Having All Kinds of Issues

Couple ideas for you. At this stage of pregnancy, some swelling is normal. If it's just in one hand that's really bad, that should be checked into. Try increasing your fluids and your protein intake, those help keep the swelling down to some extent. The pressure is probably just the baby dropping into position, alot of babies starting engaging in the pelvis around this time. The blurred vision and black spots sound like to me maybe your blood pressure is getting high. That definately is worth calling your doctor about. A good doctor will tell you they would rather you call and it be nothing than to not call and have a problem. If you feel like something is not right, then something is probably not right. Dont give up - it doesn't matter if you bother them - the most important thing is the safety of you and your child

It seems you have gotten alot of good advice, but I am also going to put forth my two cents as well. When you are seeing spots and blurred vision, you should go to the doctor or hospital ASAP. That, in combination with the swelling and heartburn is definite signs of toxemia/preeclampsia. There is a rare version that your blood pressure does not go up until it is tto late. I myself got to experience that with my first child. This version of toxemia pretty much goes undiagnosed until your so far gone that your blood pressure finally spikes and you go into seizures. Myself, I had HORRIBLE heartburn from the get go and so bad by the end of my pregnancy that I could not lie down and was eating about 20 tums a night to try and sleep. I was swelling at a rate of 5 to 13 pounds a week! I started throwing proteins in my urine so I was being watched carefully as I was beginning to be symptomatic. The doctor kept asking if I had any frontal headaches or blurry vision, which up until the day I went into the hospital was a no. One morning I woke up with a headache I could not get rid of ( I happened to be on bed rest as well due to 13 pounds of additional water weight gain) so I called my OB/GYN - she sent me to the emergency room - my blood pressure was something like 170/110 - stroke level. They admitted me as I was also having contractions I could not feel. This was 31/2 weeks before my due date. The next morning I seized and they took the my son by emergency c-section. I was on heavy doses of magnesium for 3 days. My son was only 4.5 pounds and 18 inches long - way small for only being slightly premature. Here one of the side effects of toxemia is that your uterus quits growing, so does your child. Next, I found out that the heartburn was not heartburn, but liver enzymes as my organs had begun shutting down due to the toxemia. Ultimately, everything turned out to be fine, but it was a a traumatic birth experience and could cause long lasting damage to myself and my child.

So, long story short, NEVER feel like you are being a pest - your instincts are telling you that something is not right and you need to make your doctor aware of that. If you have the blurred vision, your blood pressure might be spiking. Also, most of the time they do not do blood workups unless there is a problem - maybe you need one. It is better than a seizure and emergency delivery or worse a stroke.

K.,

Unfortunately when the doctors say everything is fine, the best you can do is try to do all you can to make yourself comfortable until th big day. I had blackouts from when I was 36 weeks pregnant and had to be on bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy. Swelling is also normal. Just keep your legs elevated. I know you wanted a silver bullet to solve this but unfortunately there isn't one. If you feel something is really wrong do not hesitate to call your doctor. The have seen it all so you would not be the first worried expectant mother calling and it will give you piece of mind. Good luck and God bless.

K. C.
The black spots my be your blood pressure. If your concerned go to your doctor office when it is happening and make them take your blood pressure. It is something serious to be concerned about. I lost a baby four years ago, as my blood pressure got too high in my fifth month and the umbilical cord blew off the baby! I REGRET NOT PRESSING MY HUSBAND MORE TO HAVE HIS MOTHER AND BROTHER LEAVE ME ALONE AND NOT HASSEL ME, BY DROPPING BY DAILY TO OUR HOME AND OTHER ISSUES THAT WERE GOING ON! I am sorry to have to say this but I worry about it the spots and your blood pressure. Do not ignore it! PLEASE!!
DESTRESS NOW!!!!
As for the Swelling cut back on your Sodium intake Look at the mg as well as the Daily Value The Daily Value should be 5% or lower-- you need 200-400 mg a day. Check with YOUR DOCTOR FIRST BEFORE YOU CHANGE YOUR DIET! Look at labels the sodium intake is through the roof. I watch now because I am on Blood Pressure Medicines. I eat mostly Chicken and brown rice and veggies! The pressure you feel on the bowels is somewhat normal so eat more bran that should help. If not check again with your doctor.
I hope this helps you some.
God Bless and Good Luck,
C.

