Post Partum Pre Eclampsia

Yasmin - posted on 05/10/2013

This post has been here for a while but i still wanted to respond and share my story.

I too never knew that you could still get eclampsia AFTER giving birth. Here's what happened 6 days after I got home from the hospital.

My whole body experienced swelling. I too was told it was normal and that it would get better in a few days... but it didn't! It even got worse and people even thought I was STILL pregnant. So as I was saying, after 6 days, it became impossible for me too sleep. My stomach and chest became so heavy, I couldn't breathe anymore when I would lie down. I heard a strange sound that seemed to be coming from the back of my neck and it resembled the sound of electricity buzzing. I immediately got the impression that my blood pressure was messing but I didn't tell anybody. However that morning, I was kinda confused and my husband told me I kept on babbling about some weird stuff I can't even remember anymore. After eating about 3 spoons of oatmeal that morning, I began to puke - hard! And that's when my headache started. I told my husband to take me to the house of a friend cause I thought I was suffocating in our own house which had very little space. So he took me. By noon, my vision got blurry and I thought I looked too much into the sun. At first, it was as if I caught too many camera flashes. But as the evening approached, my eyes got extremely sensitive to light and the blurring got worse. My husband texted my OB about what was happening but she implied I must just have lacked on sleep the night earlier... which was actually true, so we bought it. That night, my mom came to pick us up. She was shocked upon seeing me, cause according to her, I got so swollen, it was hard to recognize me. So she promised we'd see another doctor the next day. That though, didn't happen anymore.

As soon as we arrived at home, I tried to keep my mind on different things and not focus on what my body was going through. So I talked to my baby. My in-laws were there that time and everybody told me that my baby smiled as she heard my voice. Unfortunately my vision was so bad, I didn't see that anymore. Just a few minutes later I started crying and as everybody asked what was wrong, I explained what was going on with my eyes. They tried to convince me though that it was just the effect of anesthesia, but THAT I didn't buy anymore. My husband tried to contact my OB one more time. This time she told him to check my blood pressure. So my husband ran to the neighborhood to borrow the device. 180/100, but he didn't tell me. Instead he acted as if the device was broken. Then he convinced me to go to the hospital so they could check my blood pressure there.

I literally almost crawled towards the van that would take us to the hospital cause by then my sight was almost gone. At the hospital I went completely blind, and they had to somewhat carry me to the wheelchair. We were just on time. Just as we entered the ER, the last thing I can remember is, I heard someone ask what happened, somebody raised me from the wheelchair, and there! My eyes went up, my jaw somewhat locked and I couldn't pull through a single breath! I knew I was going to faint and my last thought was I'd never see my daughter again. And that's when I completely blocked out.

My husband told me my mouth foamed and i was shaking. My mom cried and everybody thought I was going to die. Thankfully though, doctors and nurses were able to revive me. I still don't remember what happened when I woke up. I am told that I was screaming and kicking everybody coming near me, including my OB, whom I gave a hard time putting on my catheter (sp?). Also I learned that my blood pressure reached the rate of 240/110, thus the seizure.

When I woke up again (in my hospital room this time) my eyesight had returned, but my speech was slurry and half of my body felt numb. I really thought I had undergone a stroke, but thank God, that wasn't the case. So yeah, I stayed for a week more at the hospital. After 7 days of non-stop sleeping, barely eating, constant urine monitoring, and hardly standing on my feet, I was finally sent home.

For about two months, I had to take maintenance prescriptions for my blood pressure. Somehow I coped... but it's an experience I wish never happened, and I believe could have been prevented if I, or at least my OB had known better. :(

Donna - posted on 01/30/2013

and one last thing I wanted to mention...please know that if you have pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, you are at a much higher risk at getting it again the next time around so you have to be extra careful and aware of what to watch out for. Make sure your doctor knows if you've had it in the past.

