I’ve had preeclampsia with both of my pregnancies, pre delivery and post delivery almost a week after I delivered. The first time I had it was with my son. Around 37 weeks my blood pressure began to elevate. I started having headaches, dizziness, and protein in my urine. At 38 weeks 4 days my doctor decided to induce me. After two days of trying to induce I was finally progressing, but so was the preeclampsia. They started taking my blood hourly and it just got worse over the next few hours until the last blood draw came back indicating my body was starting to shut down and my blood pressure was 170/111. While contracting with a failed epidural I had to make the decision to go in for an emergency c-section, waiting for a natural delivery was no longer an option. It wasn’t until I was laying on the operating room table being prepped that I got a horrible splitting headache and I started seeing brown spots in my vision. It was the first time I had a moment to think about what was happening. I truly was able to grasp the reality of it, that my body was shutting down. I just wanted my baby and myself to be okay. Thankfully our sweet baby boy was born healthy!

After birth I was put on 24hrs of magnesium sulfate and monitored very closely. My son is now a happy healthy 3 year old little boy. Two years we found out we were expecting again! We were over the moon and so thankful, but in the back of my mind, “What if the preeclampsia comes back” “What if things get as bad as last time.. or worse.”. My blood pressure stayed phenomenal throughout my pregnancy. At 39 weeks we met our beautiful baby girl! The morning we went home my blood pressure was 130/90, they told me to check it daily and call if it got higher. It stayed the same for two days. On the third day it came down to 119/87. I couldn’t get the feeling out of my head that something was wrong. I tried to ignore it. I took a shower and tried to relax. After showering I wasn’t feeling right. I felt like I was in a fog, my head was heavy and I was so tired. I tried telling myself “You just had baby, your hormones are all over, you’re tired, you’re breastfeeding, that’s all it is.” But I started having an anxiety attack. I got the blood pressure cuff back out and took my blood pressure. It was 144/97, I thought “No this is because you’re panicking.” So I took it again, it waa 153/99. By this time I was on the phone with my doctor. She told me to pack a bag, bring my baby, and come in. My Mom came to stay with our son. It was the hardest thing to leave him again.

When we got there I was still trying to talk myself out of it thinking my blood pressure would have come down by now, but it was 163/99. Confirming this was actually happening. They started me on nifedipine, but it wasn’t coming down. I started to cry. “What if they can’t get my blood pressure to come down.” “What if the last memory my son has of me is me leaving him while he cried for me and he thinks I abandoned him.” “What if my daughter and I never have the chance to know each other.” I was given two doses of IV labetalol, I physically felt my blood pressure dropping. It felt like water droplets running down my brain. One of my liver enzymes was slightly elevated and I had a headache by the next morning. I was given 24hrs of magnesium sulfate and it turned into a 3 night hospital stay, longer than the initial stay to have our daughter. They sent me home on blood pressure medication. I became severe in the matter of hours both times, it can happen so fast. The doctors and nurses took things so seriously both times. Every single person that walked into our hospital room gave me the best care I feel I could’ve received. A HUGE thank you to my husband, Sean, for staying right beside me through it all both times being an amazing support, as well our families for their help through it all. You are not alone in your journey with preeclampsia, if something doesn’t seem right, ALWAYS reach out for help!