Pre-Eclampsia

Hope - posted on 11/13/2012

You could check out the average risks and expectations at preeclampsia foundation's website. I'd also talk with your obgyn about your issues and if/when you want to start conceiving and get info of what to expect with this pregnancy. Good luck.

Hilary - posted on 10/27/2012

After reading the posts on this site I would just like to make more moms aware of this condition.

At 34 weeks I developed full blown eclampsia with my second child I was 22yrs of age waking one morning with convulsions. I never had this with my first child both children are by the same father.

This condition can be silent and fatal I had no symptom protein was detected in my urine the doctor and midwife asked me if I felt ok I felt fine until the convulsions. I was very lucky to survive my baby was born by Caesarian section a healthy 5lb boy on the 13th how lucky was I .

I'm in my late fifties now I have been taking high blood pressure tablets now for 3 yrs.

Jamie - posted on 12/09/2011

I had HELLP Syndrome, which I'm sure a lot of you are familiar. For those who don't know what it is it is a variant of preeclampsia. It was so scary. We were only planning on having one biological child anyway, so my husband had a vasectomy. I was relieved not to have to think of going through that again. However, there was a huge sadness that came over me for years thinking about the fact that if I did ever want another biological child I wasn't guaranteed a successful pregnancy.

However, I know for meeting multiple people with PE that you will be watch MUCH more closely this time. if you made it past 36 weeks you are way less likely to have it reoccur (unless you tested positive for an underlying disorder) - just make sure that you are getting your care for a peri or MFM.

Sara - posted on 11/12/2011

I developed preeclampsia within 24 weeks of pregnancy and delievered at 29.5 weeks as a result of developing HEELP. I was on blood pressure medicine for about 2 months after delivery. My daughter was in the NICU for a little over 6 weeks and came home 2 days after my birthday :) She had some health issues for about a year but seems to be catching up now! We are now trying for number 2 and are trying to follow a healthier lifestyle this time. I worked in a very very high stress environment, did not rest well, and could not go on bed rest for fear of my job but I quit my job when my daughter was born and hope to do better with this pregnancy. I do think a good doctor is important. I had a doctor the first go round who was not too diligent but was admitted to the hospital by a doctor who knew what to do and plan to use him this time :)

Bec - posted on 10/24/2011

Hi Chelle,
I had sever pre-eclampsia with my first and delivered at 25 weeks...he spent 6 mths in hospital before coming home. I totally understand your apprehension. It took me 7 yrs before i had my 2nd child and i never delevoped into full pre - e but did show signs of it. I had high bp the whole time and started to get traces of protein in the urine towards the end. I delivered at 37 weeks. I had a few overnight stays just to keep an eye on me, but i was given steroids early and my dr had me on half and aspirin a day. My 3rd pregnancy i also had high bp but by this stage i was used to seeing it like this and my pregnancy was pretty smooth and delivered at 39 weeks. I am now pregnant again and so far so good. It does get easier as you go along and because of your histroy, the drs will now what to look for and will moniter you much more closely. I actually had no signs leading up to pre-e the first time, it just hit suddenly so i was frightened and on on edge. My dr also gave me a bit of control back by giving my urine dipsticks to test my urine daily for protein so i felt like i had a bit more control in it all. It is important to know that even though you may have signs of pe , you may not develop it...you need to have the high bp, the protein in the urine and for your bloodwork to be showing signs, otherwise it is just classed as hypertension. And then there is different levels of pe so even if you only have it mild, it can be monitered and treated and you can be held out further in your pregnancy. ALso with moderate pe. Severe pe will be emergency delivery. At the end of the day, I think you need to have your head in the right place and expect that you will be nervous etc, but hopefully you will be better managed and your own experience will make you cautious. I imagine when you had it last time it was not something you expected. Good luck to you. I wish you all the best. This is a link to my facebook group i created, there are heaps of wonderful people on there if you ever want to ask questions or know you are not alone...http://www.facebook.com/groups/152875935... Also, i had extra doses of calcium given to me as it is supposed to help with blood pressure too... GOOD LUCK!!

Hope - posted on 10/15/2011

I had severe preeclampsia (5+ spill proteins) came on very suddenly after a month of hypertention, while on bedrest. 24hr toxima test after er sent me home from higher bloodpressure and sudden face/hand swelling. Test results sent us to our labor room. (Drs told us not to bother coming in for check up; don't go home, go to hospital room, which was waiting for me). Surprisingly they thought I was fine for natural with epidural birth. Ended up having forcept delivery; placental infarction & abruption with hemorraging. My mom's sister had severe prec and my sister had it and my mom's aunt. With my age, 33yrs now I got an 75% chance to get it again. Most cases I've read are not that high. Your obgyn would monitor your pregnancy and regulate it more knowing now that you've had it before. This was my only pregancy. My son is now a very curious and healthy toddler at almost 17months. :)

Hope - posted on 10/15/2011

Ask your obgyn about your chances of getting preeclampsia again. Check out latest research and info at preeclampsia foundation's website. God bless.

