GD Check-In - Week of 7/11

Sarafuss · July 2016

How far along are you?

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled?

Questions?

Rants/frustrations/fears?

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you?

Sarafuss · July 2016

How far along are you? 32 weeks

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Med controlled. 6 units of fast-acting insulin at breakfast and a combo of 14 units long-acting/4 units fast-acting insulin at dinner.

Rants/frustrations/fears? I was doing so well last week and I thought things were going to be easier from here on out. My breakfast numbers have been high the past few days so that has been frustrating. And then I randomly had a low point yesterday before dinner where my blood sugar was in the low 60's so I felt like crap. I have an appointment this afternoon so I'll see what they say about my breakfast numbers. The rest have been pretty good though so I don't expect her to change my morning dose of insulin.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? I'm still eating the same stuff over and over and getting BORED. No new suggestions here.

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

How far along are you?
31+3

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled?
Diet Controlled

Questions?

Rants/frustrations/fears?
I posted this in the randoms thread but over the weekend my sugar dropped to 32 and after drinking apple juice it only went up to 45 so I had to go to L&D and sit in triage for 4 hours, baby is okay and I am okay but it was definitely scary,
I was shaking so so so hard.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you?
I found some Motts frozen juice bars that only have 5grams of carbs so I have been loving those when its been hot out

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

@Sarafuss i feel you with being bored of the same food,

its been so hot I hardly feel like cooking so we have been eating lots of SUPER nutritious fast food lately.

Sarafuss · July 2016

@Megan324 oh my gosh that's so scary! I've never been that low, I can't imagine how terrible you must have been feeling. Just out of curiousity, what did they do for you in L&D to bring your sugar up? IV nutrition?

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

@Sarafuss I had an IV that they injected things into, They didn't tell me exactly what they were doing and I didn't ask, I was super focused on the monitors they put on me to check baby.
I felt better really soon after so whatever it was it worked

Sarafuss · July 2016

I'm glad they were able to get you feeling better quickly!

tinypikachu · July 2016

How far along are you? 31w3d

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Diet controlled still

Questions? Should the bedtime snack affect my fasting numbers?

Rants/frustrations/fears? I'm thinking I'll probably change my bedtime snack (currently ice cream). I always look forward to it at night but my fasting numbers have been a little higher since I started it, although never above 95. So I want to see if there'sany correlation or if it's just getting a little harder to control -.- I've been playing around with my diet after the dietitian recommended I add milk and a little bit more carbs to my lunch and dinner. That's been trial and error as I do more activities on some days than others.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? Chili was amazing last week, one pot and we were good for lunch for the work week. I'm having meat and potatoes (and adding some veggies here and there) for dinner and pasta with veggies for lunch this week (as I said, huge meal planner). My biggest weakness is orange soda and we have some at home so I'm going to freeze it into 15g-carbs pops in a mold I have so I can at least indulge every now and then for snacks (I'm doing ice pops now when I want something sweet and refreshing).

ketomommy · July 2016

How far along are you? 32 + 2

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Diet

Questions? none

Rants/frustrations/fears? Leg cramps..ugh.. We finally got to the bottom of the fear of testing. Years ago when I was super-stressed, I developed a bit of germophobia. It was well controlled with relaxation and Inderal. However, I had to go off the Inderal when I tried to become pregnant. My stress levels have been down (different job really helped). Now with the baby coming I am getting stressed again and the germophobia is creeping back up. I am going to see if yoga will calm me a bit this week so I can test more.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? Quest protein chips. I am living off of them.

tinypikachu · July 2016

Rebecca&Raphael is there anything that you think can help? I get the germophobe thing and I've actually been using alcohol wipes before testing each time instead of only washing my hands. Could that help you? I know they're less than $2 for a pretty huge box at the drug store.

Sarafuss · July 2016

@AlwaysAuntNeverMom Yes, your bedtime snack affects your fasting number. I have ice cream at bedtime also but I add a small, 6-8 oz. glass of milk to add more protein. I know it adds some carbs as well (I am allowed 30g for my bedtime snack) but that extra protein helps keep my fasting number lower. Another idea is to add a spoonful of peanut butter with your ice cream (if you like PB).

ketomommy · July 2016

I have wipes and I wash my hands. It's completely irrational. I know it stems from stress. I am just trying to figure out a way to control the stress. Once I can do that, the germophobia fades.

ketomommy · July 2016

On the topic of peanut butter, my nutritionist has me hooked on PB2. It is not good for spreading. But if you are adding it to something (ice cream, yogurt, smoothie etc.) it has all of the protein and nutrients of peanut butter, but most of the oil has been taken out. What is easier, is that it is lighter. So I throw it in my purse in the morning. If my mid-day yogurt or something just isn't enough, I will add a spoonful or two.

camichael84 · July 2016

How far along are you? 30w6d

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Currently taking 10 mg of Glyburide at night and 5mg in the morning.

