Glucose Test discussion

cdub4292

ahhhhh I failed my glucose test my OB called me today to tell me that now I’ll need to go for the 3 hour test! Has anyone had any experience with this? I am really freaking out now & upset! Idk what I would do if I was dx with gestational diabetes!!!! I am so unsure where to look for information and my first though was to come here! 

meggyme

@cdub4292 I failed the 1hr and passed the 3hr with my last pregnancy. It's a pain in the ass (or rather the arms. It's a lot of needle sticks) but I think a lot of people that fail the 1hr go on the pass the 3 hour. I fasted for both tests, but I've heard that eating something high in protein while avoiding carbs or sugars before the test can help. You might want to ask your doctor if they recommend you fast or eat something.

Would you mind changing the title of your thread to something more general, like Glucose Test Discussion or Glucose Test Results? I'm sure we will have plenty of other people in the same situation here soon and this would be a good spot to keep the discussion.

mihaelams1

@cdub4292 a few moms from my October 2015 group who are pregnant again have failed their 1h test and passed the 3h without issues. I also know some who failed the 3h one when we had our babies and were still able to have a normal pregnancy with some diet management. So don't be discouraged! 
Also, I was never offered the 1h test last time, only the 3h one, I guess because it's more precise and they didn't want to waste time with the first.

cdub4292

It’s just so discouraging. Lots of stuff going on in my professional life and now this! It’s like one thing after the next. What did you guys do during the 3 hour test! I can’t even imagine sitting there for that long so much to do with Christmas right around the corner, nothing like throwing a 3 hour test into the mix 

lelkcot

@cdub4292 also failed my 1-hour and passed my 3-hour with DS about 4 years ago. The 3-hour required fasting before hand and it wasn’t fun, but not nearly as terrible as I expected. I brought water to drink during the test, a snack for the minute I was done, a book I had been wanting to read, and had them alternate arms when drawing blood (I’ve got easy veins in both arms, so alternating makes sense). Try not to stress too much!

zionsmama85

@cdub4292 I'm sorry that happened to you, but hopefully the 3 hour goes better, and even if not like @mihaelams1 said, a lot of women still have successful pregnancies so don't beat yourself up. 
. I take my 1 hour tomorrow, so fx that mine goes well. as far as the 3 hour...maybe you can see if you can watch netflix or hulu something on your phone? I crave alone time, so I am honestly looking forward to the hour test so i can get some time to myself to read and not have to look after anyone lol. Hopefully they have some good magazines, or you can listen to a book on audible? 

swanbrooner

I also failed the 1-hour, but passed the 3-hour during my first pregnancy. That one was more of a mental game for me since I couldn't eat in the morning prior to my appointment.

My advice: schedule as early as possible, eat something high-protein and low carb as late as possible (I did a protein bar), and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Sipping cold water helped with the nausea I experienced after drinking the glucose drink, too.

If you do end up with GD, I'm sure you won't be alone here and others will help support you!

mihaelams1

@cdub4292 as far as passing time goes, I read the magazines they had in the waiting area and worried about the number of pokes I would still need to get (I have "travelling" veins). I was also starving by the time it was over, so I called DH to bring me loooots of food when picking me up. But this time around I plan to schedule it during the work day and take my laptop with me - thankfully I can work remotely. I'll also bring snacks for when it's over.

HoneyBear40

Haven't had the test yet this time around but I was one of the "lucky" ones with GD during my first pregnancy. Luckily mine was diet/exercise controlled so I didn't need medication just a lot of finger pricks and peeing on ketone sticks to make sure my body wasn't falling into ketosis. The "diet" is basically a keto diet, not impossible just need to watch what you eat as far as carbs. I had a nutritionist through the local diabetes center once I was diagnosed.
If you happen to fail the 3-hour test feel free to message me. Having been through it before I'll lend an ear and try to help answer questions based on my experience. This offer is open to anyone in the upcoming weeks if you were to be diagnosed. It's not the worst 12 weeks, just a little limited is all. My plus-side to it was I only gained 18lbs total...if that is considered a plus side?
Good luck to everyone taking the tests soon! Mine will probably be at my January appointment as the doctors have said the 28 week mark.

ashley14598

I take the 1 hour test here in the next couple weeks but I was diagnosed with it last time too. For me it sounded way scarier than it actually was. I was able to keep it controlled with diet and exercise. I tried my best to keep it positive I only gained 7 lbs total in my pregnancy, got see my DS more often due to the extra ultrasounds, and still got to have the birth that I wanted. I’ll be taking my headphones watching YouTube, listening to podcasts, reading magazines, etc. to pass the time on the 1 hour. 

