Just diagnosed with GD...what should I expect

Mrs.Wifey318

Hi Ladies,

I was just diagnosed with GD (failed my 3 hour on Saturday). I haven't spoken with my OB yet but I got a voice mail from her nurse letting me know I failed. I am curious what your treatment is and what your test numbers were if you know them.

TIA.

DBride2006

Don't panic. It's not THAT bad. I had it with my first and I was devastated. This time around, it's not so bad.

First, think of it this way. It's really the way we SHOULD be eating all along, so you can't be too bummed that now it's what we need to do. It's all about keeping the baby healthy, so it's way different than a diet.

It seems different doctors have different programs, but for me, I...

- See a dietician. We are starting weekly, but once we have my program down I will probably go to every 2 weeks.

- I test my blood sugar 4 time per day (with finger sticks). When I first wake up (fasting), and one-hour after breakfast, lunch and dinner. Some people do it two-hours after meals. The goal is to keep my fasting and post-meal numbers under a certain level. 

- I am to eat three meals and three snacks at regular intervals throughout the day. (This is honestly the hardest part for me... keeping on a schedule and always having an "approved" snack with me) 

- I am on a severely carb controlled diet, meaning each meal and snack I have a limited number of carbs (sugars, starches, fruits) I can consume.  

That's about it. I had it with my son and he was born average size, on time and completely healthy- no blood sugar issues at all!  This board is a great resource. Good luck! 

JamaicaMon!

I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago myself, and have been testing my sugar levels and doing a modified diet for about a week now. 

In all honesty, it's not that bad.  Granted, I was never a huge portion eater to begin with, and I think that would be the hardest adjustment if that was something I was used to.  I can still eat sweets in moderation, I just learned I have to pair them with the right things (protein) in order to keep my levels right.

Most likely, you will go see a dietician or go to a diabetes class.  They will let you know how many servings of carbs, protein, etc, you should be eating at each meal.  And they will tell you to eat often, not to skip your snacks, bedtime snack is most important, etc.

For me personally, I'm allowed to have 30g of carbs at breakfast, same for my morning snack, 60g for lunch, back to 30g for afternoon snack, 60g for dinner, and back to 30g again for bedtime snack.  My allowances are probably higher for twins, though I'm not positive.  Quite often, I don't even eat that much in carbs.  I just make sure to pair it with plenty of protein (meat, egg, cheese, nuts) and vegetables to balance it out.  So far, so good.