Gestational Diabetes

When I was pregnant with Emma, I ate a lot. Mostly healthy, but there were times when I'd have ice cream every night for more than a week. I had a healthy pregnancy, was gaining weight at a good pace, and everything looked good at all of my doctor's appointments - until the dreaded 28 week glucose test. I went in for my appointment and downed the orange drink in under five minutes. A few days later I got a call from the nurse letting me know that my numbers were high and I'd have to go in for the 3-hour test.

I made an appointment, fasted for 10 hours, and showed up nice and early to the lab on a Saturday - only to find out that I had forgotten to have my doctor fax over the prescription for the appointment. So, hungry and cranky, I went home to make myself breakfast.

A few days later, WITH all the proper paperwork, I was able to take the 3-hour test. It was painless, but boring. When I arrived, they drew blood, then I had to drink the sugar stuff and for the next 3 hours they drew blood on the hour. I left feeling pretty good. I must have passed, right? 

(swollen ankles for my entire third trimester)

I remember when the office called and I gave me the news that I had gestational diabetes. I was home in Wisconsin for my baby shower and I cried and cried. I thought I would have a super big baby and possibly problems with delivery. Then I started googling everything, reading side effects and that just made my hormonal self more emotional. (lesson learned: There is a right and a wrong time to google things!)

When I was back in Florida, I met with a nutritionist and learned all about the diabetes diet and how to check my blood sugar. I basically needed to eat more throughout the day and combine proteins/fruits/carbs in the right amounts. It was easier than I thought it would be and as you may have read in Emma's birth story, she was a perfectly average size baby with no delivery complications.

 

With this second pregnancy, I thought I could prevent myself from getting GD. I've been eating super healthy, gaining less weight overall, and so far, have had no swollen ankles/toes (fingers crossed it stays that way!)

No such luck. I failed both tests. Which I guess, is just my body's way of dealing with pregnancy. So my pregnancy hormones block my body's insulin from doing its job? It's not the end of the world. No nutritionist for me this time, and I still have all of my testing equipment and OneTouch Ultra machine. 

Diabetes is serious and if not controlled, there are complications that can come up, HOWEVER if you happen to be one of the women who gets GD during pregnancy, try not to over think it. You didn't do anything wrong.

I'll be sharing a few of my favorite meals and snacks in the upcoming weeks, so stay tuned! If you have any questions about my experience with GD, please feel free to leave a comment.