I had the same symptoms with all three of my pregnancies.
With my first, I was diagnosed with toxemia and had to be induced shortly after. However my blood pressure became very high and it doesnt seem like that is something that is happening with you. These are all just the "joys" of impending labor! AS long as your blood pressure doesnt rise and your urine continues to be negative for protein, I would say you are fine. You should be at the point where you are seeing your Dr every week now. They will keep a good eye on you.
In the mean time, to help ease your mind, maybe you can look into getting a blood pressure cuff to monitor your BP at home. If that isnt an option, most Miejers and krogers have them and they are free. I know its a pain to go over there just for a BP check, but if it eases your mind, it may be worth it.
Good luck! Its almost time to meet your bundle of joy!

yes, i had all of these symptoms and was immediately put on bedrest for HYPERTENSION. i spent a ton of time in the hospital for this. i cant believe your doctor is not telling you to go to the hospital RIGHT NOW. i dont want to worry you but if what you have is in fact hypertension, you need to lay down on your left side right away and keep calm and dont do anything that woould make your heart rate go up, including stress.have your blood pressure checked several times a day and in different positions (if you have an at home blood pressure moniter), or you might want to go to urgent care or the emergency room and tell someone. you have ALL the classic signs of very severe hypertension! also knows as preeclampsia. the spots in front of the eyes is the telltale sign!

Hi K.,

I had the same thing with my hands and my ob said it was due to the swelling in my body putting too much pressure on my nerves in my wrists and hands. I couldn't even write my name. Writing a check was torture. My best friend is almost 30 weeks pregnant and she coughs uncontrollably all the time. Her ob said 'some women just cough when they are pregnant' i had never heard of that before. But she is fine in all other areas. and the bowel movement pressure is normal too. Especially as you get farther along. I had that as well. Was quite aggravating. As for the blurred vision. That could be serious for preeclampia but you mentioned that your urine dip and stuff came back ok... so I dunno aobut that one. I hope that this helped. Good luck!

I have had four kids and had similar problems, with my last son who is now 15 months old they ended up inducing me due to swelling and blood pressure realted issues but at 35 weeks you are still too early for induction but just know that all these problems are normal even thou they can be scary, do not be afraid to talk to your doc that is what they are there for. Good luck.

i'm 37 weeks along and have new symptoms that just started showing up in the last week or 2.(lots of swelling, bowel pressure, leg cramps FATIGUE) my vision has been blurry since before i found out i was pregnant! i think you shouldn't be concerned since those issues seem commonplace in pregnancy. don't stress, we don't have far to go!!!

I was gestational diabetic and lost vision for about 10 minutes on 2 separate occasions during my 3rd tri mester. Do not be too alarmed though your body is just reacting to the late stages of pregnancy, I too was really swollen in my hands and feet the last 6 weeks or so. Best bet though is tell your ob all the symptoms they will make sure everything is well. If the baby is moving on a regular basis you should be fine. Best bet though talk to your ob no question is too weird they should know about all of your symptoms-good luck!

I would be concerned with the symptoms you are stating you have. Some general edma, or swelling, is normal but extremely is not so normal. Blurred vision normally normal. Do you have any blood pressure problems? Don't feel bad about hounding them...That's what they are there for, and if you feel like there is something wrong, then you should not be worried about calling. You are looking out for yourself and your child and that's what is best.

