Doctor's appointment - the good, the bad and the ugly

[Fit_Mama2Be]

Well I finally saw an obgyn yesterday. The good news is, I like her. She is getting me in for a dating scan in the next week or two so I will FINALLY know how far along I am. She gave me a tentative due date of July 22(!) but said it will probably change since I have no idea when my last period was.

And now the bad. My stupid blood pressure is through the roof again. I went through this a couple of years ago and they ran every test possible and were never able to figure out why. Even so, I completely changed my lifestyle; lost 45 pounds and got in really good shape. I thought that would have fixed this, but NOPE.

My doctor says if it doesn't improve I will not be able to give birth in the little hospital in my neighborhood and will have to go to a larger one that is equipped to deal with high risk pregnancies. I was very upset about this at first, but now realize that it isn't the end of the world not getting to deliver in my first choice hospital - I'll still get a private room and excellent care.

Anyway, this is going to be the last pity party I throw for myself as I'm determined to beat this thing for my little one's sake. I just don't know what more I can do - I don't have any extra weight to lose, I already exercise, and I no longer drink (hello, I'm pregnant). Doing yoga deep breathing seems to help, so I'm going to focus on that and learn to meditate.

I am determined now to prove my doctor wrong and have a healthy (non high risk!) pregnancy. Doctor's don't know everything - they were the ones who said because of my husband's low count we'd never conceive without IVF, and yet here we are, pregnant without even trying.

I just feel so incredibly guilty, like I am letting my little one down by possibly endangering him/her.

 

[wannabemamaz]

Morning Love.. I'm sorry to hear about your bad appointment! What was your BP? At my first prenatal appointment my BP was pretty high too. my Dr told me that I would need to be monitored and that I could potentially need to go on bed rest. My dad has a blood pressure machine so he let me borrow it so I could be taking my BP regularly. I discovered that my BP was only high when I went to the Dr! I guess this can be very common.. So I would definitely give this a shot if you can! Try getting a machine at home (they aren't too expensive.. and better than at the drug store because you need to take your reading while you are relaxing on the couch or whatever you do that makes you relaxed). I recorded my BP's and gave them to my Dr and she was very pleased that I just had 'white coat syndrome' from being at the Dr. (Not trying to downplay what you are going through if it is something more serious.. just trying to help!)

My dr also told me that BP can very commonly be high in the first trimester and tends to go way down in the second. I just had a prenatal appointment yesterday and my BP was 106/68. So don't worry just yet.. you have lots of time ahead of you to get some answers and everything may be just fine!

The most important think to remember is that you have a precious life growing inside of you. If your dr thinks you need to deliver at a different hospital it's because that is the best thing to keep you and baby safe. And you got pregnant against the odds (according to the drs..) that is AMAZING. you are in such a great place. Just try to do your best to stay relaxed and enjoy this crazy ride!!

 

[Fit_Mama2Be]

Thanks so much wannabemamaz!!! I think I have a case of white coat syndrome as well!

I went by the drugstore before work this morning and checked my blood pressure right away without giving myself time to relax - it was 140/83. :-/

Then I waited a couple of minutes and took it again, taking deep yoga breaths this time and visualizing myself pushing air in and out of my lungs. This time my blood pressure was 120/83, totally normal, thank God!!!

I think I still have residual trauma from when my blood pressure was high a couple of years ago (before I lost 45 pounds and got in really good shape). The worst was having to get an ultrasound of my heart. We had just started TTC at the time and I told the tech that I always thought that if I got an ultrasound it would be because I was pregnant, not because something might be wrong with my heart...and then I started to cry. Nasty woman, she gave me a dirty look and snapped at me to stay still! No wonder I get anxiety as soon as the doctor goes to check my blood pressure...

I don't care which hospital I end up in so long as I have a healthy baby, but it looks like I just might be delivering in the hospital of my choice after all.

Thanks again for your comforting words.

 

[wannabemamaz]

Yay!!! So happy to hear it was down!! My dr told me that very often the first number can go up or down depending on yours thoughts/feelings/anxieties/etc.. so it is typically the second number that is most important. That makes sense that your second number stayed the same (at the perfect place) and it was your top number that went down after you relaxed!

Hope you have a great day!!

 

[Kyliem87]

Hey

First off congrats and yey to a scan!