Donna - posted on 01/30/2013

Hi Deanna,
Typcially, you should have a follow up appointment with your OBGYN after you give birth. I developed eclampsia about a week after I gave birth and I can empathize with everything you're saying. Thankfully you were staying with your grandmother. You're right, there's not alot of info out there about POST eclampsia. I didn't know it could happen after delivering either. The best advise I would give anyone not feeling well is to trust your body. There are some really good doctors out there and then there's alot who minimize and blow-off your symptoms. It's easier for them to just say you'll be fine and hang up the phone as opposed to dealing with your situation and trying to figure out what's going on. My doctor was this way. I had severe headaches (and I mean SEVERE...i've had migraines all my life and the headache I had during the eclampsia were worse than any migraine I ever had). It felt like someone was sitting on my chest. I was vomiting. I had protein in my urine in the last trimester and my doctor told me "not to worry about". One thing I'd really like to point out to people is that my blood pressure was not sky high. My normal BP is very low...usually 90/60. So a BP of 140/90 really is considered high for me. My BP started off in this range and it wasn't until I had a grand mal seizure that it really shot up close to 200. Before the seizure, I had been at the ER twice, called my doctor several times and basically was told it was a migraine and I had to let it pass. One day I woke up and couldn't see. My husband came upstairs to talk to me and I couldn't understand what he was saying. I heard him, but it was like I couldn't comprehend the words...very scary and strange. Anyway, that's when I had the seizure and they called an ambulance (I stopped breathing). My husband told them to take me to a different hospital this time and right when they explained the symptoms to them, they said it was "textbook eclampsia". I am so thankful I went to that hospital instead of the first one that told me it was a simple "migraine" (the first one also said i had pneumonia which they said accounted for the pain in my chest). The OBGYN that was on call there saved my life. He immediately diagnosed me and aggresively treated me for eclampsia. He is still my doctor to this day. ***If you do not feel well, don't let anyone tell you there's nothing wrong. Go for a second opinion, a third, ...whatever is necessary. It's your body and your life.

Mika - posted on 11/20/2012

My blood pressure was normal throughout the first 8 months of my pregnancy. A little less than a month before my due date my blood pressure went up to 140/90 which was weird because it had been a perfect 120/80. I went back to the doctor 2 days later and it was back to normal so we just continued on with the pregnancy. I had my son 10 days after his due date via c-section, and my blood pressure went up again, but that was perceived as being caused by the stress of delivery attempts. I went home from the hospital 3 days later and thought I had gotten a cold from the hospital because I was coughing a lot. My second day home the wound from the c-section was gaping open and I had a headache. I called my doctor because I thought the problem was an infection related to the c-section, but they said as long as there was no fever, I was probably fine, and to use medical tape to re-close the wound. When I woke up the next morning I had lost my vision and was having a hard time breathing. My mother had to drive me to the hospital and help me fill out the forms because I was in such bad shape. After waiting in the waiting area for almost an hour, they took me back and my blood pressure was 200 and something/100 and something. I was in the hospital for 4 days until I finally got my vision back, but the headaches went away within 2 days. I was on magnesium sulfate (i think) and that caused amnesia which was weird. The very worst was the first night when i was waking up begging for water and the nurses telling me I couldn't have any. After 5 days I was released from the hospital and given a prescription for high blood pressure meds. Leaving that hospital was the happiest day of my life.

It's been a little over two years, and my blood pressure has been normal but my vision never went back to my pre-pregnancy 20/20. This was my first and ONLY child. My "morning sickness" never went away during the pregnancy and I was treated for nausea the entire time. I don't know if that might have been a sign or not. I was also working a really stressful 60-hour a week job. Just wanted to share my experiences since I've felt better by reading some of the others on here.

Cynthia - posted on 10/11/2012

I am sitting in the hospital as we speak with post-partum preclampsia. This is the second time I have came down with it. With my first child, I had started to get headaches around 2 weeks after the delivery. When I went to the doctor that week for a baby, mommy check-up, my blood pressure was 160/90. They told me that I probably had sinus problems to go home and treat them as normal. The headaches didnt go away...they continued to get worse to the point that I literally felt like I was dying from the pain. After going to the doctor 2 or 3 times complaining of the headaches and my sister bringing me the preclampsia information from WebMd, I finally got the doctor to look into itas a possible cause of the headaches and blood pressure. He did, they admitted me in the ICU for 24 hours with mag sulfate and monitored me. I ended up on blood pressure medicine for 3 months after, then eventually, I didnt need it anymiore.



After having a misscarriage in September of last year, we decided to try one more time, with our doctor not concerned that preclampsia being an issue. I delivered my little boy on October the 1st and he is sweet as can be. I have so much to live for between him and his darling sisters. However, I am now sitting in the hospital once again, with the mag drip freshly removed waiting for the blood pressure meds to regulate me to normal. For the last 3 days I have had blood pressures as high as 190/110, living on pain meds for the headaches. I would not wish this on my worst enemy and women should be awar of the symptoms and that it can happen to anyone. I am a healthy, normal 23 year old gal and hate to be sitting here while my new little baby is being cared by someone else. I have been asking for a round of prayer, so if you believe, please do so. God bless you. I hope this helps too by the way!

