Low blood pressure and swelling in the legs - 17 wks

[WhiteHorse]

I hope someone out there can help with this question. I am just over 17 weeks along and experiencing swelling in my thighs and calves - not much in the feet or ankles. Its not too bad - YET.  When I went to the doc last week I told him my blood pressure felt very low - when they took it it was something like 70 over 55. Doc told me to get compression stockings which I havent yet. My main concern is that since I am not even halfway along, I can expect swelling to get worse in the coming months. I do not stand alot although yesterday was lots of standing in the kitchen, but normally I am sitting at desk or running after toddler. Should I be concerned about the hollow low feeling I have and swelling? Seems weird to me, not something I experienced the last 2 pregnancies (the first was with twins).

[lillymonster]

I have read a lot of things that vit D and magnesium will help with swelling, you may have to google it because I don't remember exactly. But I had a lot of swelling with #1 when I was just taking the prescription prenatals. Now I am taking seperate vitamins and minerals, much much higher levels of vit D and magnesium/calcium, I have had no swelling and I am 33 weeks. And have you had your iron levels checked?

[sonshine_rae]

I just posted about having swelling at just under 15 weeks in the May DDC. 

Swelling 'can' be the start to major problems later on as many of us know.  I'm told by the mid-wives that as long as we catch things early we can prevent Pre-E or full-blown E with careful care.  Last time around my blood pressure stayed low but swelling got out of control and I just barely started to spill protein in my urine, they had me EAT protein like crazy the last few weeks and not only did I stop spilling protein but my swelling went down to almost nothing by the birth.

They told me stories of some women who they had eat 12 eggs a day (besides other foods I'm sure too).. and were able to reverse things and keep them out of the hospital/out of grave danger for mother/baby.

It still confuses me, but having seen a difference in my own body I'm keen to think they are right.

[piopiopio]

Proteins in your blood are part of what helps "hold" the water in your vascular system.  So, the high protein diet makes sense in that by giving your body more protein you enable it to make more albumin to "pull" the water from the swelling back into your veins and arteries.

[SoonToBe]

Have you had your sodium tested?  As weird as it sounds, being low in salt can cause swelling.  It also is a hallmark of low blood pressure.  As simple cure (or helps anyway) is to drink some sea salt.  Make sure you get the unrefined kind and just do a little to start.  Take this advice with a grain of salt (pun intended) since I am newly pregnant, but I have low sodium and low BP and take salt twice a day.  Before finding out the issue, I was so puffy in my legs that my skin felt like it would burst.  I finally took someone's advice and drank the salt and I was peeing buckets within minutes as I flushed out all the fluid.  If you are low in salt, your body holds onto every morsel of salt it can and with each molecule of salt, there is a ton of water attached to it.  Just a thought.  I hope you feel better soon.