Admission to hospital for pre-eclampsia

[Fantail]

Has anyone been admitted to hospital for pre-eclampsia until term?

First pregancy, have been completely normal and healthy.

After a couple of days in hospital I have been admitted until the baby is delivered (I am 34 + 3).

I am frustrated in the least, because there are so many things that I haven't done yet, that I was planning on using the next couple of weeks to sort out, I haven't finished work yet and every thing there is in a complete mess too. I feel like I have let down a lot of people. I know that the object is a healthy baby and a healthy Mum.

I would feel better if I could go home and just be monitored that way - but I don't think that there is any chance of that happening.

i have! my bp shot up and they kept me in for a few days and it went back down again and i was let out for the night. however, the next day a scan showed that the baby had stopped growing a fortnight previously and so she was born by cs that afternoon.

there is no chance of you being monitored at home, thank god. they WANT you in hospital so that they can keep an eye on you, it's a good thing, no matter that it doesn't feel like that now.

you're still in 'but my pregnancy has been so healthy'-mode, which is why you feel all freaked out, but in fact that circs have changed now and you will adjust to that.

i really mourned the loss of my healthy pregnancy, and of those last two months with dd all to myself, but at the same time i balance that with the urgency with which they got her out of there when they realised she was in danger. (i was getting scanned every two days, that's how bad things got, and how quickly).

i feel for you, and you mustn't feel silly for feeling like you've let people down or whatever (however irrational you know that is)... when it comes down to it you will adjust to these new, rather disappointing circumstances and you will do everything you can to keep your baby safe.

dd2 was and is GREAT btw, she was with me from day 1 pretty much and was born at 4lbs1oz at 33+6, and this was not having grown in a fortnight. the fact that you have got past 34 weeks and are in a position to have steroids if you need them is a brilliant thing. good luck!

I do feel for you, but there would be no point in sending you home to be monitored. You do realise how serious pre-eclampsia is don't you?

All the things you needed to do will eventually get done, everyone will understand that you are ill, and need to be in hospital.

Your life and the life of your baby is by far the most important thing here, and anybody who complains is not worth your attention.

Try to rest. Sending you positive vibes and best wishes, hoping all goes well for the birth.

I spent 3 weeks on the ante-natal ward for a different reason, and I know it is frustrating - I had weeks of lunches and pampering plannned. And I missed Valentine's day!

You haven't let ANYONE down. Beds are at a premium - they are thinking of the health of you and the baby and it IS the best place for you to be.

Take lots of snacks and chocolate - coins for the coffee machine/TV cards thingy and lots to read. I was in with others in your situation and it was like a 3 week long coffee morning - lots of tv, gossip and tea drinking. And there were new babies to look every morning over breakfast

At least you will get some rest in advance!

Thanks, your message really means a lot to me. What you said about mourning the loss of a healthy pregnancy is bang on, that is exactly what I feel like I am doing. Also

I had a scan at 31+3, and am meant to be having one today and the predicted weight was already 4lbs something.

sorry, meant to say no chance until your bp goes down etc.

4lbs something is not scary, just a perfect miniature baby, i promise. ask to see round the scibu ward while you are in, though, just in case the baby goes there for a wee while if you are ill. (that's what happened to me, but only for a night and dh was with her).

Yes, I finished work on the Friday, had my mw check-up on tuesday morning (36+3) and was sent straight to hospital. My bag wasn't packed, I hadn't read "that chapter" () of the book and nothing was ready. In the end the wait wasn't that long because my condition (and that of the baby) deteriorated rapidly and I had an emcs on the Thursday.

I couldn't have done a month in bed though.