If your doctor has tested your blood pressure and done specific blood work to rule out preeclampsia, then there's not much else to do but wait.

as for the swelling it's terrible i know but my doctor told me the same thing all teh time everything is fine and tehy never did end up telling me differently so good luck with that. now for the blurred vision and spots it happened to me with all my kids and they found out that my blood pressure was dropping similiar to teh condition vertigo, when you stand up to fast and you get the spots, only becasue of teh pregnancy it was happening all the time, in and of itself it was harmless but i was on bed rest to reduce the chance that i would fall and injur myself or the baby, hope this helps maybe it is soemthing that they can look into i was sent to a specialist at mco in toledo. good luck.

K.,
Did you have your glucose screen done? Sounds like it could be diabetes...just a thought. I too swell a lot, especially during warm weather. The hand sounds like it is related to swelling and pregnancy carpal tunnel. Good luck with your last few weeks. I would say to just take it easy, prop your feet up, and things should be ok.

L.

Hey, go ahead and keep hounding those docs all you need to. You can't put a price on peace of mind and assurance that you and your baby are fine. Think of your 10-yr-old as well. SO do what you need to do to feel secure. The pressure related to bowel movements might be baby pushing down in the colon area. He / She is constantly growing in there after all! Stay hydrated as the temps get warmer to avoid coughing fits. Could you have an allergy to something? I can't explain the floaters / black spots. A lot of goofy things happen to the body while preg, and they do go away after the baby comes and the hormones return to normal. About the swelling...be sure to ask about blood clots. It may be nothing...or only related to food / sodium intake, but I would ask to be sure. I do hear that some women have nausea the whole time through pregnancy. Everyone is a bit different...and every pregnancy is a bit different for the same person. Some things are just random. You should be down to the weekly visits now, so be assured that you will be under closer watch from here on in. Good luck. P.

I had similar issues, with the swollen hands/feet (actually I had severe carpal tunnel syndrome in my wrists, if you've heard of that), and I was nauseous quite often--heartburn is very common at this point. In fact, drinking too much water would make me even more nauseous. But little sips of water can help with coughing. The bowel pressure is very common, if you think about that baby pressing on all of your organs!
So the only thing I can't relate to is the seeing spots.
Who is your doctor, do you know much about him and whether he's good about these things?
Hang in there, though, not too much longer...I know it seems like ages, I hated being pregnant!
Lynn

The swelling and blurred vision/spots are signs of preeclampsia. I'd call my OB right away and ask about that.

The pressure can be from braxton hicks contractions and some swelling can be just normal pregnancy symtpoms, especially for how far along you are. Nausea can come back later in pregnancy in some people too. I personally am 32 weeks and feeling nauseous again.. fun, fun! Good luck in your final stretch! :)

I would say go ahead and keep telling the doc. He is there to help you and if YOU feel that something just isn't right, then he needs to do all he can (tests, etc.) to aleve your concerns. Was preeclampsia ruled out? The extreme swelling and blurred vision w/seeing black spots would definitely worry me. Hound that doctor!
GOOD LUCK and I hope everything turns out to be normal and fine.

www.marykay.com/jneuerer

yeah sounds to me like Toxemia or preclaypsia

It sounds like you may be a bit dehydrated. Try increasing your water intake and see if that helps. Do you get dizzy or light headed when you get up quickly? Drinking a lot of water should help that, the nausea, the swelling (although that probably won't go totally away), the blurred vision, and may help the cough a little by thinning the secretions and reducing the gag reflex. The pressure on your bowels is probably because the baby is so low (and bigger) now. Definitely keep an eye on your blood pressure, and let the doctor know right away if it is high. Do you have problems keeping food down? Are you eating enough? Any diarrhea? Lots of vomiting? Fevers? Unusual pain that you don't think is pregnancy related or is very different than your previous pregnancy? These are all things to watch for, and to let your doctor know about if they happen. Try increasing your water intake- at least 8 full glasses a day, and if that doesn't help or you develop new symptoms make sure you see your doctor. When you go into your next appointment, bring a list of your symptoms along with you so you don't forget anything. I hope you feel better soon.