Having a Baby Nearly Killed Me: Understanding Preeclampsia and HELLP Syndrome (Part 2 of 2)
Thank you for joining me last week as I shared my intense birth story.
SO. MANY. of you reached out to tell me your stories. THANK YOU for that. It was incredible and inspiring to get to know you better; to learn more about where you are now, by learning about where you’ve been.
In case you missed my story, it’s right here in Part 1. The little gal that was born that day is 5 now; a healthy, thriving little gal. Hallelujah.
But what I’m here to educate on today is the very thing that put me in a little pickle during that pregnancy: preeclampsia and HELLP Syndrome. Be sure to stick around for the part where I tell you how it looked for me, because it truly IS different for everyone.
So why is it important to know about preeclampsia?!
“In the United States, the rate of preeclampsia increased by 25% between 1987 and 2004 . Moreover, in comparison with women giving birth in 1980, those giving birth in 2003 were at 6.7-fold increased risk of severe preeclampsia.” – Ananth CV, Keyes KM, Wapner RJ. Pre-eclampsia rates in the United States, 1980-2010: age-period-cohort analysis. BMJ 2013;347:f6564.
In my opinion and experience, it is INCREDIBLY important for every woman who is pregnant or who will one day plan to be pregnant to understand preeclampsia. THERE ARE SO MANY CRUCIAL REASONS to know about it.
NOT so that you can self-diagnose, of course.
But today’s little lesson has been put together so that you’ll:
- Better understand the symptoms of preeclampsia.
- Be able to ask your physician more/the right questions about any signs/symptoms you may be experiencing during pregnancy.
- Be encouraged to get checked out if things suddenly seem “off.”
- Better monitor your symptoms.
So let’s learn a little, shall we?!
Obviously, I’m not a doctor by osmosis. And my doctor husband isn’t a specialist in this area. So I’ve done some research and also enlisted the help of one of my amazing fellow blogger mamas on Instagram, @katie.plus.coffee. (She’s also a doc wife)!
Katie is a Physician Assistant (OBGYN PA-C) and has worked with many OB patients. She’s also impressively committed to educating on Women’s Health issues. And she’s currently super pregnant, so be sure to go follow her (Instagram HERE or on her blog HERE) for the very best in belly shots and relatable mom issues + incredible education.
She’s provided our preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome info below using references: UptoDate and Current Medical Diagnosis OBGYN 11th Edition (THANK YOU, Katie!):
Preeclampsia
What are the symptoms of preeclampsia?
Most women with preeclampsia do not notice any unusual symptoms. (Annoying, right?)
Sometimes, symptoms will only present when severe preeclampsia is present and these symptoms include:
- Bad or persistent headache
- Visual changes
- Upper abdominal pain
- Pain above the belly button
- Change in mental status/confusion
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
Possible effects on mother:
- Severe preeclampsia can affect the kidneys, liver, lungs, brain, eyes and heart.
- It can lead to eclampsia which is seizures in the setting of preeclampsia.
Effects on baby:
- Preeclampsia may slow the growth of the baby.
- It may decrease the amniotic fluid surrounding the baby (oligohydramnios).
- It may cause decreased blood flow to the baby.
- It may cause abruption of the placenta (separation of placenta from inner wall of uterus).
HELLP Syndrome
What is HELLP syndrome?
HELLP is a medical acronym that stands for:
H: hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells)
EL: Elevated Liver enzymes
LP: Low platelets (platelets are small blood cells that help to form clots)
What are the symptoms of HELLP?
- Abdominal pain (especially middle or upper right)
- Nausea or vomiting
- Generally feeling unwell
Possible effects on mother?
- Harm blood cells
- Cause swelling, bleeding or rupture of the liver
- Affect kidneys or other organs
- Impact the placenta (the organ that brings nutrients and oxygen to baby, removes waste from baby)
Possible effects on baby?
- The baby may be born early and this can be associated with lung, brain, eye and other problems.
- The baby may be small.
Thanks for that info, Katie!
Preeclampsia from an OB’s perspective
I also consulted with an OB/GYN: Dawn Kopp, over at Northwest Ob/Gyn, and she had some great information to add! (Thanks, Dawn)!
“MANY of these women are diagnosed with preeclampsia as we usually notice their BP is high at a routine appointment or during an unscheduled visit and then notice other associated symptoms. Many of my patients with preeclampsia report a ‘general feeling of unwellness’ or ‘something is off.’ Many more women have preeclampsia and get diagnosed (it represents 2-8% of pregnancies worldwide) and a small minority of these have severe features which include HELLP syndrome. “
She added: “What I usually tell patients with preeclampsia is that it is a condition that exists only in pregnancy and the 1-2 weeks afterwards it is primarily affects the mother’s health. If a woman gets it when her baby is preterm, we weigh the risks of her health with continuing the pregnancy and risk of it getting worse (because delivery is the cure) vs the risk of a preterm delivery. If a woman is full term, we just proceed to delivery and depending on which severe features she has (always with HELLP) we proceed toward delivery-since that can progress quickly.”