Secondly I have high blood pressure. I developed it when pregnant with my daughter back in 2011 and it never went! She will be 3 in in Feb. I have to be on medication and even then it's higher than they would like to see. With my daughter I was induced at 37 weeks but had a lovely birth even though it did take 3 days! I will be monitored closely again and likely to be induced but I have no worries - having extra monitoring just makes sure we are both in good hands!

I also get a fast heart rate. Last time I had a resting heart rate of 170bpm so this time I'm also likely to be seeing a cardiologist as well but I just take each day as it comes and don't stress about it until someone tells me it's an issue

Congrats and enjoy it

 

[sunshine2014]

Sorry to hear you are going through this blood pressure stress, but I think you've got the right attitude about staying calm, being healthy and beating it, so that's great! Yoga is great!

I did have to touch on one thing you mentioned, about Doctors not knowing everything. I took this a little personally as my hubby is a Dr. I have seen how invested his is in learning thing he possibly can about every single thing patients come in with. He is incredibly knowledgeable in so many areas of the medical field, but yes, it is impossible to know absolutely everything. They also can't SEE inside bodies or know exactly why things function/happen the way they do. I see a lot of posts on here that complain about Doctors and how wrong they were etc. However we need to remember that they are giving us Advice and guidance based on what we tell them, they are not claiming that it's the end all be all and nothing will ever stray from what they said. So, I just needed to comment on that, mostly because I love my DH and I see how dedicated he is to learning about patients, so he can help them to the best of his ability, and being able to guide them through pregnancies based on the symptoms and situations that they describe to him.

With that, I am sure your Doctor was thrilled that you ended up being pregnant, even though for whatever reasons the discussion you had suggested it may be difficult.

 

[Fit_Mama2Be]

Thanks ladies!! Wannabemamaz that makes sense what you're saying about the bottom number. I had a look at some blood pressure measurements I saved from a bit over a year ago and my bottom number was the same every reading then too - only back then it was high - 96 as opposed to 83 - so I guess the weightloss and exercise really did pay off!

Kyliem87 I need to adopt your positive attitude! I have a cousin who has had unexplained hypertension since her early twenties so I know it does happen and doesn't mean the world is coming to an end. My cousin has 4 healthy kids btw, 3 of whom were conceived after her diagnoses.

Sunshine2014 I mean no disrespect to doctors - I am very good at what I do for a living but I don't know everything either. You are sure lucky to be married to a doctor who specializes in pregnancy, that must be very comforting. I'm very happy with my new doctor and feel like I'm in great hands.

Have a great night mamas to be!

 

[sunshine2014]

Thanks ladies!! Wannabemamaz that makes sense what you're saying about the bottom number. I had a look at some blood pressure measurements I saved from a bit over a year ago and my bottom number was the same every reading then too - only back then it was high - 96 as opposed to 83 - so I guess the weightloss and exercise really did pay off!

Kyliem87 I need to adopt your positive attitude! I have a cousin who has had unexplained hypertension since her early twenties so I know it does happen and doesn't mean the world is coming to an end. My cousin has 4 healthy kids btw, 3 of whom were conceived after her diagnoses.

Sunshine2014 I mean no disrespect to doctors - I am very good at what I do for a living but I don't know everything either. You are sure lucky to be married to a doctor who specializes in pregnancy, that must be very comforting. I'm very happy with my new doctor and feel like I'm in great hands.

Have a great night mamas to be!

So happy you have a Doctor you feel comfortable with now! Sending healthy pregnancy vibes!

 

[tryn4]

Fit I was going to say it's the bottom one u need to worry about. And yours looks good. Don't stress! It's very common to have slightly higher BP while pregnant. For myself my arm is big so if they use a regular cuff my BP looks high. If they use a big cuff I'm 120 over 80. Weight also doesn't necessarily determine how your body will be so don't be too hard on yourself. Sounds like you've put a lot of effort into losing weight and getting healthy. As for docs you'd be surprised mine wouldn't even bat an eyelash at that BP. He doesn't even tell me to watch my weight and I'm about 280 lbs. I've always been big and my history reflects very uneventful uncomplicated (so far!) So he is very relaxed when it comes to my care. It's actually a relief sometimes. Everyone body is so different!