Pre-eclampsia mentalling thread

[Fishandjam]

A place to come and kvetch/worry/chill for anyone at risk of developing pre-eclampsia in their pregnancy. We have buckets for those still feeling sick, cushions for those who are just plain knackered, and crisps and ginger beer for everyone else. Come and say hi!

My bp was 80/50 or 90/60

My BP was normal at booking in (can't remember exactly but something like 110/70) and then shot up at 37 weeks - kept coming down when I went into the DAU though, much in the same way that when you demonstrate your faulty washing machine to the repairman, it works perfectly! It was really only the blood tests which revealed everything was going tits up.

Had ante appointment this morning was told that my bp high. Been having constant swelling in feet that won't go and ocassionaly in hands. No protein but have been having headaches bit had put this down to not sleeping well. Generally no energy, but midwife just said keep an eye and she will see me in a week, but not feeling very assured. Bit worried

keep ringing the mw if you're worried shyera. how far along are you? if you feel at all unwell then ring again and ask them to check bp again.

thanks for the responses re when's and what's of bp's will see what mine is at consultant appt next week.

What a lot of truly scary experiences. I had PE, developed around 36 weeks. Previous low BP shot through the roof and I was swollen like a balloon. My feet looked like pigs trotters. Funnily enough it was picked up when the midwife visited to discuss my home birth. Obviously the HB went out the window. Had to be induced, stayed in hospital for over a week as my liver count was dodgy but other complications I experienced weren't related. I swore never again but I never meant it. Hoping this time round I can stave it off somehow. I seem to remember that calcium helps but if anyone has any top tips I'd try anything to keep the blasted thing at bay! I am 5 years older this time round too. Gulp.

How many weeks are you midgetm?

Very early days for me. Only BFP last week. And I have dodgy history mc and ectopic so I don't normally think beyond week to week but do want to do all I can just in case I do carry to term (ish)!

You should get a referral to a consultant. Go see you gp.

Seeing my consultant for mc in 2 weeks so will also book in with midwife and ask for obs referral. I shall collect consultants like stamps!

evening all - hope everyone is well, chilled and normal blood-pressured.

quick update from me:
20weeks today, been at clinic and had scan and first uterine artery doppler.
bp slightly raised, 1+ protein (but mw said the analyser was super-sensitive) and has sent off the whole sample to check. they've given me a home monitoring kit. doppler showed slightly increased resistance, so will have another at 24 weeks.

on the plus side, healthy baby on scan, and they saw the parallel lines so dd is going to have a dsis

oh, and they won't induce me as i have had a previous section. they will let me labour if i start naturally but if baby needs to come out it will be a section - which tbh, i'm quite relieved about

Thanx missingmymarbles headaches eased now. I am 38 weeks. Got appointment tomorrow to check bp. Thanx

Ciwi - how did it go??? hope you are busy snuggling your new baby xxx

Congratulations on the good scan Marbles. I also had a scan this week and all seems well. Baby was in an awkward position but sonographer said it was likely to be a girl. I've also seen a consultant and been referred for doppler tests in a couple of weeks. Did the doctors mention whether they will monitor you more closely if the doppler shows resistance? The doc just said to me that if there is resistance then you have a higher chance of developing PE again but if no resistance is found it doesn't mean you won't get it either. So is it really a useful test? It doesn't seem very conclusive. Like you, I also had a section last time so cannot be induced and need to be continuously monitored during labour. I wonder if I should just go for an elcs this time as I can't imagine labouring successfully under those circumstances.
Sorry this is rambling post, it's mostly me thinking outloud!!

hi toomany congrats on your scan too

they said they would keep repeating the dopplers every 4 weeks to see if resistance increases. i was told that i would be closely monitored regardless of what the dopplers showed in view of my history. and yes, it doesn't conclusively tell you, you will or won't get it whether the doppler shows resistance or not, so no, i am not sure really how useful it is. that said, if the trend is increasing resistance, i think that is indicative of potential problems. ultimately though, it doesn't make any difference to outcome or treatment, just gives them the heads up i suppose...

i can't help feeling a bit robbed of the whole labour experience, not that i am screwed up by it any way but i would quite like to labour this time if possible, however i just can't imagine making it that far

I have no business on the pregnany board but I just saw this in active convos. I also had the misdiagnosed pre-eclamptic liver failure thing in my first pg. Ds was born by cs at 34 weeks with terrible lungs and was in SCBU for 8 weeks. I spent a total of 4 weeks in hospital. It was horrible.

