), it was 158 over something. They had me lie down on my side and wait a few minutes...then it was down to my normal 120. The OB didn't seem overly concerned -- she gave me some suggestions: upping my protein and swimming and/or soaking in full tub.

 

I saw my mid-wife this week and it again extremely high, but after I sat down with my feet up for a few minutes, it was down to 124. She was more concerned then doctor and gave me some additional suggestions: sitting down more, upping magnesium intake, cutting out black tea.

 

Both told me call OB asap if I get a headache or blurred vision.

 

I feel so normal. I mean, it is hard to move and my hands get numb when I sleep, typically end of pregnancy stuff. But otherwise I feel really normal.

 

Oh, yes...my question! If you had this kind of high blood pressure (that goes down when you lay down), what happened? Did you just continue and have a normal labor & delivery? Did your bp eventually stay up? Then what happened? Were you able to do anything specific to actually bring your bp down?

[Kalypso]

I had this happen with my last 2 pregnancies. My OB told me to take it easy and rest more. Both pregnancies ended up being induced because of low amniotic fluid (different problem), but otherwise, nothing else was different about labor and delivery. My blood pressure went back to normal after delivery both times. Like you, I didn't feel any different than I did with my previous pregnancies.

[Renee in NC]

I had this with my 7th and he was induced a few days early.

[Daisy]

I had high blood pressure at the end of both my pregnancies. I have early contractions that just last forever & my body gets tired.

 

Anyway, I had both my children 2-3 weeks early. I was induced and had to have my water broken both times because I stall out at 5 cm forever.

 

My blood pressure returns to normal within hours of delivery.

[Mommyof4ks]

Mine was 160/90 two weeks prior to my due date, and the doc sent me straight to the hospital to be induced. Before they were able to start the pit. my water broke and things moved quickly. My bp never went down from the time I went to the appt. until my dd was born. Minutes after birth it went back down to normal and we were both fine.

[MamaSheep]

The stage of pregnancy at which your blood pressure goes up makes a difference in what they do.

 

My bp went up at the beginning of the 3rd trimester in my first pregnancy. I don't remember specific numbers, but it was pretty high. The midwife I was seeing at a birth center said she couldn't keep me anymore. She sent me straight to the OB they worked with, who added me to his new partner's schedule, and she was AWFUL so I wound up getting a referral to a different OB from my general practitioner. He stuck me in the hospital overnight for tests and observation and it was discovered that as long as I lay on my left side my pressure was ok. They sent me home to lie on my left side except for trips to the bathroom and an occasional quick shower. I had a home nurse visit twice a week and two visits a week to the OB, so I was monitored pretty closely for a while. Also, they did a lot of checking for protein in my urine, which is evidently the sign that things are beginning to go horribly wrong (eclampsia) and the baby should be born ASAP. The OB told me that in his 15 years of a busy practice he had had only 2 women who developed my symptoms at that particular stage of pregnancy reach full term. He said he didn't want to scare me, but wanted me prepared for the likely reality of a premature baby. They all kept telling me that the baby would probably need to come early, but that they'd keep him in there as long as it was safe because the more developed his lungs were the better. We have reams of ultrasound pics during this period, and I really got to watch him grow up. At each visit the doctor said, well, I don't understand it, but I'm really glad to report that the numbers are still holding steady and we're going to keep going for a few more days, but be ready to have this baby next week. After a little over 10 weeks of this, they decided he was fully baked and we'd crossed the point where it was safer to have him out than in, and they induced. I was seriously drugged up so as to not feel any pain that might cause my bp to spike, and there were a few touch and go moments where they lost his heartbeat and were on the brink of rushing me out for a C-section when they located it again, and eventually he arrived safe and sound at 38 weeks gestation.

 

With my second pregnancy, my blood pressure spiked up at the beginning of the second trimester, again lowering if I lay down. I thought, oh no, here we go again! But the doctor said that at that point in a pregnancy it was just pregnancy-induced high blood pressure, and nothing to really worry about. They put me on some bp medication for the rest of the pregnancy and everything went fine. No problems at all. In both cases my bp was back to normal shortly after the baby was born.

