Left untreated, high blood pressure of toxemia may cause such high pressures to occur that your liver, kidney, and eyes, as well as your brain are put at risk for damage. This is because high blood pressure is caused by abnormal clamping down of the arteries and smaller arterioles which can lead to decreased blood flow and decreased oxygen to your organs. If this goes on long enough, the damage can be permanent.

If your doctor has not induced labor, most likely they decided that the blood pressure problem was mild enough to just watch. At 36 weeks, if this is determined using available testing like ultrasound, your baby is mature enough to be born, but ideally, getting closer to 40 weeks is what is aimed for. Most 36 weekers have no problems breathing at birth, but it can occur, and waiting even a week or two more makes the likelihood of problems much less. But it’s nice to know that you are past the 36 week mark and induction of labor is probably completely safe.

Right now, the biggest problem for your baby is that just like other arteries, those in the placenta can clamp down. This could reduce blood flow to the baby and cause generalized problems seen when oxygen is reduced. This means you must be monitored closely.

Toxemia may plateau and you will go into labor naturally and deliver a healthy baby, but it can also escalate and even result in decreased blood flow to the mother’s brain and seizures. Make sure you do every thing your doctor says and stay under close supervision. Sometimes simple bed rest reduces the problem and may be all you need, but be sure you don’t take any chances.