Meghan Markle suffered this rare, dangerous condition after childbirth: What causes it?

Meghan Markle, former Hollywood actress and wife of Prince Harry, revealed that she had suffered a rare and scary health condition after giving birth. She spoke about the condition called preeclampsia, which is as severe as postpartum depression, in the podcast Confessions of a Female Founder with Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herde. Meanwhile, Whitney said that she, too, had gone through a similar condition. The duo discussed how they had overcome this rare condition that could be life-threatening.

“Both of us had preeclampsia after childbirth. It is a rare and scary condition,” says Meghan in the podcast. She added that she didn’t know anything about the condition then. Meanwhile, Whitney stated that she had no idea whether she would live. Meghan explained how it was difficult to face a scary situation while caring for the newborn child. However, Meghan didn’t reveal whether she had suffered preeclampsia during the first or second childbirth.

What causes preeclampsia?
Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related condition that happens midway through pregnancy, at about 20 weeks, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It is characterised by high blood pressure, protein in the urine, swelling, blurred vision, and headaches. It can also cause liver and kidney damage, stress the heart and other organs, affect blood supply to the placenta, cause fluid buildup in the lungs, cause brain injury and more, making it an emergency situation.

However, there won’t be symptoms of the same until a visit to their doctor, which makes the condition a lot more risky. However, in a few people, it can show signs of weight gain, swelling, water retention, headaches, dark spots in vision, shortness of breath, high blood pressure and protein in their urine. Interestingly, there is no clarity yet on what causes the condition, though some researchers say it is triggered by improper blood supply to the placenta. Stress is also often quoted as a factor, though not a direct one.