I am a preeclampsia survivor and nearly lost my life to the condition in 2019. The preeclampsia, coupled with additional complications, left me with a traumatic birth experience that ended in an emergency c-section. My daughter was born at 30 weeks 3 days, weighing just 3 lbs., and spent 7 weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

I was anxious even before becoming pregnant because I knew the maternal mortality rate in our state is higher than the national average (28.2 deaths per 100,000 live births, according to the CDC). Even if the chances seemed slim, I was terrified that something awful would happen and I might die in childbirth. When I initially started to feel something wasn’t quite right at about 27 weeks, I tried to reassure myself that it was the anxiety speaking and I was just feeling overwhelmed and exhausted.

Since I didn’t show many of the usual symptoms of preeclampsia, I was assured that my swelling was typical for a “summer pregnancy” and that everything was fine. I wish I understood the importance of advocating for myself then, but at the time I couldn’t describe what I was experiencing other than saying something didn’t feel right. I finally made an unscheduled trip to labor & delivery triage when my swelling became too much to ignore, and the nurses shared my look of shock when the blood pressure reading popped up on the screen – 212/119!

My anxiety unfortunately followed me into the delivery room after the attending physician determined my kidneys were failing and they couldn’t stabilize me until 34 weeks before delivering as they’d initially hoped. The additional complications I experienced after being induced made for a painful and traumatizing experience before the emergency c-section was deemed necessary. Instead of the perfect birth I had waited years to celebrate, I spent my short time in the delivery room thinking my life was going to end and praying if they couldn’t save me that they would at least be able to save my baby girl.

When I saw my primary care doctor some months later, I realized how important it was that I had access to the facility where I was admitted. I’ll never forget locking eyes with her when she said, “You are incredibly lucky. Had you been at a more rural community hospital you probably wouldn’t have made it because they wouldn’t have been equipped to care for you.” She never knew it, but those words are the reason I began my advocacy journey. Of all the places I could have been, I was at one of the best maternity facilities in the state of Texas. I also happened to be at a location with one of a handful of level 4 NICUs in the state. Call it lucky or blessed, but I was granted a privilege that many other women in Texas unfortunately are not. Even with the excellent care I received, there were still things that could have been done differently. If this is what the experience was like for me, what would it have been for someone who didn’t have the same type of access?

We were thankfully able to come home together as a family, and my daughter is now a happy, healthy 6-year-old. Even years later my experience has left a lasting impact, so I’ve made it my personal mission to spread awareness and help other families advocate for themselves to hopefully prevent further birth trauma and loss of life to preeclampsia.