So around weeks 24-28 OBGYN's have their patients get tested for gestational diabetes which is a special kind of diabetes you get while pregnant. It usually goes away after birth but it does put a woman at higher risk for getting diabetes later on in life. So I thought I would be good and fast for 12 hours before the test. I am not sure I was supposed to do that but I did because I am always failing the pee tests my doctor gives me when I go to monthly check ups. Mainly because I go to the doctors at 9am and I eat a bowl of cereal at 8am. So basically they were never really concerned.
Well, I have never been a good test taker be it in school or elsewhere so it's no surprise that I failed. But boy, did I fail miserably! Normal is 65-139 and I got 204!! Some people say I should demand a retest because half the ladies on my forum say you are not suppose to fast before the 1 hour glucose test but other ladies said their doctor said to fast and 12 hours was okay. They say by not eating I could have spiked the test when I drank the sugary drink. (At this point who knows?) I really am not sure at this point what I was supposed to do as my doctor said to start eating good an dnot to eat breakfast. If it's one thing I know, I can always fail a blood sugar test because I typically have failed every single one in the past. Usually I go in for a retest and they say I am fine or borderline.
Frankly, I used this this miserable failure as a wake up call. First of all I don't want my baby to be harmed so even if I really didn't fail (apparently a ton of people fail and are forced to take a 3 hour version of the test but mine was so bad they sent me straight to a nutritionist) it's probably a good idea to reevaluate my eating habits a I must admit even before I got pregnant my weight had gotten ahem, a little out of control. Another very good reason for me to wake up and pay attention is that my mother has diabetes and her mother does too. They got it later in life and my mum controls it by diet and not insulin.
I must say I was kind of devastated when I first got the news. But after reaching out to some ladies on my forum who have already started the GD diet and also after researching I have found that eating isn't so bad. The main thing is eating the right carbs with the right proteins and having 3 small meals and also 2-3 snacks all spaced out throughout the day.
Of course, everything that I have taught myself this weekend could be changed when I go see the nutritionist this Friday and spend a few hours in "a how to eat right to make it through GD during your pregnancy" class.
Amazingly you can still have an ice cream if you eat a super good meal and find an ice cream that fits within the snack guidelines.
Its been almost a week since I found out and i think I have done a pretty good job of eliminating sugar from my life. Of course its hard when we get in boxes of sprinkles or chocolate chip cookies at the office but alas, its what I got to do. I was even able to eat In n Out Burger this weekend but I had to make some alterations ot my food such as loose the bun on my hamburger and eat it protein style with no ketchup or mustard. The new bun because some pieces of iceberg lettuce. I wasn't sure this would be cool but actually it was a really tasty burger and it just might taste better than with the bun. Anyhow, its not like I am going to be running out to eat at In n Out Burger all the time but its good to know I can go if I rearrange what I am eating.
Another item that has made the process easier is an APPLE app called GOMEALS in which I login all the food I eat in a day. It tells me the various ratios I need to know to make sure I am eating right. I am using this until I go to the nutritionist on Friday. Apparently they are going to be giving me a meter to check my blood sugar levels for two weeks. Then I have to meet with a special doctor and get a special ultrasound to seee if eating right is helping. If it does i won't have to take insulin but if it doesn't I might have to get insulin. I want to avoid that at all costs because I really, really, really hate needles.
Well, I have never been a good test taker be it in school or elsewhere so it's no surprise that I failed. But boy, did I fail miserably! Normal is 65-139 and I got 204!! Some people say I should demand a retest because half the ladies on my forum say you are not suppose to fast before the 1 hour glucose test but other ladies said their doctor said to fast and 12 hours was okay. They say by not eating I could have spiked the test when I drank the sugary drink. (At this point who knows?) I really am not sure at this point what I was supposed to do as my doctor said to start eating good an dnot to eat breakfast. If it's one thing I know, I can always fail a blood sugar test because I typically have failed every single one in the past. Usually I go in for a retest and they say I am fine or borderline.
Frankly, I used this this miserable failure as a wake up call. First of all I don't want my baby to be harmed so even if I really didn't fail (apparently a ton of people fail and are forced to take a 3 hour version of the test but mine was so bad they sent me straight to a nutritionist) it's probably a good idea to reevaluate my eating habits a I must admit even before I got pregnant my weight had gotten ahem, a little out of control. Another very good reason for me to wake up and pay attention is that my mother has diabetes and her mother does too. They got it later in life and my mum controls it by diet and not insulin.
I must say I was kind of devastated when I first got the news. But after reaching out to some ladies on my forum who have already started the GD diet and also after researching I have found that eating isn't so bad. The main thing is eating the right carbs with the right proteins and having 3 small meals and also 2-3 snacks all spaced out throughout the day.
Of course, everything that I have taught myself this weekend could be changed when I go see the nutritionist this Friday and spend a few hours in "a how to eat right to make it through GD during your pregnancy" class.
Amazingly you can still have an ice cream if you eat a super good meal and find an ice cream that fits within the snack guidelines.
Its been almost a week since I found out and i think I have done a pretty good job of eliminating sugar from my life. Of course its hard when we get in boxes of sprinkles or chocolate chip cookies at the office but alas, its what I got to do. I was even able to eat In n Out Burger this weekend but I had to make some alterations ot my food such as loose the bun on my hamburger and eat it protein style with no ketchup or mustard. The new bun because some pieces of iceberg lettuce. I wasn't sure this would be cool but actually it was a really tasty burger and it just might taste better than with the bun. Anyhow, its not like I am going to be running out to eat at In n Out Burger all the time but its good to know I can go if I rearrange what I am eating.
Another item that has made the process easier is an APPLE app called GOMEALS in which I login all the food I eat in a day. It tells me the various ratios I need to know to make sure I am eating right. I am using this until I go to the nutritionist on Friday. Apparently they are going to be giving me a meter to check my blood sugar levels for two weeks. Then I have to meet with a special doctor and get a special ultrasound to seee if eating right is helping. If it does i won't have to take insulin but if it doesn't I might have to get insulin. I want to avoid that at all costs because I really, really, really hate needles.
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