It's official. I have Gestational Diabetes. I got to put off the 3 hour GTT for a few weeks while I was contracting like crazy, but now that things seem to have calmed down I had to buck up and do it.
If you've never had the pleasure of getting blood drawn 4 times in a 3 hour period while eating or drinking nothing but a syrupy sweet orange glucose drink (100g of glucose), well, I hope you never do.
Between my elevated 1 hour test and this one I had been checking my blood sugars at home. They were OK, so I wasn't too worried. I do have a strong family history of Type II diabetes, but I've always kept a pretty healthy lifestyle and weight. I hoped that would protect me, but pregnancy apparently trumps lifestyle in my case. My 1, 2, and 3 hour blood sugars were high. Difininive diagnosis--GDM.
I met with the nutritionist and reviewed my diet. She agreed it was healthy, but not what my body needs right now. My instructions are to get 10-11 servings of protein/day (including cheese, but excluding other dairy) and only 4 servings of grain, and 1 serving of fruit. No juice, no milk, but all the water and caffeine-free tea (no sugar or honey) I want.
I spent a good part of the day today eating and/or thinking/planning to eat. I was successful in eating my daily recommended servings of protein and didn't even have my fruit. Blood sugars were excellent fasting and after meals (I'm checking 4 X/day). So hopefully if I keep this up I'll be able to avoid any complications or insulin. It's just another annoyance right now, but I can do it for another 2 months.
7 comments:
Ugh. I am so sorry! How and what exactly did you eat 11 times that was protein? I am glad that whatever you ate kept your bs at a steady level throughout the day. Yes, the GTT is close to intolerable. As many blogs as I read where women are diagnosed with it, or borderline like me, i wonder if it is not becoming something that is over-diagnosed lately? As you said, your blood sugars were fine until your 100 g drink. When do we EVER normally consume that much sugar in that small amount of time? that's the equivalent of 3 candy bars in 5 minutes! I'm starting to think the test is a little too rigorous. But, then again, I guess there are many women that do fine. I am sorry for the added stress you will now have to endure. Though sometimes I wish I had gotten a definitive diagnosis instead of the advice to "watch your carb and sugar intake." I don't really know what that means or how radical to be, and now my baby is estimated to weigh 4lbs 9 oz at just shy of 32 weeks! Good luck tracking the blood sugars for the rest of the week. Hopefully no insulin will be needed!
ugh...barfo! i'm right there with you on this one lil mama. i'm so glad it is only two months!!! yay! it was a blast throwing GD into the mix of an already unstable pregnancy! lovin' that baby boy and can't wait to "meet" him! ;)
Oh hun, Im so sorry to hear this--I am glad they are able to guide you on what to eat and what to stay away from. Hoping the stress level stays loooow...Ill be checking on you!
What a bummer! I'm so sorry. You're rockin' it out with the frequent BS checks and strict diet! Here's to NO ISULIN! :)
Love you,
Sonya
oops, INSULIN.
When I saw your blog title, I thought that you were letting us know the initials of your little boy. (That's what I get for not being in a medical field.) ;)
Daisha
Great- just what you need right now! Hang in there- at least you like cheese right? Thinking of you every day- Love Mo
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