Jessica - posted on 04/14/2012

I deleloped preeclampsia about 2 hours after I delivered my second child, he is now 2 months old. I had normal BP during pregnancy. I kept asking if it was normal that I barely was bleeding. And they told me it was fine. I only bled for a few days when I got home and that was it, and it was barely anything at all. I know, nothing to complain about, but it didn't seem normal. I have been on BP meds for 2 months. I was up to 400 mgs. a day. 2 weeks ago they took me down to 200 mgs. a day. Last week, they put me on 100 mgs. a day, even though my blood pressure was reading high, 155/110. But because I was reading fine in the actual office, they thought it was okay to lower me. I finally got my period back after 2 months and now my blood pressure has returned to normal. I wonder if that has something to do with it because up until that day, my blood pressure was reading in the 150's. I feel great now that my blood pressure is down and holding. I am worried that once my period is over, it is going to shoot back up. I wish they could find out what causes post partum preeclampsia, especially when you didn't have it while you were pregnant. It is scary to be at home alone with your 3 year old and 2 month old while your husband is at work and your blood pressure is reading in the 160's at times and your doctor doesn't seem like it is a big deal. I wish I could shake him and say, "It's a big deal to me. Someone who was healthy 2 hours before you delivered me. You tell me that you have seen this, but rarely and you don't know what is going on, but you seem like it isn't a big deal." When did doctors stop listening to their patients and, right in front of them, act like they didn't care?

Tami - posted on 01/21/2012

I developed pre-eclampsia at 3 weeks post - partum. No previous swelling and low blood pressure prior to this. Within 12 hours I was having siezures and a mild stroke. luckily I was already in the ICU for another condition or i would have certainly died at home. I had to be on life support for 2 days due to the eclampsia. Very scary stuff. I was most definately aware that it is possible as I am an OB nurse. This is why, at least here, public health nurses do follow up visits in the first few days after discharge. Pregnancy and birth are not the safe natural risk free thing that some people like to believe it is. I know that had I delivered my babies 100 years ago i would have died

Chrissy - posted on 10/21/2011

Hello,just wantedtosay that I too alsohad post partum pre-e. I had a C section,it went fine,thought I was recovering fine,stayed in the hospital for 4 days,got discharged. On the 5th day,I had this HORRIBLE pain in my right shoulder. I was taking percocets and ibu,as prescribed ,and it was not even touching this pain in my shoulder. I sent my husband to the store for a pain patch.,in the meantime I called the nursline tosee if I COuld take the pain patch while breastfeeding. The nurse on the phone told me almost begged me to go to the E.R. said I could have blockage or something. I soo did not want togo,but the pain and my gut told me I had to. We went,5 day old baby and all to the E.R. Once there they took my blood pressure and it was 210/110,crazy high. After that its kind of fuzzy. I remember being real cold and them wrapping the bed with blankets in case I had a seizure,(I didnt'). I was in the hospital for 5 days and had to take pills for a wbile after. It was def one of the scariest moments of my life.I thought I was going to die. The shoulder pain was actually liver pain. My advice to everyone is if somethinga(anything) doesn't feel right ,go to the E.R. Better to be safe than sorry. I too had NO IDEA you could get pre eafter delivery. Congrats to you!

Kathy - posted on 10/18/2011

THANK YOU for posting this. I'm sure there are a LOT of women who have had no idea pre eclampsia is possible after having a baby. You may have saved a life by posting this! Bless you, and so thankful you are OK.

Amanda - posted on 04/09/2011

I also had Pre Eclampsia. I was swollen because of fluid and blood I was given during labor and after delivery (for other complications.) They refused to give me anything to relieve the fluids. Two days after being home with a headache I lost my vision and had to go to the ER. I had a stoke and had bled over 1/3 of my brain. Later, they attributed it all to post partum pre eclampsia because of how high my blood pressure was as well. I was on BP meds for a few months and my vision has returned. I was lucky and it is a miracle that I am alive today. It may be rare, but it is still there.

Diana - posted on 02/13/2011

I had Post Partum Pre Eclampsia too and had never heard of it. same story for me- horrible swelling and mine reached 193/100 and I had to go back in the hospital and be put on meds... not fun. wish I would have know this could occur too.

Laura - posted on 11/19/2009

I had post partum pre eclampsia, too, and wondered the same thing. Apparently, it is relatively rare, and can be an indicator that you were really sick.



Many health care professionals don't even know about post partum pre eclampsia- but I can say that when I was readmitted after my first one 11 years ago they understood a lot less than they did after my third one two years ago.



for some reason as the hemodynamics return to normal after pregancy, some folks swell a *lot* and that pressure can trigger the postpartum pre eclampsia. Every time I deliver, I end up with horrible swelling, and they are silly enough to seem surprised when it recurs. After #3, the swelling ended up in pulmonary edema.