 

If you're due in a couple of weeks and have no other scary symptoms, you're probably fine. Lying down causes the pressure to change because of how the weight of the fetus rests on certain blood vessels (I was told). So unless it goes up to the point where it could detach the placenta or something it's probably not something to worry over at all. If your pressure does spike in a scary way in the next little while, it's still probably nothing to freak out about. They'd probably just go ahead and deliver your little one at this stage, and most likely it'd all go away. But do keep an eye out for things like headaches, blurred vision, unusual swelling and whatever else they told to to watch for, as they can indicate dangerous blood pressure level.

 

My best guess would be that for you everything will continue to go smoothly and in a few weeks you'll be so busy with a new baby that you won't even think about it at all. :)

 

Happy birthing!

[eight_gregorys]

The main concern with high bp in pregnancy is the risk of developing eclampsia or restricted blood supply to the placenta. I had eclampsia with my 1st pregnancy and pre-eclampsia with my 3rd, 4th, & 5th which required early induction every time. It can be serious, but as long as you don't develop a headache, blurred vision or sudden excessive swelling in your legs, face, or hands (all symptoms of eclampsia) you should be fine (when I say swelling, I mean more than what you get from just standing.....like you no longer have ankles swelling). If you do call your OB immediately. I ended up in the ER having seizures with my first because I didn't know what to look for. Don't let this scare you though, since this isn't your first pregnancy and I'm assuming you haven't had eclampisa before, you should be just fine because it usually happens in young mothers in their first pregnancy. Try to keep those feet up and rest as much as you can. You're almost there!

[6packofun]

Similar numbers here and they opted to induce. At that point I was retaining water so badly that a shaving nick in my leg from weeks earlier kept *leaking water* and wouldn't heal. Ugh. I didn't FEEL bad, just bloated and big, of course. Baby turned breech during labor and so I had a semi-emergency c-section which turned out to be a huge blessing because he had made a true knot in the cord. lol

 

My blood pressure went back to normal by 3 months after delivery, but it stayed a little on the high side for a bit right after.

[LMA]

HBP is called the "silent killer" for good reason. You do not have to have symptoms to have a stroke. Keep in mind that just because you don't have blurred vision or headaches, that you are safe from having a stroke. That is what my ob/gyn impressed upon me.

 

I had preeclampsia with my first one and they induced at 36 weeks. I was at stroke level and I did not have symptoms. I was on magnesium sulfate which counteracted with the inducing drug so I had to have a c-section after 8 hours of nothing. Pre-eclampsia is very dangerous. Please keep that in mind.

 

Afterwards, my blood pressure did not go down and I had to go on meds for a couple years. After that, I was on methyldopa during pregnancy (which kept my pressure down) and was on atenolol when not pregnant.

[Jennifer in MI]

I had this with all my pregnancies. But, I was only pre-eclampsic with my first (blood pressures topped out at 210/110!).

 

The top number isn't usually something they worry about too much. That can increase when you are stressed or just went running or something. It's the bottom number that is the real number.

 

Did they run extra blood or urine tests? If you were becoming pre-eclampsic, you'd start spilling protein into your urine. As long as that's clear, you should be fine. (I had urine at +4!)

 

Blood tests can tell if your liver or other organs are being affected by the high blood pressure. With my first, my liver and kidney numbers were WAY off. I was induced right away (VERY scary as I was planning a birth center birth!). All went well.

 

But, with my other three pregnancies, I ended up with high blood pressure at the end and NO protein in my urine. My blood work was always fine too. So, no worries! I went on to have two birth center births and one homebirth.

 

:grouphug::grouphug:

[Lilymax]

I had HBP with each of my pregnancies and developed preeclampsia with the first. I was induced 4 weeks early with him, and my BP returned to normal right after the birth.

 

With my second, I was on meds throughout the pregnancy to keep my BP under control. No preeclampsia, and went to my due date. My pressure returned to normal after the birth. However, over the next few years, I'd sometimes get an occasional moderately high reading at a doctor's visit.

 

So when I talked with the OB about TTC again at age 40, and my BP seemed to be creeping up a bit, she went ahead and put me on meds before conceiving. I ended up on increasing doses throughout this last pregnancy. According to the bloodwork, urine tests, etc. I never did get preeclampsia. But I had terrible swelling in the third trimester, even worse than with my first baby. And was very short of breath.