I meant to say too - 4lbs + might sound tiny, but when you have your baby you won't realise. It's only when I look back at the pictures of when he first came home I realise just how tiny he was, but for me it seemed normal. He spent 2 nights in SCBU and they were wonderful. The nurses took me up (pushed me in my bed) any time I wanted to see him day or night plus I had a video monitor next to my bed so I could see him all the time. :)

I had to go in for a week before a CS. I got up every morning for a shower, lingered over breakfast, put my make up on and got dressed in comfy clothes, but no pyjamas every day. They let me out for walks, trips to the cafe etc and I got someone to come and have lunch with me every day. Try to do things like that. :)

Thanks again. Asking about SBU care is important and something that will make me feel more confident about the process.

Panzee - that is a great idea about making sure I go out for walks and the like. Fresh air and seeing normal for at least a couple of ours will be good for my general well being I think.

Yes it happened to me!

I was 32 weeks when I was taken in and missed my last two weeks at work.

I was constantly monitored, scans every week and blood tests every week also.

It is frustrating but you know there is an end to it and you are not stuck in there forever.
I met lots of nice people to chat to, some in there over night and others bought in early for a few weeks.

It was hard on DH as well as hospital was not close to home and he was doing a long day then coming to visit me every day. We missed our wedding anniversary, his birthday and my birthday.

DS was finally induced at 38 weeks (on my birthday) but that took 3 days and I finally went home after being in 7 weeks. He was a healthy 6lb 7 and is now a 6ft tall high achieving teenager.

I was determined not to feel like a patient! :o

I was admitted at 36 weeks with pre-eclampsia with DD1 and stayed in until the baby was born.

My reaction was exactly like yours - do I really need to be here? There's so much I haven't got sorted! I asked my consultant whether I could at least go home first to pack a bag and get a bit more organised. She looked me straight in the eyes and said, "Of course you can, but it will be against my advice" - her way of telling me not to be an arse.

Any colleagues worth their salt will not resent you in the slightest - their only thought will be for you and your baby. When you're settled in hospital perhaps you can write up some notes to help whoever's taking over your work.

The long stay in hospital can be dull as ditchwater. My tips are as follows:

• get dressed in decent clothes each day to stop you slipping into patient mode

• move around as much as you can

• get someone to bring you in food from 'outside'; hospital food is vile

• spend the time doing whatever preparation you can to help you feel more in control. Once the shock of being admitted has worn off, you can reassess what needs doing before the birth and decide who you can enlist to help get that sorted - partner, parents, friends, colleagues, etc.. Now is the time to get other people to help you out (lots of people love being given a job to do to stop them feeling helpless).

• spend time treating yourself. Books, magazines, face masks... Make sure you have some music with you.

I really feel for you. It's not how anyone wants this stage of pregnancy to be. If it helps, I found that once the baby was born (at full-term, now a healthy 8 year-old), the memory of being in hospital soon faded and I was completely absorbed in looking after her.

Very best of luck.

I was home monitored for the about 4 weeks as my PE was mild and i live 1/2 a mile from the hospital. i went in every morning carrying my wee in a container and had blood pressure etc tests each morning - it was very tiring and restricting, so i can imagine how fed up/frustrated you must feel right now.

there is a feeling that everything is happening around you and you have no control, which can get you down I know - i wish you all the best for the next few weeks

i was told i was expecting a 4 pounder and he arrived at 6 pound!

Please please stay in hospital...they honestly want you there for a reason.

I got a phone call from the hospital in November when I was 32 weeks after a routine urine test had revealed my protein levels were through the roof and they wanted to admit me for more tests. I felt absolutely fine and had literally no symptoms at all.

They thought it was actually a problem with my kidneys at first and that it was nothing to do with the baby as my BP was fine but they decided to admit me as obviously as I was pregnant there was a fairly good chance it could be pre-eclampsia.

That night I sobbed to the one of the senior mw's that I felt fine and I wanted to go home to see my other little boy and her reply was that she couldn't make me stay but the dr's were really concerned about me and it was the best place for me.

