Here's my long story. I hope it can help someone. I have now had pre-eclampsia twice. After my daughter was born at 35 weeks due to pre-eclampsia I was told the chances of getting it again were low and even if I did get it that it would be less severe. We didn't hesitate to get pregnant again but my second pregnancy was anything but less complicated. At 22 weeks I began spilling protein with my daughter. I have type 1 diabetes and they chalked it up to having the diabetes for so ... Read more

I went for my routine check at the doctors on the afternoon of my birthday (at 37 wks). The midwife told me I had high blood pressure and, as I had swelling and protein in my urine, she sent me to the hospital. They monitored me for a few hours and said I would have to stay overnight. My partner, Jon went home as everything seemed to be fine, but an hour later they checked my bp again and it had rocketed, so they decided I had to be induced and back Jon had to come! They induced me that ... Read more

Hi. I developed preeclampsia and almost died with no warning at all too. I am a 38 year old female who was always healthy. I had three previous healthy pregnancies in 83, 88 and 89. In 98 I was treated for cervical cancer, then in 99, I was told I had a fibroid tumor which the doctors were just going to watch. I had not been using birth control in quite a few years because my chances for getting pregnant were very slim (supposedly). Considering the previous female problems and I also had a uteru... Read more

I was 28 when I got pregnant. My blood pressure always ran on the low side. I never had morning sickness. In February of 2001, when I was in my 5th month, I started getting explosively sick. It was only when I had a bowel movement. It was horrible. Other than that, I felt fine. I did not like being pregnant though. The doctor was way off on my due date. To begin with they gave me August 17, 2001. Well, I knew that I had gotten pregnant in mid-October, 2000. So when I went to the doctor i... Read more

At 32 1/2 weeks, I began to experience pain unlike no other pain that I had ever had. My lower back was extremely painful to the touch, and it hurt to sit, stand, anything. At first I thought that I was experiencing gas, but by 7 o'clock that evening, I called my ob-gyn and told him I was going to the ER. I was given demerol for the pain and when that would wear off, the pain would come back. Finally in the morning, I finally saw a doctor and a priest by my door. The doctor came ... Read more

My name is Linda and I got pregnant when I was 34 years old after only 3 months of trying. We never dreamed it would be so easy and quick and really thought that the rest of the pregnancy would be just as easy. I never had morning sickness like other women - only extreme fatigue that I later found out was due to the fact that I was expecting twins. The first trimester was very easy and then toward the latter part of the second trimester I started experiencing headaches. I remember buying... Read more

My HELLP Story. At age 31 after several years of trying and some mild fertility drugs, I was due for my first appointment to start the "serious" fertility treatments when I discovered I was pregnant with my first child. My husband, 42, and I were ecstatic to say the least! I attributed my good fortune to having lost 30 lbs. in an effort to trick my body into ovulating. I had an uneventful pregnancy for the first 32 weeks. No morning sickness, I bragged that nobody could even tell... Read more

I was just turning 20 years old and had been married for just 8 months. My pregnancy was High risk from the start, I had high levels of protein in my urine, levels ranging from 3+-5+. To top it all off I had suffered for a very severe form of ecoli called HemoliticUremicSyndrome at a young age of 15 months old. I had thought all my problems from the sickness were gone, until I got pregnant that is. I had an appointment with my regular Dr. every 2-3 weeks and had to see a Kidney specialis... Read more

In 1999, while pregnant with my first child I got preeclampsia. And it wasn't just that I went above and beyond preeclampsia I went eclamptic. I had a full blown seizure and when I was rushed to the hospital my blood pressure was 230/140. The next step was either a stroke, heartattack or death for both of us. So that day I ended up having an emergency C-section at 36 weeks. My daughter was born at 3 pounds, 10 ounces and 16 inches long. She was a small baby for being born only a month ea... Read more

My name is Jennifer Sawyers-Gray. I gave birth in my 35th week on December 12, 2000. The pregnancy had been going very well previous to that day. I had managed to keep my weight at 28lbs. thus far and everything was wonderful. Weeks prior to the birth, the doctors told me via ultra-sound that my baby was around 6.5lbs. and everything was looking great. On December the 11th, I noticed excessive swelling in my face, legs, and feet. I thought that I had just been on my feet too much, I teac... Read more