Unrelated (or related I’m not sure) I also had gestational hypertension at the very end of my pregnancy (around 36ish weeks) which for me was a much bigger pain in the end. 

purpleteacher82

Hmmmm...my OB does a 2 hour test. She told
me that too many people fail the 1 hour and then go on to pass the 3 hour that they basically decided to cut the BS of women having to do more than one and decided just to do a 2 hour for everyone. I had to have one done around 12 weeks and passed that one. I went in first thing in the morning and had fasted since dinner the night before. I took work with me to pass the time. Definitely bring something to eat for when you are done because I was starving! I don’t have any advice for not passing, but thought it was interesting that my OB does it differently. 

cdub4292

Wish me luck! I’m here now!! 7:45 AM, nothing like getting here’s bright and early. FX for good results. The drink is awful. I brought my laptop but no WiFi so luckily I also brought a book. At least I’ll get some good reading in! Hope everyone has a great day! 

meggyme

I didn't mind the 1hr drink, but the 3hr drink was WAY too sweet. Good luck @cdub4292!

catlady2015

Good luck @cdub4292! Hope it goes by fast and you pass easily! 

Lbloom

I have failed 2 1hr tests now (2 different pregnancies) and passed each 3hr test. Each time I failed was when I had something to eat beforehand. This most recent 3hr I had to fast for 8 hours prior. That was hard, and so were all the needle sticks. But the alone time to read or watch tv made the waiting part not too bad. I could drink water in between the blood draws. I had a big breakfast when I went home - I got there as early as I possibly could, when the lab opened at 7am. That was helpful. Good luck.

A friend of mine had GD with her last pregnancy. It was well managed with diet restrictions and her pregnancy ended normally and happily. Don't worry about it, that won't help you.

Edit* Oh yeah, as previously mentioned, the 3 hour drink sucked way worse because I had been fasting. It was awful. Be prepared for that and down it as quickly as you can without causing yourself a headache or something.

3rdtime_charmed

@purpleteacher82 one of my previous physician partners believed staunchly that the 2 hour test was way better. She was always right about everything so there is probably something to it.

kristimh80

@cdub4292 Best of luck to you today!!

cdub4292

2 more blood drawers to go! Already down 5 chapters in my book. All is well so far. My arm is starting to get bruised though thinking I’m gonna have her do one more in my left arm and the final draw in my right. Can’t wait to get a nice carb loaded breakfast after haha! Unfortunately I have to go to work all day until 8 tonight! Wishing I could go home after eat a big breakfast and lay in bed watching tv!!!!

zionsmama85

@cdub4292 good luck! you are powering through there! I have my book with me today for mine! 

kristimh80

@zionsmama85 Best of luck to you today as well!

meggyme

@zionsmama85 good luck!

teachermama4

@purpleteacher82 My doctor only does the 2 hour test with fasting as well.  She says it is more accurate and you do not have to do multiple tests. I'm super nauseous in the mornings still and with fasting it is going to be tough to get through the drink. I'm going to be dreaming of a big breakfast for the whole 2 hours!

lelkcot

Best of luck to everyone taking glucoses tests today! 

cdub4292

@zionsmama85 good luck! Hope you’ve made it through! 2 black arms later and I’m done! Now to wait for the results....hopefully they come in tmmrw! Good luck to all! 

westslopemama

I just wondering if anyone is deciding not to do the glucose test or talking to their doctor/midwife about alternative ways to test. After speaking with some friends and reading stories on here it seems like a lot of people fail the 1 hour and then go on to pass the 3 hour. It just seems like it is a waste to have to go through with all of this testing and drinking that terrible drink if one is low risk to begin with. 

Kenneylynn3

@emarcinek just wanted to say people do pass the one hour. I didn't do anything special as far as fast or eat certain foods and I passed with no warning of even taking it that day.

meggyme

@emarcinek I’ve heard of women working with their doctor to use some kind of real food substitute for the glucola, but I would highly recommend not skipping the testing. GD can be a serious issue when unmonitored and uncontrolled.

purpleteacher82

@emarcinek99 You could ask about skipping straight to the 3 hour test or doing a 2 hour test. 

cdub4292

I passed! no GD here. As far as skipping the test, I would advise against that. GD can be present with no signs or symptoms & as others have said not getting it under control can cause a lot of issues. 

maggiemadeit

@emarcinek99 I passed the 1hr with my first baby, and my midwife has told me a couple of times that it is highly unlikely that I have GD, but the policy is to screen everyone.

Of course you can refuse any medical procedure, but they may make you sign something absolving them of the risk since you opted not to get screened. And GD has real risks, so you have to weigh the inconvenience of a 1hr test against the possible outcomes. 

@cdub4292 Congrats! 

westslopemama

Thanks for all the responses. I plan to talk to my midwife about my options, such as ingesting an alternative to the glucoa, or testing my blood sugar at home for a certain number of trials to get an idea of my typical levels. The idea of doing the 2 hour test is also a good option. I am not completely opposed to the regular test and I do understand the risk for my baby and myself if I have GD and do not find out. I was more curious if anyone had done any alternative testing and how others felt about this test I general. 