Over the weekend I was checked and monitored constantly and my BP started creeping up and up and I soon resembled a balloon I was so swollen...yet I still felt fine. No headache and no other symptoms. On the monday afternoon I attempted to walk to the shop to get a magazine and literally couldn't breathe as there was so much swelling...the mw's paged the dr and they said baby needed to be out! They gave me the pessary and contractions started almost straight away...they said they would give it until the morning (it was 6pm by that point) and if nothing had happened they would do a c-section. Everything went well and they broke my waters at just before midnight and Joseph was born at 12.47am weighing 3lb 8oz. He was absolutely fine and thankfully needed no oxygen or anything as Id had some steroid injections.

It was honestly the scariest thing Ive ever had to cope with-and I am just so so thankful that I did stay in hospital because there is no way I would have known my BP would rise that dramatically and that quickly especially as I had no real symptoms.

Joe is fine now-he was on NICU for 3 weeks and although is still quite small is doing really well.

I know its not want you want to be in hospital but honestly its much better being there than being monitored at home. One minute my BP was fine and then 1 hour later it was through the roof...there is no way that they'd have known that if I was at home. Hope everything goes well for you.

Thanks again for all your support. I know that I need to stay in hospital.

At least we live close by and DH can get here easily from work.

At least I have the computer, so I don't feel like I am completely cut off from the world.

DH is going to have to learn to make up a baby's cot!

Stupid pregnancy hormones don't make it any easier to think straight and cope with things like this!

regarding the computer, personal dvd, mobile phone charger etc the hospital may have a policy about electricals that haven't been checked by the hospital electrician... this was mentioned to me a few times. at our hosp it was going to take a fortnight to get it checked so i just used to give them a pleasant but firm stare and say that he was very welcome to come and check them if he could spare the time, but otherwise the nurse would have to be faster than me if she wanted to confiscate them. having said that, i was stuck with a small baby in a room for ten days, you may be able to avoid this by charging up in the cafe etc.

box set bliss btw...

My hospital didn't have a problem at all with electrical devices but tbh I'm not sure when I've have used them. Everything seemed to be happening and it was all such a blur, if I wasn't being fed, I was being wheeled off for a scan, or having my BP taken, or talking to x or y consultant. Every time I opened my book something else came up. :)

"At least I have the computer, so I don't feel like I am completely cut off from the world"

Mobile phones were a rarity when I was in and the phone calls cost a fortune. It would have been lovely to have the internet/tv things they have now.

I had the sympthoms of PE from about 30 weeks, but my mw told me that I was just tired becuase of the pregnancy, dehydrated ( headaches) dizzy ( visual disturbances) and had heartburn (epigastic pain). i didn't swell and my BP wasn't that high ( although high for me).I was rushed in at 41 weeks with bp 240/140 and i nearly died from multiple organ failure, so you are definitely in the best place. Try not to stress and cross your legs and hopefully you'll be able to keep that baby in there until 37weeks. They wouldn't have you in there unless it was serious.

Also do be afraid to ask lots of questions in you don't understand any of the treatment ;-)

very true.... i got a lovely lot of reading done too.

there is something to be said for this, OP, you won't get the chance to open a book for the next five years, you know.

I keep my reading material next to the toilet these days. :(

No one has mentioned anything about not using the computer etc, so I will presume that it is fine until told otherwise.

Have got season 1 of the West Wing sat beside me now and think that I may have to purchase a couple more (was on my to do list!)

Have also got my Kindle.

Has all made me realise that I am actually not just getting fatter, but actually am going to be a Mum soon!

actually have just remembered re my story... we did know dd was small for dates, and were monitoring that, the thing that caused the emergency cs was that in the space of two days i had gone from having loads of amniotic fluid to nearly nothing. as they put it, 'there is a tipping point between your body being the safest place for your baby and it becoming an actively hostile environment'. oh how i SOBBED. but they were right, and look how quickly that tipping point was reached. so yes, relax into your hospital stay and get everyone used to running around after you...

lol re toilet, alpine.
good luck fantail, it will be okay, this is just a big shock, that's all. and OMG YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A BABYYYYY!