Bedrest Day 1 and BP question / answer

JSS1002 · March 2013

Somebody asked me in my "bedrest" thread from last night what my BP had shot up to that caused the bedrest.

I've always had super low BP -- I started pregnancy around 108/58 with a resting HR of like 55. The past few weeks it has hovered around 120/80, but nothing to be concerned about, that is normal in pregnancy just due to pregnancy itself and also the 20 lb weight gain. My doc has routinely called my BP "textbook perfect."

On Monday I had a bad headache all day but I am headache-prone to begin with, so I blamed it on not sleeping well and a barometric pressure change (we had a snowstorm). But then on Tuesday I woke up with the same headache about 5X worse - the day before, I'd tried all my usual "tricks" to cure the headache: tylenol, claratin, caffine, hydration, warm compress, ice pack, wearing my glasses, not wearing my glasses, stretching, protein, carbs... NOTHING had helped. Tuesday not only did I wake up wtih the headache still, but my fingers were swollen (thus far, my ankles have been swollen but my rings have still been spinning on my fingers -- they were tight yesterday).

My SIL was severely preeclampsic with my niece, and a headache that would not go away was her biggest sign, so I've been sensitive to this all along. So right away I went to SuperTarget Clinic and had them take my BP (free, BTW). It was 132 /89, which is high for me, adn the bottom number bordering on bad.

So I called my doctor, 1) to see what she thought, and 2) to ask if I could safely take a vicodin this late in pregnancy (they had prescribed me Vic in teh first trimester because I can't take my migraine meds while pregnant).

She said that yes, I should take a vicodin (this was around 11 AM), and that I shold stay quiet and hydrated and stay off my feet and have my BP checked one more time before the dr office closed and call them back to discuss how I was feeling, etc.

I took a vic, and it did absolutely nothing for my headache. My parents (dad is in the heart biz) have a BP cuff, so my mom brought it over, and we took my BP a few times, and it had risen even frmo earlier -- 150s / 90s. I wasn't sure how accurate the at-home digital cuff was, but we took it three times and it was at least consistent with itself.

So I called my doc back and told her what was going on: vicodin didn't help headache, fingers and ankles still super swollen despite spending the day off my feet, and BP elevated possibly even higher.

She told me to go into the hospital to L & D for monitoring.

So I headed in -- happily, it was my actual doctor who was working the hospital shift last night, so I got to meet with her, and with the nurse who gave our hospital tour who I LOVE. They did labs on me -- urine and blood both were great, but uric acid was "a teeny bit high." My BP came down significantly with time laying down and slightly propped to one side.

We had already been discussing induction on 3/29 due to size of baby and some associated prior health stuff for me, so this just sort of sealed the deal. And then doc said I should probably be on bedrest due to swelling and BP concerns.

So she put me on "modified" bedrest -- meaning, I can take a shower, go grab food from the fridge, and be either on sofa or in bed. But I can't spend length of time on my feet (no cooking, laundry, cleaning, running errands, working out, walks, etc), and I am on pelvic rest.

So this morning -- I got up at 7:30 (still with headache), showered, ambled down to teh kitchen to fill up my big water jug, make a smoothie, make some coffee, and then retreated back to my living room, which is on the same floor as my bedroom, and where I'll spend most of my time.

My mom is bringing over lunch and some prepped dinners for this week. DH is working from home this week too, though I'm sort of trying to pretend he isn't here, because he's on study conference calls for a big PM exam he's taking.

So mom and SIL are worrying about food; I had the house cleaned yesterday so that's fine, and DH will deal with laundry and dishes.

it is only a week so I'm choosing to look at it as some nice enforced relaxation before baby, although it obviously isn't what I WANTED to do.

I'll probably work through the end of this week (conf calls and emails from bed!), and then start my leave on Monday.

That was super long but thought I'd tell the whole story for anybody who is having BP / headache / swelling concerns. Call your doc! If your BP is too high, it can result in seizures and strokes, and a super bad headache that you cannot kick is a symptom of high BP!

camdensmom32 · March 2013

I am in the same boat with ya! I was the one who asked what your blood pressure was. Mine also is usually around 110/60 and yesterday at my 38 week appointment it was 150/80. After resting it came down to 122/80, which the doc said

JSS1002 · March 2013

christineeberle:
I am in the same boat with ya! I was the one who asked what your blood pressure was. Mine also is

kittaywhiskers · March 2013

Sorry, couldn't help myself.

camdensmom32 · March 2013

JSS1002:
christinee

DarlingNIkki1028 · March 2013

Thank you so much for sharing your story. Preeclampsia is something I've been very terrified of throughout this pregnancy, as I tend to struggle with my BP when at the doctor. I've never been officially diagnosed with hypertension, because it normally dro