A High-Risk Pregnancy Can Happen to Anyone

As a Black female physician, Dr. Karol Watson assumed her first pregnancy would go according to plan. She wasn't prepared for multiple hospitalizations, bed rest and, ultimately, a preterm delivery. Her second and third pregnancies were similarly difficult. "It didn't help that I knew a lot about medicine. It didn't help that I had resources and access," Dr. Watson explains. "Imagine if I didn't." Her message reminds us that Black women from all walks of life should take heed, regardless of educational level or socioeconomic status, because a high-risk pregnancy, labor or postpartum recovery can happen to anyone.

Visit OWN's Heart Health page throughout the month of February for vital updates and information about cardiac disease prevention.