 

He was born 2 weeks early due to rising BP and concerns over his size (ultrasound the night before his birth predicted him at 10 lbs. 13 oz. He ended up only being 9.1...still big, but not THAT big!). We knew it would be a planned c-section anyway because I'd had a shoulder dystocia with my second delivery. But after this last birth, my BP refused to return to normal. Actually, it kept creeping up. They kept me admitted an extra day to monitor it and adjusted my medication. They thought it was from all the fluids they pump you with when you have a c-section.

 

The night I came home from the hospital, I ended up back in the ER because I couldn't breathe when lying down and my BP was 190/100. They suspected a pulmonary embolism or postnatal cardiomyopathy (heart enlargement and failure). I was still very swollen, so they gave me a diuretic and within a week my swelling and shortness of breath was gone.

 

I followed up with a cardiologist, and he still isn't sure why things happened the way they did. He suspects a form of myopathy that resolved itself, because all my tests are fine now. Except for my blood pressure, which, even on two medications, still gives me high-ish readings at times. He said that after a c-section, it can take the body a longer time to realize it's not pregnant anymore. So it could just take a few months for my body to settle back down. Baby was born on 9/29, so he's only 7 weeks old...I'm hoping a little more time will bring it back down to more normal levels.

 

Anyway, just sharing my story with HBP and pregnancy. Yours does sound like the kind of HBP that will settle back down after you deliver. Good luck!

[Heather in OK]

All of the suggestions your care providers have given you are :thumbup1:.

 

If you were my client I would talk to you also about any added stress in your life recently...? Any worries?

[Alphabetika]

I had high BP with my last pregnancy - dd#3 was born 8/1. I had it only in the last couple of weeks of pregnancy but it was continuously high. When I went into labor it was still high, so they put me on magnesium (I think?) through an IV, which was supposed to bring it down. In the process, they had to give me pitocin because the mag stalled my labor. They also recommended I have an epidural because it would bring down the BP. I hadn't had an epi before, and this one didn't even work as pain relief, but it did bring my BP down. After Charlotte's birth, I had to be on the mag IV for 24 hours. I had to have my BP taken and reflexes checked EVERY HOUR for 24 hours. This was a pain, but I knew they needed to do it.

 

When it was time for me to be released, my BP was still somewhat high and my OB wanted to keep me one more night. I convinced him that I was feeling well and strong and that my BP would go down if I could get away from my roommate and her 147 loud family members who were there around the clock and her boyfriend who slumped in a chair and watched 3 violent movies a day for the 2 days I was there. He agreed. Sure enough, as soon as I got home, down it went. I got a BP monitor and my middle dd took my BP a few times a day. It took a couple of weeks, but now it's normal.

 

I never had any of the symptoms they wanted me to watch for, such as headaches or blurred vision, so I was thankful for that. They would have induced me a week before my due date, but I went into labor before that.

[5wolfcubs]

Thanks for the encouraging stories and the warnings to take it seriously! Currently no protein in urine, so that is a plus.

If you were my client I would talk to you also about any added stress in your life recently...? Any worries?

Well, I don't really want to go through labor & delivery...does that count? It hurts!

[amy g.]

I don't have any high blood pressure advice, but I did want to tell you that I'm excited to find out you are having a girl at the same time that I am.

 

Keep us posted on how you are doing. Okay?

[MamaT]

I had HBP with my first pregnancy and ended up being induced. I also ended up with a C-section (my first of four).

[Kate in Arabia]

I had high bp with my third starting at about 37 weeks; readings at about 190/100, "floaties" (dark specks in vision -- which made my bp worse because I kept thinking I saw bugs out of the corner of my eyes, lol), and in general just a panicky feeling (like when you get to school then realize you forgot you had an exam that day). BP wasn't consistently that high, they kept me in the hospital overnight once then sent me home. They had me come to the hospital every day for a reading and stress test. At 39 weeks during the stress test I was having Braxton Hicks and every time I had a contraction dd's heartrate would drop. All that combined (bp, stress on baby) and they induced me at 39 weeks.

 

I will say that in my case, maybe combined with my age, I have had bp issues ever since. Not needing medication so far, but I have occasional "spells" of high bp where the bottom bumber flits around 100.

[Sarah CB]

I've had high blood pressure with my last three pregnancies and it has become progressively worse each time. The last pregnancy I was on and off bedrest and in and out of the hospital from 29 weeks. I was induced three weeks early.

 

We made the decision not to have any more children because of how unhealthy it is for me and because it just isn't possible to parent small children when one is on bedrest for that long.

