About 36 hours after giving birth, I developed a headache that would not go away, even after sleeping and taking pain medication. I remembered my nurse telling me that a headache not relieved by medication could be a warning sign of something serious postpartum.

Thankfully, my mother had a blood pressure cuff, and when I checked mine, it was 178/110. I called triage right away, and they told me to come in immediately.

Once I got to the hospital, they quickly gave me medication to lower my blood pressure. After testing, I was diagnosed with preeclampsia with severe features and started on a magnesium drip for 48 hours.

I am so thankful my nurse warned me about the symptoms to watch for and that my mother had a blood pressure cuff. If not, I may have tried to ignore it for another night. That nurse truly helped save my life.