The good news is that you're not likely to have post partum pre eclampsia happen again, and you can tell them with your next one to not give so many darned fluids! Also, talking with a perinatologist to develop a plan so you don't end up not being monitored that crucial first couple of weeks might help set your mind at ease. Take care!

Molly - posted on 10/15/2009

yes i agree!!! it takes way too long to get the post natal visits and by that time i mean i was completly in a fog from severe post pardum depression i didnt know what was wrong...luckily my dr knew what to do but i wish it didnt get that far

Deanna - posted on 08/02/2009

Hi Julie,

I didn't even know they could tell what caused Post Partum Pre Eclampsia. I read some on my own, but didn't really find anything conclusive. If we decide to have a second child, I'll have to see if we can find a Perinatologist.

Julie - posted on 07/08/2009

Quoting Deanna:

Where we are, they wouldn't let us check out of the hospital until we had an appointment made with our son's pediatrician for the day following our release from the hospital (which is a good thing, don't get me wrong), but my visit with my doctor wasn't scheduled for a month.

He said that I would be at a higher risk to get it during pregnancy or possibly after and would require more monitoring, but he also said that he has a lot of patients who have pre eclampsia with their first pregnancy and don't get it with following pregnancies.

I really hope we don't have to go through it again if we decide to have a second child. It really scared my husband (and myself) and it has made him really nervous about trying for a second child.

Hi Deanna,

First off, congratulations on your new bundle!  I'm glad you got through it!   I can sympathise (as I bet most moms on this community will!) about you being wary about future pregnancies.  My husband feels the same way as yours - he was right there when I had a full eclamptic seizure; luckily I was still in the hospital when it happened.  I would suggest that if and when you and your husband are ready to try for another baby, you go to a perinatologist who specialises in pre eclampsia and high-risk pregnancies.  It's true, they do say that it happens more in the first pregnancy than in subsequent ones, but the biggest factor in women developing pre eclampsia is if they've had it in a previous pregnancy.  Our peri has told us that our next baby (if we decide to have another or others) will have to be planned, that he would put me on specific vitamin and mineral supplements well before we conceive (to build up stores in the body), and possibly baby aspirin.  Did you and your hubby have any obstetric counselling to determine why you may have developed the pre eclampsia?  In our case it was due to a genetic mutation that apparently 12% of the population have. 

Kristi - posted on 07/07/2009

Makes sense to be worried, Deanna. I don't know a mom who doesn't worry - even those who have "normal" pregnancies and deliveries and post partum! Just get whatever information you can from your doctor, and is it great to news to hear that a lot of patients don't get it the second time around. My doctor told us that my odds of getting HELLP the second time around are as high as 40%, due to the severity of my disease. That's why we are going to wait so many years ... to make sure we really want to do it again, and to give my body all the time it might need to heal!!!

Deanna - posted on 06/30/2009

Where we are, they wouldn't let us check out of the hospital until we had an appointment made with our son's pediatrician for the day following our release from the hospital (which is a good thing, don't get me wrong), but my visit with my doctor wasn't scheduled for a month.

He said that I would be at a higher risk to get it during pregnancy or possibly after and would require more monitoring, but he also said that he has a lot of patients who have pre eclampsia with their first pregnancy and don't get it with following pregnancies.

I really hope we don't have to go through it again if we decide to have a second child. It really scared my husband (and myself) and it has made him really nervous about trying for a second child.

Kristi - posted on 06/25/2009

Where I live a nurse comes to your house the day after you are released from the hospital, to look at the baby, and to ask you a bunch of questions, likely to help notice situations like yours.



I am sorry to hear about what happened to you. In 2 days in the ICU after I had my son, I lost 28 pounds ... good and bad, I think!



Did your doc say what the chances of you getting Post Partum Pre Eclampsia if you choose to have another baby?

Deanna - posted on 06/25/2009

I was told by my Doctor that Pre Eclampsia is pretty rare, but that it does happen. When I looked for information about it, I found a different forum on a Pre Eclampsia site and a lot of women said that they didn't know anything was wrong until they started having seizures! Scary stuff :(

Anna - posted on 06/25/2009

Hi Deanna, That is scary. I didn't realize that you could develop pre eclampsia post partum. That is something that the doctors should watch for, I bet a lot of first time moms wouldn't know there was a problem.

Amanda - posted on 04/09/2011

I also had Pre Eclampsia. I was swollen because of fluid and blood I was given during labor and after delivery (for other complications.) They refused to give me anything to relieve the fluids. Two days after being home with a headache I lost my vision and had to go to the ER. I had a stoke and had bled over 1/3 of my brain. Later, they attributed it all to post partum pre eclampsia because of how high my blood pressure was as well. I was on BP meds for a few months and my vision has returned. I was lucky and it is a miracle that I am alive today. It may be rare, but it is still there.