Maria - posted on 09/05/2011

Interesting about how its higher if you change partners! I never heard that i wonder what the correlation between the two are. ( im still with my "baby daddy" haha i just think thats really interesting)

Olivia - posted on 09/05/2011

I had pre-eclampsia with my first pregnancy and had my baby at 30 weeks. I spoke to my doctor and apparently you have a 30% chance of having it again....the risk is higher if you change partners. Good Luck!!

Maria - posted on 09/01/2011

I had pre eclampsia but i would not call it severe at all. We didnt even know we had it till my water broke and then they were like wow u have P.E. i was like what i do they never told me that before! i had my daughter at 35 weeks too @Kristine im glad i hear someone else had the ( somewhat) same experience with having their babies at 35 weeks. She was 6 lbs 3 oz and some people they mustve just given me the wrong date since she came out "big" eh what do they know anyways i was put on magensium and that made me really out of it and i felt drugged but other than that i couldnt complain i wouldnt worry about it with ur next if you did not have a bad experience. Its the luck of the draw i think like others have said just take care of you and your little one whent that time comes and ask questions! Im ready for another and P.E. occuring again is not even on my mind. Dont stress :)

Kristine - posted on 08/12/2011

My first two pregnancies I had Pre-Eclampsia which resulted in both my daughters being born at 35 weeks. My oldest was allowed to go home a few days after delivery but since my blood pressure was still high, I ended up staying a total of six days in the hospital. But when I was released I was on blood pressure medication and iron pills for the first two weeks I was home. Eventually everything was normal. When I got pregnant with my second daughter I ended up with Pre-Eclampsia again and was ordered to be on bedrest but with a little one running around it was hard. Since the Pre-eclampsia got so bad with my oldest daughter I was sent to the high risk OB @Chapel Hill. But yet again she was born at 35 weeks just as her older sister was but this time she wasn't as healthy as her sister. She was in the NCCU at Chapel Hill for 10 days and was constantly monitored. And with my 3rd and 4th pregnancies I was ok. Didn't have Pre-Eclampsia with either one of them. My BP was a little high with the last two pregnancies but with careful monitoring and doing what the doctor said, I was able to have my youngest two without complications. It usually runs in people's families but if you never had any history of anything like that then you will be ok. Some people are lucky and never experience anything like that while others do. It all depends. Just take care of yourself and follow your doctor's advice.

Hope - posted on 08/09/2011

I had severe preeclampsia and complications with my son's birth. (Only child). For this reason, and my age we are not trying to conceive a second child. You can find latest research and more credible info from preeclampsia foundation's website.

Melanie - posted on 08/07/2011

I had severe preeclampsia with my son, got pregnant 6 weeks after he was born with my daughter and although my BP was elevated slightly they said it wasn't preeclampsia and she was full term!! I was on complete bedrest the entire pregnancy though!! From what I was told there isn't anything you can do to prevent it but it less likely to happen a second time!! Good Luck!!

Jessica - posted on 07/04/2011

Had it with both children. 1st one, I was in hospital for only 3 days. 2nd one, 9 days. Oh and the magnesium was just my favorite thing!! The headaches, the flushed skin, the barfing and not being able to move. That was awesome...If we were planning to have another, PIH (my hospital called it Pregnancy Induced Hypertension) would be my greatest concern. I'd want to know if there was a blood pressure medication I could take while pregnant and go on bed rest as soon as we could afford it!

Tiffany - posted on 07/03/2011

i have a 3year old daughter i had pre eclampsia with her right at the end of my pregnancy, i am now 4 months pregnant with my second baby and have it again it is more likely for you to develop it again and worse then what you had it the first time

Samantha - posted on 10/23/2009

I had it 9 years ago and it is scary,lucky enough I have had 4 other bubs with no pre-eclampsia,dont let it rule you!x

Ilse - posted on 10/22/2009

I had an Hellp and my daughter was born at 30 weeks. She was in hospital for 7 weeks and is doing just fine now. ( 1 year later). The dr said that there are 2 possibilities to get an hellp. First is from your partner and second is your blood. That was my problem. I've protrombine II. That means that if i would like to have an second child i've to be followed up very closly and also get medicins from the start. There is also centain that the risk of getting a preterm most likely they only hope i get further than 30 weeks.

