I was sick throughout my pregnancy, but once the third trimester came it felt different. I was violently ill and could barely keep anything down but I chalked it up to indigestion, heartburn, and growing a watermelon sized baby in my belly. One night I threw up and felt like my back was on fire. I could not lay down or sit without pain. My upper right side of my back in particular felt like a stabbing pain. I called my Obgyn in the morning and they had me come in to check my blood pressure and my urine, which all came back normal. I had taken a Tylenol so I was in much less pain at the time. However, in an hour or so after I got back home the medication had worn off and I felt the pain again. This time it was unbearable. It was all across my stomach now and all along the right side of my back. I called my doctor and they told me to go right to Labor and Delivery.

Once I got there, they started checking me in and an experienced nurse noticed that I was sweating profusely. They immediately took my BP which was 180/110 and then doctors flooded into the room. The baby was still stable so they gave me Magnesium and prepped me for a c section. However, after I got magnesium, the baby's heart rate started dropping rapidly and it became an emergency csection. I was put under general anesthesia and my daughter was delivered within minutes. She was thankfully healthy and did not need any NICU time. We got lucky.

I wish that was the end of our story, but unfortunately it wasn't. Not only did I have pre eclampsia, but I also (unknowingly) had HELLP. My liver enzymes and platelets were extremely low and I was bleeding after delivery, but not from inside my uterus. My liver had ruptured and I was bleeding out. They called in four general surgeons who worked on me for over ten hours to find the parts of my liver that had broken off and reattached them to my liver again. I was kept under general anesthesia and my surgical incision was kept open as they continued to try and control the bleeding. I needed 5 liters of blood transfused, which means I lost all the blood in my body. I woke up 48 hours later in the ICU after 3 separate surgeries to save my life.

Postpartum, my blood pressure was still high so they kept me in the ICU for 5 days while I recovered on medication and they did CT scans and xrays to check for blood clots and to monitor my right lung and heart, both of which had fluid buildup from the liver rupture. Then I was discharged to the mother baby unit, where they kept me for an additional 6 days with our baby. They monitored us closely and helped me heal from my csection and abdominal surgeries.

Today I am so thankful to be alive and sharing this story. I am thankful for my daughter's health, and that I get to watch her and my older son grow. I am thankful for the doctors, nurses, etc who all worked together to save my daughter's life and mine. If they hadn't acted quickly the situation could have been so much worse. Two months later and I am now back to full liver function, my body is healing and I am doing much better. But I know what could have been if I did not listen to my body and take action. If I had gone to the hospital much later, I would not be here to share this story. If I ignored my symptoms for any longer, it could have been to late. I wish I would have known how quickly pre eclampsia and HELLP can occur. I wish I would have known the signs, and that they aren't always your typical high blood pressure or protein in urine. None of those symptoms came about until it was almost too late for me. That is why I am sharing my story. It is so important to listen to your body and to know what is normal and isnt normal for you. You are the best advocate for yourself and your baby!