June 07, 2024 By Jessica Cripe
I was diagnosed with preeclampsia during labor. I was induced weeks due to complications from a placental tumor we found in the second trimester that our medical team had been closely following with ultrasounds twice a week. I was scheduled to be induced at 39 weeks until I started feeling terrible. I developed numbness and tingling of half my face which turned into paralysis and I was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy about 2 weeks prior to delivery. I was fatigued and started to have pitting edema in my feet and my blood pressures began to elevate. During my induction, I began having very high blood pressure and was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia and started on a magnesium infusion to prevent seizures. I vividly remember the medical team seizure padding my bedrails and I became terrified. As a nurse, I have seizure-padded patients' beds and cared for patients actively seizing so being fully aware of what the concerns were for me medically made the situation that much worse. I developed partial HELLP syndrome and had low platelets and was unable to use my epidural for a period of time while deciding if general anesthesia would be needed for an emergency c-section. I went for the c-section and continued on the mag drip post-delivery. Hours into the infusion I started to experience loss of sensation in my extremities and blurred vision. I couldn't even see my daughter's face as I tried learning to breastfeed as a first time momma. I suddenly experienced impending doom and we found my magnesium level was nearing toxic levels. I went home scared to be left alone. I had never felt like I was going to die until I experienced the birth of my first child. I never want to feel that way again.
My perfect daughter, Katie, gave birth to her first child just eight days before she passed away due to postpartum complications. Her deliver...
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