37 + 5 Blood pressure spike!

[Pumpkinmoo]

Hi,
Sorry for the long post!

Just looking for some advice or to see if anyone has had a similar experience.
yesterday I had a midwife appointment in replace of my 38 week appointment as my midwife is on annual leave next week.
I am a low risk pregnancy and am registered at our midwife led centre. My blood pressure has been perfect throughout pregnancy ( I even had it taken last week and it was 105/65) the highest it has ever been was 110/70. My readings have been pretty consistent throughout each appointment.
Anyway yesterday we went to the midwife appointment and my BP was 130/90 a massive jump and I have some swelling in my ankles and feet. My midwife said it might just be because of stress but I may have to be induced if it’s still high so she said she would measure again at the end of the appointment but that I am to start my mat leave now as I had been working ( I work at a primary school) and she said it is too much. She measured again and it was even higher 145/90 so she sent us to the hospital that afternoon for a growth scan and BP monitoring.
I am super anxious of hospitals so was a state by the time we got there and my BP was really high like 154/94 or something like that. We had to stay for 2 hour monitoring with BP taken every half an hour ( one being taken after just having a blood test which u had a panic attack about :/) anyway they remained high at the hospital with it gradually going down but only to 142/84. My urine and bloods were all clear and apart from the swelling have no other signs of pre eclampsia.
We were discharged as I’m on the borderline apparently, 5 hours after attending the growth scan so were at the hospital for about 6 and a half hours in total. I was told to come back if I have more swelling or headache ect.
The midwives are meant to be coming out on Monday to recheck my BP, but I’m so anxious now I know the weekend will drag. I also had some loose bowels (TMI) on returning home from the hospital. Now I’m panicking that every tiny thing is something dreadful and that I’ll have to deliver or be induced at hospital rather than the birthing centre.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you so much!

I had similar to you. My BP was often high (140/80) so I was being monitored twice a week by the midwife at my local surgery. At 33 weeks my BP jumped up to 156/100 so off to hospital I went, feeling incredibly anxious which sent my BP even higher! When I got there they did find protein in my urine which was confirmed by bloods so they diagnosed pre-eclampsia and kept me in. By morning my BP was consistently down to 140/80 again so they discharged me and continued with regular monitoring. Luckily everything stayed reassuring and my baby was born healthy at 40 weeks. It's been put down in my notes as 'borderline pre-eclampsia' as after that day they didn't find protein in my wee again so I'm not really sure what was going on! As your bloods aren't suggestive of pre-eclampsia it could just be a random BP spike, maybe due to stress, dehydration or a minor infection. It's good that you'll be well monitored now :) Try to do something fun/relaxing to take your mind off things (easier said than done I know - I worried throughout my pregnancy!) I did have to have an induction due to having gestational diabetes and needing insulin but if your pregnancy has otherwise been straightforward it's definitely worth having a birthplan conversation next time you see the midwives as you may well be able to choose where you give birth :)

Thank you for replying!!
The midwife has been out this morning and BP was 148/94 so still high but they said it’s elevated rather than super high so I wouldn’t be put on medication. They are coming back to check me again on Friday. I’m feeling a bit more anxious now as it’s not a fluke reading but my swelling in my ankles has gone down and I was advised again to not go back to work. I’m now just sat at on the sofa stressing a bit! Can’t wait for baby girl to make and appearance so I can chill!
She was 3/5rhs engaged on Friday but I have no pressure down there at all so feeling like labour isn’t really very imminent.
I just want to cry I can’t believe I’ve gone from being so low risk to now being monitored twice weekly. Sorry for the rant! 🤍

Hiya, I had a similar story really. A few days before my due date I felt my baby was a bit quieter that evening and so took my blood pressure at home… it was high and just kept getting higher.

I called the unit and went in for monitoring. I was kept in overnight and then had a growth scan which showed iugr because baby was measuring just below 10th percentile whereas had been on 50th throughout.. granted I hadn’t had a growth scan for about 10 weeks. I was put on medication and told because of all of the above I needed to be induced and have monitoring throughout birth without an end to my hopes of the MLU and a water birth.

I was sobbing at the thought of induction and just wanted to go home. I assumed they meant straight away but it was scheduled for 48 hours later. I went home and did everything in my power to start labour off on my own, which I managed to. I went in to the hospital 5cm dilated at the time my induction was booked.

I assume your baby is measuring ok? It is rubbish but please do try to relax I know full well that stress stopped my bp coming down too.

I was on the meds for a week after I gave birth, (I was in for a week after) as it stayed high. As soon as I got home I never needed to take medication again which I don’t think was a coincidence.

Have you asked if you are still considered low risk now you have had high bp reading? If you are it might be worth asking at what point wouldn’t you, so that you can maybe prepare for this in your head. It is really rubbish and I completely understand the disappointment but remember the priority will always be getting baby safely here so try and think of that as your key driver to your decision making.

@BabyH01 Thank you so much for your reply!
baby was measuring okay on Friday a bit big but they weren’t concerned.
How did you get your labour started if you don’t mind me asking? If induction gets booked in I’d like to try to start it off naturally as much as I can.

Im constantly telling my partner I have felt reduced movements and then she goes crazy as soon as he starts talking or trying to feel her ( I think it’s just me building it up more in my head, now that I know my BP isn’t great).
I will send the midwife a text today to ask about what risk I am. I’m so terrified of the hospital and Friday has really put me off going as no one seemed to know what was going on.
Im just wanting little girl out now at least then I can worry about her and physically see her whereas now I’m down for the twice weekly monitoring I’m also worrying if it’s harming her my bp being so high for so long.

Aw, sorry it's been stressful. My blood pressure was elevated for nearly my whole pregnancy and my baby remained happy and healthy. I'd be very reassured that they haven't recommended baby needs to come out right away or put you on meds - all suggests they think your baby's doing well in there :) I'm also terrified of hospitals and have health anxiety so I completely relate to hating the uncertainty. I was high risk so was induced on the consultant led unit. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I told all the midwives how anxious I was and there were some lovely ones who made sure to explain to me exactly what was going on and why throughout labour. I had the Foley catheter balloon to kick off my induction. Once I was in active labour they recommended I have an epidural as this often helps to lower blood pressure and it did for me (still stayed high but not really high). Not long now and you'll get to meet your precious girl! I found having a good cry really released some nervous tension so don't be afraid to let ALL the emotions out! 😅