My son was born at 35 weeks 0 days.

My pregnancy was uneventful. I do have a history of autoimmune disease and while pregnant my bmi was over 30. My providers never talked to me about preeclampsia risk factors.Thankfully a former coworker had shared her story with me.

At 34 weeks and one day my ankles rapidly swelled and morning sickness had returned. I mentioned this to one of my providers. They noted the swelling “wasn’t severe” and my blood pressure looked good. I continued to check my blood pressure at home. At 34 weeks 3 days I was diagnosed with gestational hypertension. After plenty of back and forth to the hospital I delivered at 35 weeks. I was at the hospital earlier that day for a nonstress test. Everything looked great. By that evening I had a headache that didn’t improve with medication and my blood pressure was 160/110.

My son was breech so we skipped an induction and had an emergency c-section. The hospital I delivered at did not have a NICU so he was taken out of the county and I stayed behind to continue treatment. Two days later I was released and able to join my son. I had continued to monitor my blood pressure at home and was able to get checked out. Even though my blood pressure was back over 150/100 even on medication I was originally given lasiks for my swelling and sent home. The next day I returned for blood work. The doctor that reviewed my chart immediately told me I would need to readmitted and I should not have been let go the day prior. After a second mag drip and several days of adjusted blood pressure medication, I came home with my baby.

I now have a healthy 7 month old and am working towards improving my heart health.