My sister just lost a baby at 6 months due to HELLP syndrome.  She wants to try again, but we are all worried about reoccurance.  There seems to be a lot of contraversy as to the safeness of subsequent pregnancies after HELLP.  

I have had chronic hypertension treated by medication since I was 20 yrs old.  I got pregnant when I was 23 yrs old.  

During my fourth month, I noticed tunnel vision at times, and sometimes it felt as though my eyes were "falling asleep" or tingling.  I told my OB, and she told me not to worry.  

I started swelling, quite a bit, around 6 1/2 months.  I had to have my wedding ring cut off my finger.  I went to the doctor for my normal check up.  I told her I feared preeclampsia, she told me not to worry, every pregnant woman thinks she has preeclampsia - you pregnant women read too much.  She gave me a 24 hr creatnine clearance test, and everything came back fine.

Two weeks later, I began to feel uncomfortable.  I felt like I had a
pole up my rear end.  I couldn't sit - it was uncomfortable.  The next
morning, I awoke in labor though I wasn't sure it was labor at the time.

I went to the hospital to get checked out after having these
contractions for four hours.  They took blood and urine samples and
found that my blood pressure was elevated, my liver and kidney enzymes were way off, and there was so much protein in my urine it was the color of dark tea.  My platelets were 45,000.  They rushed me via ambulance to Bronson Hospital where I delivered via c-section a baby boy who weighed 3 pounds 6 oz.  His name is Nathan.  

Nathan was in perfect condition, he needed no oxygen assistance, he just needed some poundage, and a little assistance eating.  They gave him an apgar of 8-9.

We recovered well.
 
 

Stacy@omw.org