I have never been so scared in my entire life. It was March 1999 and I went in for my normal weekly ob appointment. These were weekly because after two late miscarriages due to PROM, it was finally determined that I have incompetent cervix and had a cerclage put in at 15 weeks. I was not scheduled for an ultrasound on this particular day, so the doctor spent a little more time with me. I complained of some swelling and minor headaches, but nothing else. The doctor, being a little concern... Read more

I woke up on Tuesday morning, May 23 around 6 am with cramps. I was 36 weeks. I thought maybe this was braxton hicks? (This was our first baby so I was unsure.) I called my ob-gyn who was on call and she told me if the cramps continued and/or got stronger to call and come in when they opened. Since I did not have any leaking of fluid or blood she thought it was possibly braxton hicks as well. At 10:30am we went to the doctor's office. My blood pressure and the baby's heartbeat were fine. I was ... Read more

In 1997, while pregnant with my second child, I experienced heavy bleeding when I was about 32 weeks pregnant. When I went to the hospital, I was told that I had high blood pressure and was kept overnight for observation. However, I was released the next morning because my blood pressure had returned to normal and the bleeding had ceased. Several weeks later, I began experiencing abdominal pain and headaches. At first, I thought that these were normal symptoms of pregnancy and that there was no ... Read more

I had preeclampsia in one form or another three times. The first time, I was 23, single and broke. I didn't know what was wrong, just that I needed to stay in bed, on my left side, for six weeks. When the baby was born, I was all too happy to be on my feet and rid of preeclampsia. Six years later, married and working, I had a healthy, normal second pregnancy. All the books on pregnancy said preeclampsia mostly occurs in first pregnancies, and since I didn't have it in the second, I knew ... Read more

I was a 30 year old, average size woman pregnant with my first child, and I was having a perfectly normal pregnancy or so I thought. At my seventh month visit, my doctor was a little concerned with my blood pressure. It seemed to be a little elevated for me. My doctor told me he was concerned about preeclampsia. He asked me to get bed rest several times a day and be followed up weekly. The next week my blood pressure was back to normal and I didn't have any protein in my urine. M... Read more

I knew of the major signs and symptoms of pre-eclampsia before becoming pregnant. I had told my OB about my grandmother having severe pre-eclampsia with her third pregnancy. I did not know until after experiencing pre-eclampsia myself that several women on my husband's side of the family had the condition during their pregnancies (aunt, sister and grandmother). The first trimester i had the usual nausea and vomiting , which subsided. I had been gaining weight fast right from the beginnin... Read more

My daughter, Emily Kathryn, was stillborn at 31 weeks because my liver ruptured. We now believe the cause of the rupture to be HELLP Syndrome, a severe form of pre-eclampsia. My story began August 21st, 2000. I was having severe pain in my upper back, straight through to the front of my chest. I was about 30 weeks along. I also had nausea and other flu-like symptoms. Everything got progressively worse as the week went on. I went to the doctor's office on the 23rd and gave a urine sample,... Read more

My name is Heather, I am 24 years old. My, husband and I have been married now for almost 2 years. We have actually been a couple for 9 years. We met in highschool and have been inseperable ever since. During those years we had our share of ups and downs but nothing could have prepared us for what we went through this past year. We were married on May 15, 1999. By October we were pregnant. We were so happy! My husband wanted to be involved in the whole process so we went together to ever... Read more

Hi Everyone, I am looking for a place to share my story and maybe get some feedback and some advice. I had a baby girl 4 years ago and she is healthy and happy today. But my road to get there was not an easy one. I found out I was pregnant on Super Bowl Sunday in 1997. It was the happiest time and then it went down hill. During my third month being pregnant I got a call from my doctor and was told that I should think about abortion cause my baby tested very high for spina bifida.... Read more

After losing my first daughter to e.coli at 2-/2, I was desperate to become a mother again. I tried IVF, putting in three embryo's because I was told that my chances were not good (less than 10%) To everyone's surprise, I became pregnant with triplets. I am over 40, in good health, except that I had been depressed and unable to function well since the death of my daughter, and worried that improper nutrition and stress over the wrongful death lawsuit might affect the babies. At 2... Read more