confusing bp's...labile?

[txmom7]

I had pre-e in 2006 at 38 weeks and mild PIH in 2008 and 2010. Last week I ended up in triage for a few hours on Mon with BP ranging from the 17x/9x to 15x/7x. Blood and urine was fine. OB sent me home on bedrest. I'm 31+ weeks and my baseline has been 110/70 give or take 5mm/Hg.
My BP has been all over the place since with no seeming rhyme or reason. It cam be 117/68 after I've been up walking around and then be 147/82 after napping for three hours. I can have a day where I'm fluctuating between 120-150/65-90 and then the.next day be 130/80 consistently.
I'm just so confused. I'll take my BP and get these nice healthy readings and feel like a fraud crying hypertension/bed rest. Then I spend a few hours a bit more up than I should be.and.my face starts feeling prickly and my head aches and I wonder. Is this pre-pre-eclampsia or did my OB and I jump the gun over one bad day?

[trish]

Sounds just like labile BP's related to PE to me! Usually once they start being labile (which can last for days, weeks or months) they will eventually "settle" at staying high. And being on bedrest (at least for me) you get used to resting so then anything you do ends up feeling more like an effort and then raises your BP even more.

It's so hard when you have other kids and basically feel ok to keep following Dr's orders & stay on bedrest. Hang in there!

[libby123]

Because your blood and urine looked fine, you don't have pre-e. You may have PIH, but not pre-e, because you would need to have protein in the urine for that to be so.

So whether or not you have PIH? I'm not a doctor, but I don't think so. I monitor my blood pressure several times a day (and I am not pregnant, I do it as kind of a obsessive thing) and it will never be exactly the same. I mentioned this to both my doctor and cardiologist, and they both said that blood pressure changes by as much as 40% during a day, depending on time of day, kinds of food eaten, activity level, stres and anxiety, etc. Your body is a living, changing thing, and just like your heart rate and blood sugar will change, so will blood pressure. The changes that you mention sound normal. Being in the 80s/90s diastolic at this point in your pregnancy shouldn't cause a problem.

But if you freak out about it, your blood pressure will go up. I took my blood pressure the other day and it was 113/71. Then, after watching a scary show, it was 150/85. Then it went back down. Your blood pressure will change throughout the day.

Here are some things you can do. Cut out excess salt and soda (diet soda will raise blood pressure). Rest and relax, watch inspiring and happy movies, call a friend. I know how hard bedrest is, I remember going on bedrest around the same time that you are on it. It really sucks. There is sooo much time and it feels like each day is an eternity. hang in there, and if you notice a trend in BP going too high all the time, go back to LD and have them run some more numbers.

[caryn]

I agree with Trish - that sounds a lot like the labile bp that is a precursor to PE, especially since it doesn't track lifestyle well. I would log those pressure changes so you can take a log to your next appointment!

[txmom7]

I agree with Trish - that sounds a lot like the labile bp that is a precursor to PE, especially since it doesn't track lifestyle well. I would log those pressure changes so you can take a log to your next appointment!

I downloaded an app for my phone that tracks, graphs and averages my BP. Pretty nifty.
I'm definitely going to ask to do a 24 hr urine at my next appt. I think it would five us an idea what we are dealing with here whether I'm flirting with pre-e or just a little hypertensive.

[libby123]

I think the 24 hour urine would be a good idea. If nothing else, it will give you a baseline and set your mind at ease a little bit. Are your pressures still going up and down, or have they stabilized a little? How many times a day do you take it?