BP problems after birth

[Freddie15VES]

So I went into natural labour on the 11th February - was all a bit rushed and slightly stressful as I was whisked down for a csection within a couple of hours arriving at the hospital. Bp was a bit high so they gave me labetalol sorry if I’ve spelt that wrong!!

since having my little girl on the 11th I’ve been kept in with high blood pressure, sometimes it’s fine, other times it seems to spike. I’m getting increasingly stressed out as I have a 3 year old at home and I’m not dealing very well with being away from him. The hospital is loud and they wake me up for checks more than my newborn does so my sleep is awful!

they keep saying as all other tests have come back fine that they’ll send me home, then I have a bp spike and I’m kept in again!

ive spoken to the dr and she agreed that she thinks I’ll be much better at home

has anyone else found that literally just being in hospital has caused your bp to be all over the place? I’m now that anxious about having it taken I can feel myself getting worked up when I know the time is near that they’re coming to check it!

Yes the stress of a postnatal ward defo did it for me. Plus the BP meds need to be timed carefully for best effect and for me the ward staff were too busy to make sure that happened, but I wasn't allowed to manage them myself.

After a week I self-discharged. But had to monitor at home and go in to triage if high (which is no picnic with a newborn, but miles better than the ward).

I'm not advocating self-discharge, there are risks to it, but it was the right thing for me. Hope you get sorted soon OP x

This sounds awful. They need to send you home! It's entirely possible that the stress of the environment is contributing to the problem, in which case how long are they realistically going to keep you in for? I'd be demanding a plan for home monitoring and to go home today.

I completely have this to the point I just now tell them the truth, as soon as that thing grips my arm my heart races and the readings can be anything and I'm certain they don't bear any resemblance to my true blood pressure.

I had a medical for a new job recently and my heart rate started at 150 bop, luckily the guy accepted my story as white coat syndrome and made no issue of it.

It's very odd because stick my in a dentist chair etc and I'm fine it's just bloomin BP tests!

Are you on enalaptopril or amlodipine? It's a standard BP medication on our postnatal ward. We discharge women after they have been on either medication for 2-3 days (they switch from labetalol immediately after labour). Then they go for monitoring with community midwives and their GP. Every woman on every postnatal ward finds the postnatal ward stressful. Not many will experience spikes in blood pressure. Please speak to the doctor on the ward round today. High blood pressure is dangerous. Any woman who had a raised BP in labour and/or postnatally is at increased risk of blood pressure and heart problems in later life. If your BMI is over 25 you need to talk to your GP at 6 weeks check-up on the support they can offer. It's the best strategy to minimise the future risks. I hope it helps

I had what the doctor called post partum pre eclampsia after Dc3 my blood pressure went sky high during delivery and never went down afterwards, kept spiking. Dc3 was on NICU so monitored but stressed. When home and in the following weeks was re-admitted twice. Eventually GP put me on Beta Blockers, high dose for 4months and then tapered dose down with monitoring of BP.

Thanks all

@Kosenrufugirl i know I’m on labetalol still (does nothing yet they’re still giving it to me) and they’ve also introduced something that sounds like ‘dephine’ at the end - no idea what it is. Could be the second one you mentioned?

Monday will be when I’ve been in for a week. That’s when I think I’ll be saying to them I need a plan and to go home, with the promise if I feel unwell or concerned I call them straight away. I do feel like I’m going to be here forever and the end is not in sight!!

I know they’re busy, but they’re constantly late with bringing me the medication and we’re not talking minutes, sometimes it’s over an hour late getting to me - which at home wouldn’t happen.

would I be absolutely stupid to self discharge? Or should I give it a few more days/a week?

I think you you need to have a good chat with your doctor. I am a midwife, not a doctor

Okay @Kosenrufugirl I was just answering your question regarding the medication.

