On April 1st, Chantel was admitted into Sanford hospital in Bismarck due to high blood pressure during pregnancy. At the time of admission she was 29 weeks 6 days along and measured blood pressure of 170/120. This was very concerning as she has never had any health problems up until this spike in blood pressure so it was diagnosed at gestational hypertension. Chantel is only 22 years old and this is her first child. The next couple days, her blood pressure continued to be high, but less concerning as when admitted. They gave her the potential date of April 5th to go home at that point. The morning of April 4th (Easter Sunday), there was another really high spike, measuring 174/118. The doctor came and did an analysis pressing on her stomach and there was pain as well as a headache and vision changes. The gestational hypertension had progressed into pre-eclampsia and if they didn't do something soon, it could be very harmful to Chantel and baby Aspen. They scheduled the emergency c-section for 11:15. Aspen was born via c-section at 11:47 am on April 4th at 30 weeks 2 days gestation weighing 3 lbs and 16 inches long. She was immediately taken to NICU for them to assess her condition. Since then she has been making wonderful progress in the NICU. Chantels blood pressure has still been high. Another spike on April 7th led to another trip to the hospital spiking to 171/110. The visit led to a CT scan and some labs that all ended up being okay. She was sent home to rest and was told to see her doctor the next day who told us this is a normal occurrence until the toxins from the pre-eclampsia leave her body, she may have these spikes but to just watch so it doesn't get too high. So far both Chantel and Aspen have been doing much better. As of today 4/12, Aspen is down to 1/4 liter through a nose cannula and will be having her feeding tubes removed later today and will be switching to a supplemented milk provided by Chantel pumping. She is making huge strides forward but still has a long road ahead