Questions? This isn't so much a question as something I've been wondering about, and maybe someone has some insight. Lately, the days my lunch numbers are above 140, I've retested at 2 hrs. My OB wants me to do testing at an hour, but the hospital I deliver at (different hospital than OB's practice is at) has GD mommas test at 2 hours and they want it under 120 at that time. My 2 hour testing has always been under 120. I'm going to mention it to my OB. I don't know if it means I can worry less or if it means nothing.

Rants/frustrations/fears? I called my OB's office on Friday. My OB wasn't in, so the nurse spoke with their oncall OB (who was the one that delivered DD1). I decidedly don't like or trust the oncall OB (I already have issues with her stemming from DD's birth). She told me to give it until this Tuesday (which will be a week on the 15 mg dose of Glyburide) because it can take a week to kick in. My fasting numbers are still just under 120. It's clear that it's helping, but not actually bringing them down enough. I don't think my OB would have made me wait that long, and I'm calling her first thing tomorrow. The only other advice the oncall OB had was the next step is insulin. Which I knew, so was zero help actually. In good news, DH and I spent about 10 hours on the road on Saturday. I was so worried my numbers would be terrible (eating out and being stuck sitting for an extended period of time), but aside from fasting, everything was great!

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? Haven't tried much new recently. A chicken quesadilla and crunchy taco supreme from Taco Bell for supper resulted in a number under 140, and I consider that a big win.

Sarafuss · July 2016

@camichael84 I love when fast food gives me a good number! Huge win!

As far as the testing at 1-hour vs. 2-hours. I know some Drs. have you test at 2 hours but the way it was explained to me is that by testing at 2 hours you are potentially missing a spike or high number at 1 hour. So that is why my MFM has her patients test at 1 hour. I think it's good that your number is coming down by the 2-hour mark but personally I would be more comfortable testing at 1-hour to have as much info as possible about what my numbers are doing.

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

@camichael84 anything related to Taco Bell is immediately a win #obsessed

camichael84 · July 2016

@sarafuss Thanks for that explanation!

I definitely don't want to stop testing at one hour, but am more hoping my lunch number coming down by 2 hrs means my only big trouble time is fasting. I may be over thinking it. And not that I love adding a 5th time to pricking myself for the day, but my desire to see how my sugar is coming down overrode the dislike of pricking myself.

Sarafuss · July 2016

@camichael84 ohh, reading comprehension fail on my part! I thought you meant you wanted to test at 2 hours. But I get what you mean now. I do think it's promising that your numbers come down quickly between the 1 and 2 hour mark!

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

I've also found that I extra test just for peace of mind. I'm only supposed to tests 1x a day now but I usually will test my fasting every morning just in case

tinypikachu · July 2016

My doctor said I only need to test after dinner (and fasting, of course) so yay! I realized it's been a month since my diagnosis, time seems to be flying by. He also said he will treat me as a regular patient for as long as I'm diet controlled so no induction for us unless something changes. I'm beyond excited to see how things go and hoping I can remain diet controlled.

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

@AlwaysAuntNeverMom thats great news!!

LiziLu42 · July 2016

How far along are you?
31w 3d
Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled?
Diet
Questions?

Rants/frustrations/fears?
DH chomping down sweets in front of me. I'm talking Red Vines, Snickers, Skittles.... Yeah Darling....
Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you?
Bananas and peanut butter
Peanut butter and sugar free fruit spread on whole grain slice
Brisket and green beans
Subway 6in on wheat turkey toasted (with the sweet onion sauce! Score!)
I can't have any kind of milk. Skim, 2% nope.

yellowrose314 · July 2016

How far along are you? 29w3d

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? diet controlled for now

Questions? I met with the diabetic nurse and dietician today which went fantastically. The nurse brought up that since I failed my fasting and my 1 hr test, but passed my 2 hr test, that statistically I will probably have to be on insulin within the next month... even though my numbers over the last 4 days have been within normal range with the exception of like 2 (where I binged on ice cream). Has anyone ever been told this?