Aww, congratulations on your DD! I had high BP when i went into labour with my first (155/110). My BP was very unstable for 5days and then settled down and i could be discharged. I had to take labetalol for 3months afterwards but i sent daily readings to the GP and once a week they reviewed the dosage so gradually reduced until i could come off. Is it worth asking if there are any side rooms available? You might have to vacate them if someone has a greater need but even one or two nights might help you to feel more calm - a week is a long time on the postnatal ward! I had a side room as DD was in NICU at the time, and it did allow me better rests between having to wake and express for her.

I can only recommend things within the remits of my professional expertise. I hope you have a fruitful conversation with a doctor. I know how horrible postnatal wards are

I wasn’t asking you to recommend anything? I’m really confused sorry. I just answered a question you asked…

Aw thanks @CrispAppleStrudels i am in a side room but it’s still very all over the place. Lowest it’s been is 141/96 today 😞 feeling like it’s never ending

Yes I had this, I had pre eclampsia and my high bp didn’t go after the birth. Like you I was kept in endlessly because it wouldn’t go down but I was so so stressed in there then. Eventually after all other tests were clear and I was getting crap care and no answers I discharged myself after 7 days (baby only came out of SCBU after 5). Bp went down a bit immediately, more when I’d had a good sleep and rest in my own house. I was on no meds for a good few weeks and had to do a 24 hour monitor and all was fine then, it can be normal for it to take a few weeks to go down.

@Garman that sounds exactly the same as me right now. It’s really stressing me out just being here in general. Little things like trying to have a shower but anyone could barge in the room, but then I can’t close the door cos I wouldn’t be able to hear baby! But then I can’t have baby in the bathroom cos it’ll go mega steamy haha these are the little things that add to it all aren’t they!

im tempted to discharge myself but they keep scaring me with what could happen etc and it’s making me feel even more anxious!

my bloody pressure goes up as soon as they walk in the room to take it, then if they leave it 5 mins and walk away and come back to do it again it’s instantly lower which I think says a lot!

Do they have automatic BP machines? If they do, ask them to leave the machine in the room and you do your own BP. An automatic BP machine is super easy to use. This us what I used to do for anxious women when I was a midwife on the postnatal ward. Leaving with uncontrolled BP is really not a good idea.

Bringing a baby into a bathroom with steam would be fine fyi. As above I got my own bp monitor and checked it at home. White coat syndrome is what you have now, ask them to check it three times and get the average and yes leave you time in between if needed. First readings are often higher.

Sorry I know this is a old post, but this is exactly the situation I’m in right now, gave birth 6 days ago and was admitted back into postnatal ward 3 days ago due too a high temp which was a infection. Got that under control then yesterday suddenly my BP has been sky high. And don’t seem too be coming down anytime soon. They have been giving me that labatomol which don’t seem too do anything. But im so anxious in here I’m sure that making it worse. What was your outcome in the end? Xx

@Lauzy21 im so sorry you’re going through similar to what i did. so i ended up on labetolol, enalapril and nifedepine (probs not spelt correctly!)

after a couple of weeks it was back to normal especially when i begged to go home!! just keep chasing them x

My bp spiked after birth. It went to 260/160

i had a bleed on the brain. Which left me with something called Sheehans subdrome

however apparently that’s never meant to happen.

neerly all cases of high BP due to pregnancy goes down as it’s to do with the placenta

Oh so glad it all worked out well for you! Hopefully mine does the same thing then as like you say being in here is so stressful there is no relaxation at all, as soon as I hear those trolley wheels with the bp monitor my anxiety goes sky high lol x

How timely that this thread has reactivated. When I posted last further up, I was 32w pregnant with DD2. Well, I got to 36w and had high BP again. Needed labetalol and nifedipine but it still turned into preeclampsia. I was on the meds for a couple of months after the birth, but this time, at 12weeks post partum, they also gave me a heart scan, ecg and a 24hr BP monitor to wear at home to check for any longer term damage / give advice on how to stay heart healthy.