First off, you can always have your home birth almost no matter what. Your body your choice, is always paramount.
Second, you are pregnant - silly to state the obvious hey? but blood pressure in all pregnant women increases from the baseline and also increases during pregnancy.
Third, it's not that bad.. don't trust google - they don't have pregnant women bps
But I'm sure what is going through your mind is whether there are any signs that would make YOU feel as though you needed care from the hospital before your labour started naturally - such as pre-eclampsia. That would indicate getting baby here sooner. There are some symptoms to look out for yourself, and your healthcare providers will be looking for.
What to do?:
Monitor it.
Both at appointments and at home.
This is something that can be monitored, and you are doing one of the best things and taking your blood pressure yourself at home when you are relaxed... and you are looking for relaxed - if you have someone else around you who you feel relaxed around, let them put a monitor on you. let it go up and down a few times before you take a reading from it. So doing it, but not having any knowledge of the readings for about a 10 min period - then get the reading... this way your hypersensitivity to the "act" of taking the readings with be diminished.
Drink water.
Simple solution. Are you dehydrated? - you heart has to work harder to pump more concentrated blood around.
Family history.
Have you any records of you blood pressure before you were pregnant? Only asking because you said you have family history of high blood pressure, do you think you have a naturally higher bp?
Posture.
Don't have your bp taken whilst laying down on your back - baby can compress your blood vessels. Even sitting, try to lean forward. (that really goes for all times, not just having your bp taken!)
The Upshot is - You are in the upper normal range for pregnancy, and it needs to be monitored... and that isn't what you want to hear (more monitoring!) If there are any flags, you and the health team are aware to keep monitoring and then it is always upto you to make the decisions.
My 2ps worth - you should always take evidence that your condition (whatever it is) requires a non-risk free intervention... and not blanket-policy.
I say this because my hospital had a policy of recommending inducing ladies with Gestational Diabeties, without evidence of medical need in every case. The same use to be true of women with previous c-secions having another c-section.
Please let us know how you get on.
xxx