Lbloom

@emarcinek99 is this your first pregnancy?  Do you have a family history of diabetes? Or have you had GD before with a previous PG? I'm only asking because I'm wondering if you have any other reason for asking for alternative testing is from hearing stories from people on this board and IRL. If there is a safe and accurate alternate way to test that your midwife approves of then by all means, go for it. But not everyone fails their 1 hour. I passed the 1 hour easily with my 2nd and 3rd pregnancies.

navete

@emarcinek99 I was really worried about taking the GD test after reading other people’s experiences and hearing of my close friends’ stories of how bad their experience was (one friend said it was the single worst experience of her pregnancy 😳). I kept finding excuses to postpone it. When I finally went it and got it done, I was surprised how uneventful it was. The drink tasted fine, I didn’t get nauseous, maybe just a little light headed towards the end. I didn’t get my results yet (and a paranoid part of my brain is worried it was so “easy” for me because maybe I have GD 🤦🏽‍♀️😅), but just wanted to let you know it may not be as bad an experience as you anticipate.

mihaelams1

@emarcinek99 yes, it was definitely not the worst part of pregnancy! I had the 3h test last time (from what my midwife told me at my last appointment, they only recently started offering the 1h one, let's see how that goes at the end of December). I even liked the drink - yes, I have a sweet tooth. And I felt very hungry at the end, but not nauseous or anything, nothing that some good food couldn't fix. The only bad part of it all was that my veins are always hard to find, so I got poked 6 times for 3 draws and looked quite bruised afterwards, but that was still nothing that would stop me from taking the test again.

meggyme

The 1hr drink wasn't bad. Just like a Koolaid. I think I had lemon-lime both times. The 3hr drink is (obviously) much more sweet to the point of being kind of gross, but I never felt nauseous or had a bad reaction to either. During my 3hr test the lab waiting room was right down the hall from the little medical building bakery and the smell of fresh bread while fasting and waiting 3 hours to eat should be illegal, that or it's pure evil genius marketing.

This time around for my 1hr they gave me the drink to take home at my 24wk appt. I'll drink it 1hr before my lab draw and then I just go in to get the blood drawn. They told me to only eat eggs or something similarly high protein in the morning, no carbs, fruit, or sugar. I haven't decided if I'll go into work beforehand or not, my appointment is at 9 (normally at work by 7:15-7:30 and the doc's is 20 minute away).

lelkcot

Just feel the need to chime in, as I did fail the 1-hour with DS. Very few friends of mine failed the 1-hour, so I don’t think it’s a particularly widespread thing. And while I didn’t enjoy the drink or getting blood drawn, neither the 1-hour nor the 3-hour were horrible experiences. 
Definitely worth getting the test to rule out GD! 

scimomma

I just took the 1-hour test and it was fine. Like others have said, the drink tastes like Kool-Aid but it specifically reminded me of Kool-Aid Bursts that I haven't had since I was probably 10 years old (and, after googling, I'm surprised they still sell!). So even though it was a little gross, there was a nostalgia associated with it which made actually made it weirdly enjoyable on some level. 

I think it temporarily destroyed my tasted buds, though. After my appointment I opened a lime sparkling water, which usually tastes like lime to me, but I couldn't taste anything but bitterness. Weird! 

zionsmama85

I just got my results today. I actually saw them Friday and it seemed to me that I passed it, but the nurse just called me and said since it was kind of high they want me to take the 3 hour one just in case. I passed the first time I was pregnant with no issues so I will admit I’m a little annoyed having to do the 3 hour one, but I guess it is what it is. I feel confident I will pass it but I’m annoyed at not being able to eat 12 hours the night before LOL. 

meggyme

@zionsmama85 I thought the whole point of having the 1 hour test was that the numbers were more conservative to keep people from needing to have to do the 3 hour! That sucks, I'm sorry. Hopefully you'll breeze through the 3 hour test and they won't say another word about it.

lelkcot

@zionsmama85 that’s frustrating! With DS I only failed the 1-hour by 3 points (if im remembering correctly) and passed the 3-hour comfortably, hopefully it will be the same for you!

zionsmama85

@meggyme you would think so but I guess better safe than sorry. @lelkcot I was like 3 under the threshold, I think it was <135 and I got like 132. So i guess that was too high for them. I wasn’t super surprised because I am overweight. I guess I will count myself lucky bc I JUST put in the rest of my PTO at work and took off for today and next Monday to use my remaining time, so I guess I will be using 3 of those free hours for the test lol. I waited until Friday to put in my PTO bc I didn’t wanna use my time off in case anything came up that I would need for doc appointments and I figured since I hadn’t heard from them I was in the clear since my results had posted online. Dah well. Thanks for the support guys and I’m glad to see you passed @cdub4292 !