Pregnancy High Blood Pressure????

hclavalley · June 2010

I had my 37 week appointment today, and I'm puzzled, because I've never been in this predicament before.

Here are my symptoms at the moment.
- My normal BP is around 120/80, or a little less. Not bad right? Well today at my appointment it had shot up to 142/85.

- No protein in my urine.

- I've had a lot of instances of my heart racing, from doing pretty much anything. When its not racing, my pulse hovers around 100, and when it races, its even higher, and I can feel it pounding throughout my entire body... that can't be normal right?

- I've had quite a few instances of seeing stars over the last couple weeks. Most of the time these occur when I stand up or when I bend over to pick something up or walk too fast up the stairs.

- I've gained 5 lbs in the last 2 weeks (9 so far in the entire pregnancy)

I mentioned these things to my OB today, and he told me it was probably nothing because I didn't have protein in my urine, but said he was going to do some blood work just to be sure. So it looks like I have to wait for those results to come back.

I'm just not sure what to think... Any thoughts?

MayDayGirl · June 2010

oh my gosh you're 37w weeks already!? holy cow!!!

I would figure it was probably a fluke. Most likely if you were rechecked it would have gone down.

Do you have a way to check it at home? Next time you're out stop at the pharmacy or walmart and check it.

Alie05 · June 2010

On the blood pressure thing: One of my friends just had her baby a couple of weeks ago - she did not have protein in her urine at all (she even did a 24 hour urine test), but her blood pressure was high. They ended up inducing her at 38 weeks because of the high blood pressure and she had alot of swelling in her feet/ankles and she has a beautfiul baby girl!

On the heart rate thing: I have the SAME thing. I have found that it gets worse when I'm tired or really hot or both. More when I'm tired. My resting heart rate also stays around 100 or so, and will jump quickly to 140s or 150s easily. My docs weren't worried about it - they said it's quite common for pregnant ladies to have trouble with a faster heart rate. As long as I wasn't getting dizzy or having any other symptoms with it, then it is fine. I don't know about your "seeing stars" thing. I've never had that, so you may want to call your doctor if they don't know about that.

They may not be related at all. Try not to stress over it - good thing is there is no protein! Just wait and see what tests they are going to do and what it shows - if it shows anything at all!

Keep us updated!

JillRock96 · June 2010

With Ava, my BP rose slowly throughout pregnancy and crossed over into preeclampsia around 37 weeks. With the twins, my BP suddenly rose at 35 weeks and preeclampsia hit very quickly after.

The BP could be a fluke (a bad reading, stress from having to wait for an appt, etc.) or it could be the beginning of something. The important thing is that you are monitored carefully from here on out. As long as you know what to look for and your doctor is watching out for you, you'll be fine -- but pre-e can hit very fast if you're not watching for symptoms. If you have a headache that won't go away with tylenol, call the doc. If you start to see starbursts (more than just seeing stars occasionally when you stand up or bed over) or have any blurry vision, call. If your feet swell more than normal or you notice swelling anywhere other than your feet (especially your face), call. In the meantime, take it as easy as possible and drink lots of water (I know, the cure-all, right?). I hope it was just a fluke!

GuitaristsGirl · June 2010

JillRock96:

The BP could be a fluke (a bad reading, stress from having to wait for an appt, etc.) or it could be the beginning of something. The important thing is that you are monitored carefully from here on out. As long as you know what to look for and your doctor is watching out for you, you'll be fine -- but pre-e can hit very fast if you're not watching for symptoms. If you have a headache that won't go away with tylenol, call the doc. If you start to see starbursts (more than just seeing stars occasionally when you stand up or bed over) or have any blurry vision, call. If your feet swell more than normal or you notice swelling anywhere other than your feet (especially your face), call. In the meantime, take it as easy as possible and drink lots of water (I know, the cure-all, right?). I hope it was just a fluke!

Agreed Glad your doctor is running blood work - let us know how it turns out!

CMM05 · June 2010

I had a lot of these same issues with both boys......I even had really bad swelling.

But....I, too, never had protein in my urine.

I was never diagnosed with pre-e and all of my bloodwork always came back normal.

I agree that you just have to watch things. If they get worse or you start to see those "stars" often and/or feel dizzy, go in and get checked out.

I can't believe you are 37 weeks!

GL!

wvagirl · June 2010

The great news here is that you are 37 weeks, so even if it turns out to be something and they have to deliver the baby it will be a healthy almost term kiddo. And it sounds like you have a good doctor.

I had severe pre-e and hellp, and I never spilled any protein in my urine. So it is good that they are running blood work just to be on the safe side. They saw what was happening with me b/c my blood counts were off, and my liver enzymes went nutso. But hopefully it's just a fluke.

If it's not they will probably just watch you, try meds, put you on bed rest, or a combo of the above.

Hope all comes back normal. GL! You are getting close!

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