Elevated blood pressure

Stephanie7693 · April 2016

I had my 24 week appointment yesterday, and my blood pressure has gone up some. Not dangerous yet, but it seems early for this to start happening.
My first child I had preeclampsia, and was put on bed rest around 32 weeks because of my blood pressure. She came on her own a month early, and my BP got so high during labor I was minutes from a c section for fear of seizures and going into a coma. My second pregnancy I was put on high risk at 24 weeks because of my history, but my BP stayed down until labor, but didn't get quite as high as with my first labor.
So anyway, anyone else having the same issue? My nurse mentioned my bp, Said she was going to check it again later, but never did. My doc didn't say anything about it. I'm mostly worried because I don't go back until 28 weeks, and that seems like a long time to not know what's going on. I'm going to call and see if I should go back sooner, but just wondering if anyone else is going through something similar and what is being done to help.

SkiChic626 · April 2016

What was it? I worry about BP, too, because mine was high my entire pregnancy last time. Not high enough for them to consider preeclampsia, but it was high for me who is normally 100-110/60-70....so 120/80 is actually high for me, but they only go by the charts - so dumb. Why not go check it yourself at CVS or somewhere that has the BP cuffs you can use for free. I think Target has them, too, and even grocery stores if they have a pharmacy.

Stephanie7693 · April 2016

Mine is usually between 110 and 120. Yesterday it was at 136, and I'd been sitting in the waiting room for over half an hour by the time my BP was taken. With my first I was put on bedrest when it spiked to 150, and had to go in every week

bsckgb7 · April 2016

SkiChic626 . Either get yourself a machine or check it at local places for free. It coulda been a complete fluke and one high-reading is nothing. I would monitor at home for peace of mind.

lalalorelai · April 2016

@Stephanie7693 I have this exact problem. My BP has never been low, but always 110-120/60-70 at every appointment. It was 142/78 at my a/s and 144/76 when they had me come back a few weeks later. One high reading is nothing to worry about (and both times, after having me sit and relax for 15 minutes, my BP dropped to the 130's range), but if it keeps happening it can be an issue. My urine and blood tests have all come back perfectly normal -- except I have low sodium, which I find kinda ironic with high BP.

My doctor has increased my monitoring. I'm coming in for appointments every 2-3 weeks and getting a u/s every 4-6. The scary things about high blood pressure are that it can restrict the baby's growth and lead to low birth weight, and that there's a higher risk of developing pre-e. That's why I'm getting more frequent appointments and u/s's. My doctor said they would induce me as early as 37 weeks if my BP stays high and there's any sign of restricted growth or distress in the baby. If I develop pre-e, I could get induced much earlier than that.

Right now, there isn't really anything I can do for my BP. Because it developed after 20 weeks, it's considered pregnancy-induced hypertension. I'm a healthy weight, I exercise, and like I said above my sodium is low, so I can't exactly reduce that. I bought a BP cuff and monitor it myself at home. I'm to call my doctor if it shoots up really high suddenly, or if I get a persistent headache or visual disturbances. There is medicine to reduce BP but mine isn't high enough for that yet. It's scary but I'm glad my doctor is on top of things. Good luck!

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