At 35 weeks, she noticed changes in her body.
It began with her blood pressure.
My normal blood pressure range is 90 over 60, Jolissa, 32, tells SELF.
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For a person whose blood pressure is usually 90 over 60…that was too high.
Jolissa also began to rapidly gain weight.
In the last month of her pregnancy, she gained two or three pounds a day.
She brought her sister along with her.
Jolissas blood pressure was high, and she was still gaining weight rapidly.
When she returned Thursday for her second appointment, Jolissa noticed she had gained 11 pounds since Monday.
She says the nurse noted her weight but didnt raise any alarm until seeing her blood pressure.
If not, Im going to have to call 911 because this blood pressure is pretty high.
When Jolissa looked at her chart, she saw that her blood pressure was 210 over 140.
She had developed preeclampsia and had to be rushed to the hospital to have anemergency C-section.
Black women were also more likely than women of other races to experience a more severe preeclampsia diagnosis.
Of course, the risk doesn’t lie in race itself.
Blackpostpartumparents are at increased risk of pregnancy and labor-related heart issues up to one year after delivery.
She felt excruciating pain in her chest and was sweating profusely.
I dont like to call the ambulance.
My husband knew something was wrong because I said, Call the ambulance.
Reagan begrudgingly took the EMTs advice.
She met with her primary care doctor at the end of the week and told her what happened.
Her doctor ordered labs for the next week and sent Reagan home, she says.
Upon arrival, she was rushed to have an EKG and then an angiogram to further examine her heart.
She had had three heart attacks.
While SCAD is uncommon, when it does happen it can be deadly.
The cause of it has a lot to do with changes in our hormones, Dr. Pregnancy is in and of itself a stress test, says Dr. Dr. Ofili suggests Black people also request to have an EKG done as part of their annual checkups.
This test may be covered by insurance, depending on the provider, or require an out-of-pocket expense.
Having that information before pregnancy and delivery can be lifesaving.
But the onus is not only on Black people tosave their own lives during and after pregnancy.
We have to approach this from every angle, says Dr. Ofili.
In those instances, Dr.
Bond and Dr. Ofili both encourage patients to attempt to reduce their stress as much as possible.
Thats much easier said than done, but it can make a significant enough difference that its worth emphasizing.
When possible, seeing a therapist or counselor for help reducing stress can be a great option.
Another way to manage that stress is to ask for help.
We know that there are all these things that we deal with as Black women.
I think its looking at: how can we get these women more communal support?
Jolissa and Reagan both had communal support from their families.
They say were aggressive, Reagan says.
You have to be aggressive about you.
Theyre not going to be aggressive about you.
You have to be aggressive when it comes to yourself.