So I thought anyone in a similar situation on their second pg might like to hear about dd, my success story! Had the uterine doppler thing at 20 weeks which didn't look good, so spent most of the rest of the pg being scanned and weeing in pots. I took low dose aspirin from 12 weeks on the advice of my consultant, which I think did a lot of good as my bp started going up when I stopped taking it at 36 weeks. Bloods got steadily worse and my consultant booked me for a repeat cs at 40 weeks (really wanted a VBAC but couldn't induce due to previous cs).

Went into labour at 39+5 and dd was born at 39+6, a bit small but completely healthy. Despite being on the CLU and agreeing to every intervention the consultant wanted (CFM, cannula, ARM when things weren't progressing "fast enough") she was a spontaneous VBAC with just a bit of gas and air. I feel a bit teary even writing this as I was so convinced I was going to have another prem cs (was still expecting SCBU even when I got past 36 weeks!). It was amazing and healed lots of demons.

Wishing all of you on subsequent pgs (or first with PET symptoms) the best of luck with all my heart

aww wow liege that is a great story! thanks so much and congratulations on your dd too

missing, I could have written that last sentence in your post before mine - I so desperately wanted to "do it right" the second time but couldn't imagine I ever would. So it is possible! I have scrolled back up the the thread a bit and saw your first dc was prem too. I can't tell you how wonderful it was to cuddle dd all night long the first night and bf her and change her nappy and then take her home with me! I very much hope you get the same experience second time round.

Hi everyone! I had my 20 week scan a few days ago and all looks fine - growth parameters straight down the middle. Though no further monitoring for me other than bloods until 32 weeks. I seem to be brewing a pink'un too :)

Liege, great story - thanks for sharing!

PS: just bumping for potential new members.

hey fish - glad all seems well with you and a pink'un as well

also glad you bumped the thread - was starting to mental that i was the only one mentalling

Hi ladies. So, what do you think: over the last few days I've been feeling really crappy. Terribly tired and lethargic, fuzzy headed, loss of appetite (though not total), heartburn, general "can't be bothered" feeling. BP according to my home monitor is fine (120/70 or thereabouts). No fluid retention that I can see - wedding ring still loose etc. Poo appears normal

Question is, do I bother the midwife now or shall I give it a couple more days? I am recovering from a horrible fluey bug, which itself came hard on the heels of a chest infection that needed antibios to clear. So it could just be my body saying "OK, I've had enough for a bit, you need to take it easy!"

Bump as I feel very simular to you fishandjam. Past 2 days had a headache, bit of a stiff neck, wee is darker, been a bit loose, feel lightheaded/spaced out. Very tired. No swelling though.I have had rib pain which feels like in top of my back to.this is my second pregnancy, I developed mild pre-eclampsia at 40weeks in my last pregnancy

Tbh fish sounds like you need a rest. I had a fortnight of stinking cold, laryngitis and then felt fuzzy headed and exhausted for a bit afterwards. But you know how it is, if you're worried call your midwife. I imagine though, if your bp is within range for you she'll test your urine and if it's clear you're probably just recovering.

Thanks missing and confuzed. I think I'll see how I am tomorrow and if I still feel crap, I'll ring the midwife. She'll probably send me to the DAU anyway! I'm due for a scheduled appointment with her a week tomorrow in any event, where she was going to get some bloods done, so I guess it won't be disastrous if that happens a week early.

One thing which is bugging me a little is that I've drunk literally pints of fluid today - probably around 8-9 of weak barley water or water with lemon juice in - and I can only have peed around a pint back out. All nice and pale though, so not too worried (had an episode a few days ago where it looked like neat orange squash, because I'd not kept my fluid intake up! Eeksters!)

Sheesh, if anyone had told me a few years ago that I'd be discussing the colour of my urine with total strangers on an internet message board, I'd have laughed...