Rants/frustrations/fears? Actually feeling pretty positive overall about everything. The dietician said my diet was great, and just wanted me to include a few more veggies at each meal if possible.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? Made the TASTIEST dish last night, vegetarian too. About a tablespoon each of butter and olive oil in the bottom of a baking dish, put a layer of asparagus on top, then a layer of tomatoes, another layer of asparagus, drizzle with another tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper, and then a layer of sliced unripened mozzarella or buffalo mozzarella on top, little bit of parm... dear god it was amazing, and kept my numbers low!

pdxmamatobe · July 2016

How far along are you? 30w3d

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Diet

Questions? Is anyone else testing 2 hours after meals? I didn't realize some people were doing 1 hour.

Rants/frustrations/fears? The dietitian and midwife both said my numbers have been so great they doubted that I had really failed it. Of course I did so I'll still be monitoring 4x a day for another 3 weeks but then my midwife said I could most likely go down to 1x a day which would be so nice. It made me really relieved and hopeful.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? Peanut butter pretzels, I found sugar free chocolate pudding cups that I eat with sliced almonds and cottage cheese with some fruit.

yellowrose314 · July 2016

@pdxmamatobe I was testing 2 hours after meals, but the diabetic nurse told me not to bother since I passed my 2 hr draw. She said if my sugars are particularly high after 1 hr after meals, then I should follow up with a 2 hr testing, just so I can track what foods are giving me long term spikes.

tinypikachu · July 2016

@pdxmamatobe I find it better for me to test at one hour and it is my doctor's (and dietitian's) preference. I find that I'm more likely to find a high number at one hour than at two. When I've forgotten to test at 1 hour, my 2hr numbers have always been in the low 90s, even on meals that I l know would have been closer to 130 at 1hr. I don't get high numbers unless I eat something really high carb but when I have gotten high ones, I retest at 2hrs to make sure it goes down and it's always way below the limit.

pdxmamatobe · July 2016

@AlwaysAuntNeverMom That makes sense. I wonder why no one at my practice talked about doing that. It makes me curious now, maybe I'll try testing at 1 hour after sometimes to see if there are any spikes I'm missing. Almost every 2 hour number for me has been 100 or less so hopefully there haven't been spikes I've missed.

camichael84 · July 2016

Got in touch with my OB about my fasting not coming down even with the Glyburide. She's referred me to an Endocrinologist. I'm glad to be getting proper care, but this also freaks me out some. I'm taking it as my GD is just so bad that I have to see a specialist for it.

MamaSquishyB · July 2016

How far along are you?
31 weeks
Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled?
Diet
Questions?
Do sweaty hands make a difference when testing (mine seem to be sweating all the time!!)? Do you find you get different numbers depending on which finger you test on?
Rants/frustrations/fears?
I finally get to meet with my OB on Thursday for the first time since diagnosis. I am a little nervous/anxious to see what he says about my numbers. I'm hoping that he'll let me reduce the number of times I test every day. I'm even more worried that he won't!
Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you?
Not a food tip, but I had a huge revelation a few days ago. I'd always heard that you should have clean hands when testing, but never really made a lot of effort to wash them if they didn't look dirty, or if I'd washed right after eating. Well, the other day I tested at my 1hr time and got like 151. I thought that was unusually high for what I'd eaten (eggs and fruit), so I washed my hands and tested again, and my number was like 30 points lower!! Now I'm definitely more diligent about washing RIGHT before I test.

yellowrose314 · July 2016

@MamaSquishyB It can for sure make a difference. I wash my hands before every test, because you never know what you've handled that can cause a false number. For example, forgot to wash my hands after I had toast last night, and my number was 200, which I thought couldn't be right. Washed my hands and it was actually 110. I also wipe away the first drop of blood, just in case; this is what we do in the hospital when testing patients blood glucose, to get a more accurate reading.

jln27 · July 2016

How far along are you? 30 weeks as of today.

Are you currently diet controlled or medication controlled? Diet and exercise. Just got back from the education class, and they won't put me on medication unless dieting doesn't work.

