Pre-Eclampsia and Gestational diabetes in 3rd pregnancy.

Posted On Tuesday, October 11, 2011  by Amy

Many people develop pre-eclampsia in their 1st pregnancy, but that wasn't the case with me. Other than terrible nausea, I had very healthy pregnancies for my first two. Pregnancy #3 came along and I had gestational diabetes around 18 weeks. I followed a very strict diet and did not need insulin.

At week 33, my blood pressure jumped. I took a 24-hour urine and the protein level was around 60. I took another 24-hour urine the next week, it was up to 300+ (now officially pre-eclampsia). At week 35, the protein jumped to 1600. I was swelling pretty badly, which is new for me - I did not swell even a little with my previous two. Early 36 weeks, because of the persistent headache and continued swelling, it was time to induce.

I delivered my first two without pain medications or epidurals. To prevent seizures, I was given a magnesium drip for this 3rd delivery. It is a new experience and one that I wish I had been warned about. It made me feel exhausted, dizzy and disconnected. I was not able to move around in the room like I had before. If I got up to use the bathroom, the room would spin. Each contraction made me feel like I was being tortured. It was a terrible experience compared to the empowering, adrenaline-filled deliveries I had before. I was still very dizzy and disconnected for the following 24 hours when they kept me on the magnesium.

My baby boy was good except for slightly under-developed lungs. They put too much pressure on his oxygen and after 24 hours of life, two holes in his lungs released air into his chest. This lead to a 2 week stay in the NICU and he was on low oxygen and a monitor at home for the next 2 months.

My story was not as tragic and traumatizing as others I've read here. I know I'm blessed to have made it through just fine and my baby as well. Still, with this pregnancy (expecting #4) I will demand a steroid shot be given the second pre-eclampsia arises to get my baby as mature as possible. I will also try to be induced before pre-eclampsia becomes so severe so perhaps we can avoid the magnesium because it can make your labor experience one that you fear and never want to visit again.