Annoyed after midwife appointment....white coat syndrome problems

[seaweed eater]

She is worried about 145/90??? Is she crazy??? I went to the Dr. yesterday and the first reading they took was 168/105! They told me if it didn't go down that I would have to start bed rest and see if that helps. The second reading was 138/85 which they were perfectly fine with and said I can just come back in 2 weeks. To be fair, mine could be the start of PIH, because I did have it with my first pregnancy, but I was diagnosed with white coat hypertension after my first pregnancy and my bp does always seem to be a little higher at the Dr office.

Was you midwife using an electronic cuff or a manual one? My first BP reading was with an electronic cuff, the second was with a manual one, which are supposed to be way more accurate.

IMO, 145/90 is above the cutoff for a reason. That's around where it starts getting dangerous for the baby, if it is running there continuously. If it just spikes to that level it's not supposed to be an issue.

OP, I would even be surprised if yours was the worst case of white coat syndrome that your MW had seen. I was pretty anxious going in to my 12 week appointment and my first reading was about 160/100. It was much lower after we heard the heartbeat, but still what my doctor cared most about was that it was 120/70 at home.

 

[Twinkie210]

Yes, but at 145/90 she shouldn't be to the point of worrying you further, especially if she knows you have white coat hypertension. It is not that much higher than the normal range. It would probably be a good idea for you to have your BP checked regularly (by someone you are comfortable with) but not the terrible situation she is making it sound like. I would look into some relaxation techniques for her next visit. So hopefully you won't have to repeat this whole situation again at your next appt. Plus I would try to relax until she talks to the Dr, the Dr. may not be concerned at all about the slightly high BP as long as it doesn't go higher Good Luck!

 

[Lozdi]

I have read higher than 145/90 at home- but I took my bp when I was really angry and stressed and had consumed 2 cups of normal tea almost back to back! 30 mins later, my bp was back down and slap bang in the middle of the good range.

Your midwife is not meant to make you feel weird, or bad, they are meant to make you feel comfortable, and if they have concerns they are meant to communicate those concerns gently and in a manner that doesn't freak you out, I think you should certainly try to change, afterall this midwife has you so worked up you needed to post it here- she is failing at being your care provider by making you that nervous.

 

[Flip flop]

Im going to see what she says once shes spoken to the doctor and if I still feel the same Ill go find out about changing.

I was already battling with anxiety (which is another probably reason why it was up in the docs) and now I feel much worse which isnt good.

 

[Flip flop]

Just got a call from the midwifes student assistant (who was also at our meeting yesterday), said to her how I felt about the midwife and she said it wasn't meant to be like that she just needs to plan what to do and i said I'll never get a good reading there if she's like that so hopefully she'll tell her. Gave her my bp readings from last night and this morning and she said were fine, which I knew they would be. They are going to email the doctor and discuss it at my next appointment in 2 weeks.

I might go and explain to my doctOr as I need to see him in next couple of weeks anyway.

 

[Twinkie210]

Just got a call from the midwifes student assistant (who was also at our meeting yesterday), said to her how I felt about the midwife and she said it wasn't meant to be like that she just needs to plan what to do and i said I'll never get a good reading there if she's like that so hopefully she'll tell her. Gave her my bp readings from last night and this morning and she said were fine, which I knew they would be. They are going to email the doctor and discuss it at my next appointment in 2 weeks.

I might go and explain to my doctOr as I need to see him in next couple of weeks anyway.

Well that sounds promising Hopefully you can relax some, at least they are taking your home bp readings into consideration.

 

[hayleyh26]

I'm going through the same thing - my blood pressure shoots up at the Midwife (or any Doctor's / hospital / dentist appointment!), but when I take it at home it's absolutely fine. My last Midwife appointment it was 140/90, but at home it never goes above 126/70

The Midwife asked me to keep a record for 3 weeks, which I did - and every one of the readings was fine, but I still felt like she didn't believe me! She is going to talk to the Doctor for advice, and I have to keep another record until my 36 week appointment next week.

I hope everything works out ok for you xx

 

[Flip flop]

I'm going through the same thing - my blood pressure shoots up at the Midwife (or any Doctor's / hospital / dentist appointment!), but when I take it at home it's absolutely fine. My last Midwife appointment it was 140/90, but at home it never goes above 126/70

The Midwife asked me to keep a record for 3 weeks, which I did - and every one of the readings was fine, but I still felt like she didn't believe me! She is going to talk to the Doctor for advice, and I have to keep another record until my 36 week appointment next week.

I hope everything works out ok for you xx

Its frustrating isnt it. I just took mine and got 116/66. Does your midwife make you out to be a right freak and seem overly worried?

I got a text off her just there to say shes emailed the consultant for advice. I can see why she'd be worried about what will happen when I go to give birth but at the moment I know I am usually fine.

I texted her back saying 'thanks but its not going to get any better at the surgery with all this stress'.

Id be interested to hear what your doctor comes back with and compare it with mine. She said I might have to get blood tests every 2 weeks to check for preeclampsia or something.

 

[havingmyfirst]

I have a similar problem... my blood pressure is fine with my GP and fine with midwives but if a consultant takes it .... it's HIGH.... My consultant was away for my last appointment so I had another and he had the cheek to blame the midwives for not taking it properly... I should have told him it was because he stressed me out talking about BIG babies and shoulder dystocia for 20 minutes!