Thank you for visiting my page! This is a cause that is deeply personal to me.
On October 10,2024, I went to my OB office with high BP and a severe headache (I also came to find out that the pain in my upper right abdomen was a symptom as well). I had been experiencing swelling (hands, feet, ankles) for a few weeks, but just brushed it off as a pregnancy thing. Upon evaluation, they sent me straight to the hospital for further testing. They said that I would be tested for preeclampsia and that if diagnosed, I would be admitted and treated/monitored, in hopes of holding my birth off until at least 36 weeks. It was the scariest ride of my life and I think I cried the whole way to the hospital, not just from the searing pain in my head, but because I was so scared.
Once there, they started me on a magnesium drip and began some testing, running urine and bloodwork. Within a very short time period, I was moved from triage into a small pre-op room. The OB came in and informed me that I was very sick, and that we would need to do an emergency c-section immediately. The protein count in my urine was over 20,000, and I had developed HELLP syndrome. All I could think about was my baby and kept crying and asking if my baby would be ok.
At 6:09pm, my beautiful daughter Audrey Willow was brought into the world at 29 weeks gestation, weighing 2lb, 7.5oz. Finding out that our surprise gender was a girl was the one small moment of joy I was able to feel during my whole childbirth experience. Once she was intubated and stable, I was able to share a few moments with the nurse holding her down beside me before they took her to the NICU. I wouldn't see her for another 2 days after that.
As I lay in post-op trying to process everything that had happened, it all just felt like a blur. Within a span of about 4ish hours, I went from my OB office exam room to a post-op room. My pregnancy that I thought I had so much more time to enjoy; feeling those little flutters/kicks/flips, was over. I was numb from the waist down and had an incision across my abdomen. It took several days and many different medication combination attempts to get my blood pressure back down to an acceptable level. I was also getting daily blood draws due to the HELLP Syndrome and to monitor those levels. I was finally able to go see Audrey in the NICU that following Saturday, once I was able to come off my magnesium drip. She would spend the next 78 days in the NICU, while I myself had a 4 night stay on the high-risk OB unit.
Going through all of that pain (literal and mental) and fear in the weeks and months to come is something that I wouldn't wish on anyone. And while I feel like I received prompt action and medical attention given the situation, the what if's will always haunt me. What if I’d been more mindful of the symptoms and the fact that in the days leading up to going to the doctor, I had just felt miserable and not like myself. What if I had pushed harder about being put on blood pressure medication when my BP had started to steadily rise my last couple of OB appointments and told them I didn’t want to wait until another checkup. I honestly feel like it’ll haunt me forever.
My hope is to not just raise funds for Preeclampsia and HELLP Syndrome Awareness, but to bring about more awareness to the symptoms themselves and encourage women to be in tune with their bodies. If something feels off, call your doctor, don’t wait. If I hadn’t have received the medical attention I did, when I did, it could have been deadly, for both myself and my baby.
Community is so important to this cause. We couldn’t have gotten through the toughest time of our lives without our incredible and compassionate medical team (for myself and for Audrey), as well of the overwhelming amount of love and support we received from our family and friends. If you’ve made it this far, thank you! Please consider making a donation to this worthy cause, no amount is too small!
