37 weeks pregnant, preeclampsia, hypertension, anxiety attacks and really fed up now help

[tranceSAM]

Im 37 weeks pregnant and was diagnosed with Preeclampsia at 31 weeks, ever since my blood pressure has been around the 80-100 mark where im usually a 60, it has been rising but now staying around the 153 over 90 ish mark. I have been coming to the maternity unit every other day since being diagnosed, My uric acid is high and protein in urine. I was then also diagnosed with hypertension a few weeks ago and was put on 500mg of methyldopa to get my blood pressure down which isnt working but getting all the side effects from it and started having panic attacks. Im now in the maternity unit and started having anxiety attacks, last night my face went funny and was told by the neurologist i had a mini stroke which sometimes rarely happens with preeclampsia. I have all the severe preeclampsia symptoms and the baby is happy but now im getting so depressed and low i dont think i can go on, i keep saing i want to be induced now but they want to obviously do the best for the baby but its causing me so much pain i have had enough. Im so drained and always seeing flashing lights, black spots, migranes, light sensitive etc and they just cant keep giving me so much tablets its unreal, they are giving me my 500mg methyldopa 3 times a day, iron tablets twice a day, codine 3-4 and paracetamol 3-4 times a day and now they want me to take tablets for anxiety.

I know i have rattled on even though there is so much more i could say, but i am so down, my family, friends and partner try to keep my spirits up but itd now not working? What can i do?

trance you poor thing. I have had PE twice so can empathise, though in a way I was fortunate in that mine progressed rapidly and so they whipped my DCs out pretty quickly before I became any sicker (DS at 30wks, DD at 36wks). Sounds like you have it pretty full-blown now, and in a way I'm surprised they are letting the pregnancy continue now you are at full-term- but the docs know best- I am assuming they're doing regular blood tests to check for liver function and platelet level- and probably unless that starts to show bad results and baby is still doing ok they may want to wait a while longer. Have you discussed how you feel properly with a consultant obstetrician rathen than the midwives/registrars?
Also the methyldopa can really make you feel depressed- I was on it for last few weeks of my last pregnancy, and for 3 months following until BP finally stabilised, and it certainly made me feel like a black cloud was hanging over me all the time. Plus the high BP can make you very anxious.

I really recommend the US Preeclampsia Foundation forums, a great bunch of ladies there- if you can get online perhaps try posting on there as you may get a lot more advice: www.preeclampsia.org/forum/default.asp

Good luck- I really hope the PE doesn't get much worse but also hope the docs make the decision soon to induce so you and your LO are ok, and you can start on the road to recovery. Big hugs to you xxx

oh how awful for you - i don't have any experience of this or advice but just wanted to send you warm thoughts & hope for your sake that you will be well again soon! I hope they will bring the baby early for you to be honest, sounds awful having to cope with what you're going through as well as being heavily pregnant! Do you have loved ones in the hospital with you for support? sincere best wishes to you.

Poor you trance, it's shit, isn't it?

I was in a similar situation when I had my DD. Being in hospital was so boring, so noisy and the most un-restful place ever. I couldn't wait to go home.

The nurses and midwives used to refer to those of us who were there what seemed like indefinitely as lifers and it was like a prison sentence, virtually strapped to your bed!

Of course you know that they all want whats best for the baby as do you and if that means you have to lump it in there with what seems like massive cocktail of drugs then just try to remember that's for a very short period of time and the end result will be a beautiful and healthy baby.

Do you read? Could you get yourself a big tome of a book and get into it and try to escape from reality a bit through that for a week? By that time you may have gone into labour or they may be more inclined to induce.