Angela - posted on 10/16/2009

I had Severe Neuroligal Pre-eclampsia and had to deliver our son at just 24 weeks and 4 days gestation weighing 669 grams but his weight dropped to 555 grams due to bad infection. He has a lot of complications and I too spent 4 days in HDU, he spent 121 days in NICU. I DIDN"T have HELLP BUT I too went into liver, lung and Kidney failure and took a long time to recover. I have had a number of test done and they all came back negative so have been told my risk of having a baby as premmie as Toby is 10% but could still have a prem. They would put me on CLomid as well. A good friend of my had PE with both pregnancy but got further with the second due to being kept a very close eye on, I also had a friend who lost her first baby due to PE but had a FT with her second.... I too am really scared about second pregnancy.

Bec - posted on 10/14/2009

Quoting Chelle:

Pre-Eclampsia

I'm just wondering how many of you ladies had pre-eclampsia with following pregnancies? I'm scared to death of having it again. I'm currently trying to conceive our 2nd child with the help of Clomid. But it seems like so many ladies have it again with other pregnancies. So I am curious as to how often it is happening and if there is anything to prevent it?

HI Chelle!!

I can totally understand all your apprehensions!! My first pregnancy i developed severe pre-eclampsia and delivered my son by emergency c section at 25 weeks weighing a small 1lb 7oz (688 grams) and he spent 6 mths in hospital and came home on oxygen.  He is now 10 yrs of age and i have had two more boys since then....but saying that, like you i was scared to death and told by my drs at the time the risk was extremely high if i got pregnant that it would happen again. It took me 7 yrs to get up the courage to try again...but i did it! I never developed full blown pre-eclampsia with the 2nd two pregnancies but had high bp and other symptoms...i delivered at 37 weeks and then 39 so i was estatic!! Saying that, my pregnancies were tough cause of my mental status... i spent the whole time worrying every time i went for a check up and they would tell me my bp was up etc, but i found a dr who was very patient with me and reassured me that because they were aware of my history that they knew to watch for it and would be able to manage me if things went wrong.  The thing with pre-eclampsia is that often it creeps up without you knowing it and that is where the danger is, but your history means that they know what to look for and will monitor you much more closely and take whateva precautions they can to make sure you are in the best possible postion. My dr gave me the urine dipsticks to take home and test myself everyday for protein in my urine etc because as i learnt, there are 3 factors that they use to determine whether you have preclampsia, otherwise its just high bp. They look for your raised bp, protein in the urine and your blood results. If all three at one time are showing results then it is considered pre-eclampsia, otherwise you just have symptoms that may lead to it. With my second two pregnancies i had high bp and traces of protein but my blood results always remained clear....its like they need all 3 to go off before they react and consider you a threat. So what i am getting at is it is likely you will have symptoms that can lead to it, but with close monitoring you can be taken care of. In my second pregnancy, i had to have a few hospital admissions where i was put on bedrest and monitoring so they could see if anything was going to happen. As soom as they saw nothing was moving fast, they would send me home and tell me to come back if i felt any symptoms or if i was particulalry worried. I remember one time i went in just cause i had a bad headache...lol nothing wrong but i was just paranoid! I think the hardest thing to deal with is your own fears....your experience obviously has left you with feelings that you dont want to revisit.  I think you just need to make sure in your mind you are ready for it. I remember having nurses look at me with a panic cause my bp was up so high, but i knew my history and knew that that was typical for me so i learnt not to panic at their reactions and tried to tune into my own health and well being.  I never went on bp tablets during my pregnancies but was on them after as that when my bp peaked at its all time high. So i always knew that if it got too high in pregnancy, there was that buffer fromt he drs to bring it down. I was also put on clacium tablets cause it naturally helps lower bp. Eat well, lots of fresh fruit and vegies and drink plentl of water...just little things but i believe when you try and take control of your own health and not wait for things to go wrong.   My thrid rpegnancy by the way was much better, i only got high bp in the last 4 weeks!! I now have 3 health boys and dont regret it for a minute!n I wish you all the best and pray you have good health and peace of mind!!

Randi - posted on 10/13/2009

My dr. also advised to drink Boost w/Protein and I do believe that helped.

Nicole - posted on 10/05/2009

I had pre-eclampsia with both my pregnancies also. my first my daughter was full term but i had to be induced and my BP got high. That was 5 years ago and I got it again with my son but this time it put me into labor 6 weeks early. They told me to take calcium and baby aspirin but that didn't help at all. My mom had it with me, and my half sister had it with hers. All you can really do is stay away from salty foods and soda.