Diana - posted on 02/13/2011

I had Post Partum Pre Eclampsia too and had never heard of it. same story for me- horrible swelling and mine reached 193/100 and I had to go back in the hospital and be put on meds... not fun. wish I would have know this could occur too.

Laura - posted on 11/19/2009

I had post partum pre eclampsia, too, and wondered the same thing. Apparently, it is relatively rare, and can be an indicator that you were really sick.



Many health care professionals don't even know about post partum pre eclampsia- but I can say that when I was readmitted after my first one 11 years ago they understood a lot less than they did after my third one two years ago.



for some reason as the hemodynamics return to normal after pregancy, some folks swell a *lot* and that pressure can trigger the postpartum pre eclampsia. Every time I deliver, I end up with horrible swelling, and they are silly enough to seem surprised when it recurs. After #3, the swelling ended up in pulmonary edema.



The good news is that you're not likely to have post partum pre eclampsia happen again, and you can tell them with your next one to not give so many darned fluids! Also, talking with a perinatologist to develop a plan so you don't end up not being monitored that crucial first couple of weeks might help set your mind at ease. Take care!

Deanna - posted on 08/02/2009

Hi Julie,

I didn't even know they could tell what caused Post Partum Pre Eclampsia. I read some on my own, but didn't really find anything conclusive. If we decide to have a second child, I'll have to see if we can find a Perinatologist.

Julie - posted on 07/08/2009

Quoting Deanna:

Where we are, they wouldn't let us check out of the hospital until we had an appointment made with our son's pediatrician for the day following our release from the hospital (which is a good thing, don't get me wrong), but my visit with my doctor wasn't scheduled for a month.

He said that I would be at a higher risk to get it during pregnancy or possibly after and would require more monitoring, but he also said that he has a lot of patients who have pre eclampsia with their first pregnancy and don't get it with following pregnancies.

I really hope we don't have to go through it again if we decide to have a second child. It really scared my husband (and myself) and it has made him really nervous about trying for a second child.

Hi Deanna,

First off, congratulations on your new bundle!  I'm glad you got through it!   I can sympathise (as I bet most moms on this community will!) about you being wary about future pregnancies.  My husband feels the same way as yours - he was right there when I had a full eclamptic seizure; luckily I was still in the hospital when it happened.  I would suggest that if and when you and your husband are ready to try for another baby, you go to a perinatologist who specialises in pre eclampsia and high-risk pregnancies.  It's true, they do say that it happens more in the first pregnancy than in subsequent ones, but the biggest factor in women developing pre eclampsia is if they've had it in a previous pregnancy.  Our peri has told us that our next baby (if we decide to have another or others) will have to be planned, that he would put me on specific vitamin and mineral supplements well before we conceive (to build up stores in the body), and possibly baby aspirin.  Did you and your hubby have any obstetric counselling to determine why you may have developed the pre eclampsia?  In our case it was due to a genetic mutation that apparently 12% of the population have. 

Deanna - posted on 06/30/2009

Where we are, they wouldn't let us check out of the hospital until we had an appointment made with our son's pediatrician for the day following our release from the hospital (which is a good thing, don't get me wrong), but my visit with my doctor wasn't scheduled for a month.

He said that I would be at a higher risk to get it during pregnancy or possibly after and would require more monitoring, but he also said that he has a lot of patients who have pre eclampsia with their first pregnancy and don't get it with following pregnancies.

I really hope we don't have to go through it again if we decide to have a second child. It really scared my husband (and myself) and it has made him really nervous about trying for a second child.

Kristi - posted on 06/25/2009

Where I live a nurse comes to your house the day after you are released from the hospital, to look at the baby, and to ask you a bunch of questions, likely to help notice situations like yours.



I am sorry to hear about what happened to you. In 2 days in the ICU after I had my son, I lost 28 pounds ... good and bad, I think!



Did your doc say what the chances of you getting Post Partum Pre Eclampsia if you choose to have another baby?

Deanna - posted on 06/25/2009

I was told by my Doctor that Pre Eclampsia is pretty rare, but that it does happen. When I looked for information about it, I found a different forum on a Pre Eclampsia site and a lot of women said that they didn't know anything was wrong until they started having seizures! Scary stuff :(

Anna - posted on 06/25/2009

Hi Deanna, That is scary. I didn't realize that you could develop pre eclampsia post partum. That is something that the doctors should watch for, I bet a lot of first time moms wouldn't know there was a problem.