New with questions

[Akaufmann4]

Hello my name is Allison. I delivered my third and final child (had tubal ligation done) at 34 weeks on 5/5/12 via emergency csection due to severe preeclampsia. My baby was transffered to a different hospital for the NICU. I started getting high BP at 28 weeks an was put on bed rest and started on labetalol 100mg 2x day. The next week I was started on procardia 30mg once daily, which was eventually increased to 120mg daily. Last I was put on clonidine 0.2mg 2x daily. After delivery while on mag sulfate, they stopped labetalol and procardia cold turkey. I stayed in the hospital for 3 days to watch my pressures and my liver enzymes were high so they were concerned with HELLP. My platelets stayed fine the entire time. I was released with pressures reading 140/90. The next day I had a terrible headache that would not go away do that evening I took my bp and it read 180/125 so my husband rushed me to the ER. They did a chest X-ray and EKG and all was fine. They gave me labetalol through an IV That lowered it to 160/100. They continued to do this until it reached 130/80. The next morning they started me back on procardia 90mg and labetalol 200mg 2x daily. This brought my pressures down to 140/90 and I was released the next day. I have now weaned off clonidine and labetalol (last dose was this Monday) and have been taking 90mg procardia. Well yesterday I had the typical headache I get with high bp and took my pressure and it was 150/96 so I called my doctor and she said to keep an eye on it. So I took it again this morning and it was 140/100. I call her again to let her know and she told me to take 120mg procardia this morning and that she wants to do a kidney ultrasound next week. I am do frustrated that after 4 weeks my bp has not returned to normal. I'm only 23, healthy and a normal weight (I'm 5'5" and weighed 130 before this pregnancy, now weigh 175lb after already losing 30lb after delivery)

My question is... Has it taken anyone else this long for pressures to go back down, or to even not be considered high. I had no high bp prior to pregnancy, normal for me is around 110/60 - 120/70. I'm losing hope that my body will return to normal and I'll have to be on meds for the rest of my life.

[sam10]

Hello and welcome. BP can take a while to come down after PE. We have posters here who had to take medication for several months, others were medication free after 3 weeks (me for instance). I wonder though why your doctors took you off medication right after birth? I remember that I had stayed on medication, same dosage, for a while, before I was told to slowly decrease it. I also saw a internist and cardiologist to deal with my BP postpartum. Definitely keep an eye on your BP, but also keep in mind that for not-pregnant folks different BP thresholds apply to what is considered risky high or just high. I hope your BP will settle soon.
How is baby doing?

[Akaufmann4]

Well, this doctor who delivered me and took me off the meds was NOT my regular obgyn. My doctor was unable o be reached that night, as it was the weekend and she was he night before she was going out of town to get her heart checked on. Anyway, it was a doctor I had never met or heard of covering for her. When my bp was 160/110, >1000mg of protein in my urine, and my liver enzymes were very high; this doctor was going to send me home because she didn't want to make a decision without my doctor knowing. Well, my husband and I discussed me staying but in a day I was seeing the perinatalogist anyway so I knew he would just readmit me anyway. So after we make our decision, the nurse came back in and told me they had reached the perinatalogist and to deliver me immediately within the next hour. So baby was out in 20 minutes. My doctor also was able to be reached and she rushed in just to do my tubal and had to leave again. The next morning the same doctor who delivered the baby decided to stop all meds except clonidine.

We have no idea why except that she's an idiot. We've thought that if she had just weaned me off right I wouldnt still have the hpb. They called it rebound hypertension at first but is now being called chronic hypertension.

[Akaufmann4]

I apologize for all the typos. I am writing from my phone. Baby is doing great. They transferred her because of possible seizures but it turned out to be nothing. She is doing wonderful. No problems at all. She was released in a week. She has transitioned to breastfeeding quite well.

[JB]

Hi Allison,

That doctor sounds really bad. I can't believe she was going to send you home with those pressures and protein count! I also can't believe she simply stopped your medication cold-turkey in the hospital while your pressures were high. My BP stayed up for a long time after I delivered. I was in the hospital for another five days while they got me stabilized, and then I was on different BP meds for the next six months until I got pregnant again. At that point I was on pregnancy unsafe meds (hydrochlorothyazide and lisinopril) so my nephrologist switched me to a very low dose of nifedipine. When my BP remained low he took me off that, and I have been off meds throughout this pregnancy.

You really might want to consider filing a complaint with the hospital about that doctor. It sounds like she should not be anywhere near critical obstetric patients. You are very lucky they got through to the perinatologist.

[sam10]

I am glad to hear little baby is doing great

[Akaufmann4]

We have considered doing so. I understand not every doctor is used to dealing with high risk patients. But If she was uncomfortable she should have spoke up and said so instead of putting me and my baby at an even higher risk. I am eternally grateful to my ob and the perinatologist for taking care of me. It took a month for my bp to stabilize after my first pregnancy with PE, and over a month for my second with PIH to return to normal. My doctor is preparing me for chronic hypertension in the future. I'm not ready to accept that yet and want to still believe there's hope that it will return to normal soon.

Does anyone know of having kidney problems after PE?