Hi all - I go in on Thursday for my anatomy appointment and 20 week checkup. I've been having some symptoms that are listed as ones often associated with preeclampsia, but they're also symptoms that can come with a regular pregnancy. I had vision blurring for only a few minutes each on two occasions over the last 2-3 weeks (while wearing my contacts or glasses), along with pretty much daily abdominal pains/cramping (but from what I read this is or can be normal) and some headaches. I'm going to discuss with my doctor on Thursday but does anyone have any experience from a previous pregnancy? I'm a FTM.
Re: Preeclampsia Concerns
THIS. 100%
Your blood pressure is one of the major indicators, same with proteins in your urine. Other things to watch for: headaches that seem out of the ordinary (pregnancy along can cause them, but do they go away with water/ caffeine/ Tylenol or are they lasting?), fireworks in your vision, and abnormal swelling.
Talk to your doctor about it, but at this point, I wouldn't freak out about it.
FWIW - I had pre-e with my first and they just monitored me more closely, put me on blood pressure meds, ran labs more often, and I got to 34 weeks before bed rest. Then I just had extra monitoring (3x a week) until 38.5 weeks when they decided it would be best / safest for me and baby to induce.
Take a deep breath and try to relax. Major swelling, high blood pressure, and protein in the urine are all signs that your doctor looks for at each appointment.
For those diagnosed with pre-eclampsia in previous pregnancies, how quickly after receiving the results did they decide to induce you? How many weeks were you?
(I know some of you have already answered this but I want to hear from other moms too)
Basically, I am waiting to see what my results are going to be. I have to drop the urine off (again) this morning and my OB appt is tomorrow. I'm sure I won't be able to know that quickly but I am freaking out. I'm 35+3 today.
With this LO I had protein in my urine starting Friday at my 34 week appointment and my BP was a little high. I had to turn in a 24 hour urine test on Mondayand then nhad another appointment. My BP was still good and I had protein in my urine at the doctors office but we had to wait for the 24 hour labs still. They got them yesterday and I haven't heard anything so I'm assuming no news is good news. My doctor said it's all a balancing act. They are going to monitor me and LO more and if anything changes or tips the balance we may induce or we may just monitor twice a week until delivery. She said it just depends on how both mom and baby are doing. Good luck and try not to stress to much!!
@TKaiser91 Have they placed you on any BP meds? Were you on BP meds during your previous pregnancy? I just spoke with the nurse after checking my BP at work. It was on the high side. Now, I have to go to the OB's office within the hour. She's going to check out my cuff and my BP log. She told me there's a high likelihood that I'll be put on BP meds today.
So, yesterday the OB's office called me telling me that my 24 hour urine came back extremely high and pretty close to the preeclampsia threshold. For those reasons, I'm required to be in the office 2-3 times a week for NST and check ups. They also prescribed me meds for my BP and told me to continue a log 3x a day. I also have to do a 24 hour urine once a week to monitor the protein levels.
Basically, if something comes back wrong/elevated, I will be induced. Period. They don't want to take a chance of me developing full blown preeclampsia.
I'll 36 weeks tomorrow. I am just praying to God that I make it atleast to 37 weeks before delivery.