And I know what you all mean, with the pre-eclamsia and both my kids and fiance having heart defects I'm scared to have anymore kids.

Heather - posted on 10/03/2009

I lost my first at 18 weeks, not sure why. My second child was born at 25 weeks because of Preeclampsia. I know of some people that have it with their second child. My doctor and the Preeclampsia foundation had stated that it typically only happens with the first pregnancy. However, it also depends on how early it took place and how long it takes you to recover. Most people that I know and have read about that had preeclampsia the second pregnancie, seemed to have the signs show up later in the pregnancy than the first one.



I understand your doubts. I would love to have another child, but am not sure that it will be safe for me or the other baby.

Jessica - posted on 10/02/2009

i experienced pre-eclampsia with both of my pregnancies. the first was at 24 weeks and we lost that baby. the second was at 33 1/2 weeks. my son is just fine. just do what the dr.'s tell you too and listen to your body.

Malaysia - posted on 09/27/2009

oh yea and the swelling sucks i got sooooo huge my last month of bein prego and i had dark circles around my eyes ugh glad thats over

Malaysia - posted on 09/27/2009

i had preeclampsia with my daughter and i had her at 34 weeks and she was in the hospital for 13 days. the doc said that if i had a 2nd child with my same partner will increase the risks of it coming bak but its nothin you can do to prevent it

Randi - posted on 09/25/2009

I had P-E with my first and had my son at 33 weeks (the P-E started at about 28 weeks). He came home in 9 days. With my 2nd my blood pressure started going up again at 34 weeks but didn't show any signs of pre-eclampsia. At 37 1/2 weeks I started spilling protein and they induced me. My liver function was still ok though (not with my first) but to be safe they induced. I was horribly swollen the first pregnancy... but not the second.



My OB told me the chance of having it with my 2nd was about 5% - my high risk OB told me it was more like 20% but still low they said. They were not expecting me to have it again. Basically they've told me that it's fine to have another although that I have to expect at least high blood pressure and that I'll always deliver a bit early.



The 2nd time around was a lot less scary though because I knew what to expect. I had been taking my BP religiously through most of the pregnancy and a lot more at about 28+ weeks. Plus, when it was high I knew to lay on my left side and drink lots of water (that will bring it down). It was also easier the 2nd time because I didn't swell.



Good luck!

Sabrina - posted on 09/24/2009

Hi. I have had 6 children and have had pre eclampsia with the last 2. Both of my children that i had it with were both preemies because of it. My daughter was induced at 36 weeks and my son was taken by emergency c section at a little over 35 weeks because of it. I did have the same partner with those children so it can happen more than once with the same partner. I believe if you can keep your blood pressure under control that helps a lot.

Cara - posted on 09/24/2009

I had HELLP Syndrome with my first son. HELLP is severe pre-eclampsia where my kidneys and liver began to fail. My blood pressure was never clinically high, just high for me. I was induced at 35 weeks and 1 day. With my second son, I was watched very closely and my blood pressure stayed low. I was very worried that I would have problems again since HELLP is a bit more likely to reoccur than straight pre-eclampsia. My oldest son was actually my second pregnancy; a year before he was born, I miscarried twins at 11 weeks after a very difficult pregnancy. All three pregnancies were with the same partner. My mom had pre-eclampsia with me and the Doctors say that put me at higher risk to have it myself.

Melissa - posted on 09/21/2009

I have only had one baby and had pre-eclampsia.... my doc said it doesnt always happen

Brooke - posted on 09/21/2009

I had severe preeclampsia with my first (and only) pregnancy and had bubs at 31 weeks because of it. I have been told that when we have our next child I should (if my BP is kept under control because am still on meds from getting preeclampsia) go full term. However if I was to get pregnant with a new partner there is all the chance in the world that I could get it again but with the same partner you should only ever get it once and not again with that partner. Is there anyone that has got it again second time round and with the same partner?

LaToya - posted on 09/20/2009

I had pre- eclamppsia with my second pregnancy. The saying was that it usually would happen with your first pregnancy but it skipped my first one. I am kinda scared to have another one because of the risk of having pre-eclampsia again.

Liz - posted on 09/16/2009

I haven't experienced it though I've only had one pregnancy so far. Though my Aunt had terrible pre-eclampsia when she had her daughter almost 7 years ago. Because it was so bad, they had told her she shouldn't have anymore kids, and my cousin was born six weeks early. She was in the NICU for 25 days and came home christmas day.



But that was seven years ago so I'm sure they've come up with things to help it now. I'd suggest talking to your doctor about your concerns and see what he/she says.