If you’re interested in doing a little more further independent research on preeclampsia or hypertension in pregnancy, check out the ACOG Practice Bulletin or the Task Force Recommendations on Hypertension in Pregnancy.
Now that we know what we’re talking about here, I want to also give you a look into how it happened for me personally.
My Experience with Preeclampsia & HELLP:
Guys. Have I ever told you that I journaled during my pregnancies? Well, these notes have come in handy, because I documented the days leading up to this birth, including the symptoms I experienced.
August 6th – My 34 week appointment. I was tested for preeclampsia because of my RIDICULOUS swelling (See the pics in Part 1.) My results came back normal. My blood pressure was not elevated.
August 11th – I began noting stabbing pains in my belly. I didn’t think too much about it. (Retrospectively, I believe my preeclampsia had begun at this point, over the matter of five days between my appointment and this day, but I would not be tested again until my hospitalization on August 18th).
August 14th – I experienced sharp “stomach” pains, low grade fever, and exhaustion. It had subsided by the afternoon. The platinum band on my ring cracked, because my swelling had increased so much, making my ring tight.
August 15th – I called the on-call physician due to intense “stomach” pains (these were upper right quadrant), nausea, vomiting, and low grade fever (100.6). The physician believed it was a GI bug. Pain was gone by 7pm.
August 16th & 17th – I did not experience any symptoms.
August 18th – I went to work, but was experiencing ALL of the symptoms listed above of HELLP syndrome: upper right abdominal pain, nausea, and generally feeling very unwell. FINALLY went in to be seen in triage (at 6pm) and was quickly induced due to severe preeclampsia with mod/severe HELLP syndrome.
August 19th – Had a c-section due to declining stats (blood pressure continually elevated 25 points, platelet count dropped to 69, liver function tests were continually elevated)
What I Learned
If I could hop into my time machine, I would go back and get checked out on August 14th, when I was experiencing the new pains I described. It may have prevented the condition from getting as severe as it did!
The difficult part, as Katie outlined, is that you usually do not notice symptoms of preeclampsia until it has progressed into severe preeclampsia.
For me, preeclampsia struck within a matter of 5-8 days. Unfortunately, when the symptoms presented, I misidentified them. The stabbing pains I began having on August 11th would come and go, confusing me. The significant pains and feelings of being “really uncomfortable” that began August 14th were accompanied by a low grade fever, another confusing symptom. At that time, I also misidentified the pains as “stomach” pains instead of liver pain. The doctor would have helped me identify what I was feeling if I had gone in to the clinic.
Another issue that many women, especially during their first pregnancies, face, is that you don’t know what pregnancy is SUPPOSED to feel like, so you tough out any pains or odd feelings because you expect to feel terrible, especially at the end of your pregnancy. You dismiss your concerns because “it’s too early,” or the timing isn’t convenient for your spouse, or you think you’re just being whiney. I’m a tough chick. I was prepared for pregnancy to suck and I didn’t want to go in for help until it was “really bad.” I wish I hadn’t had this mentality.
What you can do:
- Don’t skip your regular appointments. Be sure you’re being seen at the increments suggested, without too long between.
- Call your doctor if you have any concerns. Ask lots of questions.
- If you still have concerns, GO IN and be seen. ESPECIALLY if it’s your first pregnancy.
- Don’t try to “tough it out.” You don’t win any prizes by waiting until your symptoms are severe to get help.
Recurrence
According to www.preeclampsia.org, preeclampsia has a recurrence rate of approximately 20% for future pregnancies. My blood pressure was slightly elevated at the end of my second pregnancy (WHICH TERRIFIED ME), but I never had protein in my urine or any pain. I was so thankful. But I was much more aware and would have been allllll over it if things got weird.
____________________
Thank you. Thank you for being with me to learn more about this important topic today, friends.
Also, thanks again to Katie from Katie.plus.coffee and Dawn from Northwest Ob/Gyn!!
Hopefully this information will help other mamas to look out for preeclampsia and be aware when symptoms present.
I really, truly care about ALL OF YOU and those sweet, sweet babies you’re having!
I’ll be posting a video later this week about my actual journey from preeclampsia diagnosis to birth of baby (even the parts where I was not so coherent thanks to the magnesium). So be sure you’re following me on YouTube for that!
And then for next Saturday – can’t wait to see you back then, as I put my skills as a Speech-Language Pathologist to good use: we’re diving into early language development and I, for one, can’t wait. ❤️
All the love to you!!!!!
XO!!!
Honestly,
AM 🙂 ❤️❤️
More About Me: Hi! I’m Ann Marie, a blogging mama of 3 tiny gals, and a wife to a busy Orthopedic Surgeon. You can find me right here for a weekly smattering of inspiration for your motherhood journey, home, marriage (I see you other medical wives!), style, and beauty. You’ll find me most active on Instagram or Facebook for life between blog posts. And I truly can’t wait to see you there, friend. ❤️💋
To connect, shoot me an email at honestlyannmarie@gmail.com ❤️