[GoVanGogh]

HBP is called the "silent killer" for good reason. You do not have to have symptoms to have a stroke. Keep in mind that just because you don't have blurred vision or headaches, that you are safe from having a stroke. That is what my ob/gyn impressed upon me.

:iagree:

 

My son and I actually survived a seizure, brought on by pregnancy induced HBP. I was 33 weeks along and in the hospital for observations when I had the seizure. One minute I was laying there feeling fine - no symptoms or anything. I woke up 24 hours later and didn't have a clue what had happened to me, nor did I know that my son had been born via c-section.

 

It is a crazy catch-22.

Be mindful of the warnings. They are serious.

But relax! Don't let it stress you out.

 

:grouphug:

[secular_mom]

I had this with 2 out of 4 pregnancies, and was induced with both of them- the first time I was induced on my due date, the second time I was induced at 36 weeks and 6 days- I had pre-eclampsia with both.

[Guest 4boys]

Just wanted to chime in....my bp started creeping up at the end of my third pregnancy. My midwife told me to cut out white flour and sugar. It was back down within 24 hours and stayed that way till the end. And I felt a LOT better. I cut out sugar during my 4th pregnancy and I was amazed at how much better I felt. It's not necessarily fun but it was a quick fix.

[BakersDozen]

2 weeks??? No advice on the bp thing but oh wow, I am so excited and thrilled for you, my friend!!! :) You'd better send pix!

[kat19]

This last pregnancy, I was induced a month early because of blood pressure and LOTS of protein in my urine.

I was in the hospital a week before the baby was born and they would always ask me how my vision was. If you notice any changes in your vision, let your doctor know as soon as possible.

 

I laid on my side A LOT during that week, during delivery and after delivery.

So lay on your side as much as you can~it really does help.

 

Good Luck :001_smile:

[TravelingChris]

I have never had hbp but my mil did during pregnancies. In later life, she developed it all the time. Because hbp runs in families, I read up about it. If you have hbp in pregnancy, you are at a much greater risk to develop it again later. The main thing to do is just get your blood pressure checked on a regular basis. As someone else rightly said, most people have no symptoms while having even dangerously high blood pressure. Prayers for a safe delivery and no more complications.

[La Condessa]

I had occasional high blood pressure towards the end of my pregnancy--like yours, where it would drop down again if I rested for a while. It didn't affect the birth (c-section for other reasons), but afterwards it rose higher and stayed higher for several days, and I started getting nasty pressure headaches. They prescribed a medication for me to bring it down, and after about four or five weeks it went back to normal and I didn't need the medication anymore. No long term effects.

[Maria from IN]

I had pre-eclampsia for the last 2 weeks of my pregnancy, and I was allowed to go home, but I was confined to bed. The baby was 5 days late, so I had to be induced. At the hospital, I had an epidural, so I didn't feel the contractions, but every time the readout showed I was having one, all the people in the room (including nursing students from 3 area colleges!) would stare at the blood pressure monitor and their eyes would get REALLY big. Eventually they had it timed to take my blood pressure every 4 minutes because the numbers would get higher and higher. They turned the machine away from my vision because the last numbers I saw were 246/172, and I kinda panicked. They lied to me a few minutes later and told me it was coming back down--my husband told me about it a few days later. I started to kind of feel like I was outside myself, a strange kind of dizziness that I've never experienced before or since. The nurses told me later that they thought I was going to have a stroke.

 

My pressure went down and stayed down, and I still have no problems 15 years later, but it was pretty scary for all involved when it was happening.

 

Not to try to scare you or anything...everyone's experience is different. It is good to know what kinds of things can happen, though. Definitely relax and enjoy this time--listen to relaxation cd's, lay on your side, etc.

 

Soon you'll be running your legs off again!:001_smile:

[5wolfcubs]

Thanks for sharing more stories. I'm trying not to worry and be proactive about what I can...I'm laying on my left side while I type this on the laptop. :)

 

I see the OB on Monday and the midwife on Tuesday. I'm wondering at what point they'd say no homebirth. They don't work together, but OB is the midwife's back up.

[Jennefer@SSA]

:seeya::seeya::seeya:

 

Hi, Lee!!! So good to "see" you and hear how you are doing! Please post pics after this blessing arrives. :)