Questions? Does everyone try to meet the carb limit for meals, or stay as far under it as they can? I'm not talking extremely, low carb, but as an example, I started dieting about two weeks ago and have made my best effort to stay at or below 100g carbs/day because I didn't have the meal limit yet. My daily average is 75g carbs/day.

Rants/frustrations/fears? While I was at the class, I had this thought in the back of my mind... This is kind of a long story, but here goes. Last thread I mentioned my family history and personal fear of type 2 diabetes and the fact that at one point I did a low carb diet to lose weight/get healthy. This diet was done under doctor supervision and approval (keto, or Low Carb/High Fat, if any of you are curious what it was) and I saw massive improvements in my mood, numbers, everything. I lost 30 pounds dieting alone. I was almost to my goal weight when I got married. Husband wasn't interested in the diet, so I slacked and slacked and slacked... and gained about 20 pounds back before getting pregnant.

Back on topic, keto's main goal is getting your body to burn fat for energy instead of sugar/carbs. You become "fat-adapted" when you follow the diet long enough. The thought that entered my mind at the class today was this: if I was still mostly fat-adapted (or rather, just bad at burning sugar in general), wouldn't it make sense for my blood sugar to spike after drinking more sugar in one sitting than I EVER did before, even when I wasn't doing keto? When I was eating crap, aka before failing the 1-hour test and changing my diet to be more low carb and nutritious, I never ate anything close to 100g of sugar in one sitting even on my worst days. Why wouldn't my blood sugar spike after doing that? And why wouldn't it be some ridiculous number?

After taking my blood glucose levels after meals today and seeing how low the numbers were (barely above 100) this thought started to get stronger and stronger in the forefront of my mind. I don't know if it means anything. I'm not going to change the diet or say I don't have GD because the only person who can decide that is the doctor, but... it does give me some hope that I can keep this condition managed.

Helpful tips/meals or snacks that work well for you? I eat a lot of cheese... lol. I also like Quest Bars if I'm on the road. Lots and lots of fiber, and the Cookies N Cream flavor is pretty tasty.

ruemcclanahan · July 2016

@jln27 I tend to stay in the higher end of my range for meals and in the middle to low for my snacks.
IE sometime snacks are 17g but dinner is always 60

camichael84 · July 2016

@jln27 With my first pregnancy, I ate on the higher end of my limits. Breakfast was the only time I under ate because it would keep my breakfast numbers in range. When the nurse I had to do weekly check-ins with found out, she lectured me. She said not eating the minimum could potentially hurt me and/or the baby.

This time to keep things in range, I eat the higher end on snacks (20-30 carbs per snack) and lower on lunch and dinner (40-50 carbs per meal). I've been keep breakfast under my limit (0-10 carbs) again, but got another lecture from my OB's nurse.

I think if you're going to be eating as little as 75 carbs/day, you should discuss it with your doctor to make sure he/she is okay with it. I'm not sure what your limits are, but that's over half of my minimum.

jln27 · July 2016

@camichael84 I have an appointment with the doctor today, so I guess I'll find out how she feels about it. I've only tracked one day at this point, so there's not much to go off of just yet, but my numbers are in the 100s range and I feel like that's a good thing?

The dietician said that under 100g was "pretty low carb" but said as long as I wasn't depriving myself of food, feeling hungry all the time, or losing weight it should be fine. The limits I was given are 15g for snacks, up to three snacks a day, 30g for breakfast, and 45-60g for lunch and dinner.

My snacks are almost always at the limit/just above (15-17g of carbs). Breakfast is very low (6-9g... I eat yogurt or a protein shake) because I get nauseous easy in the mornings and don't have much time to eat a meal before work, and then lunch is usually about 20-30g and dinner varies by day. Usually the same as lunch, sometimes more, but never at or above the limit.

Yesterday my total for carbs was 80g. My highest day so far was 140g, when I decided to have seconds on a whole grain gyro. Lol.

UPDATE: Doctor said my numbers looked great. Wasn't concerned about carb intake.

tinypikachu · July 2016

@jln27 I think your carb intake looks fine. I never get to the limit of my meals because I feel it'll be too much and I prefer protein to carbs. I always stick to around 30-45g for lunch/dinner and 20g for snacks (I was given 15-30 range). I've lost weight and I'm still losing and my doctor is not concerned at all since baby keeps putting it on. I've lost about 5lbs in almost 4 weeks so not a ton either. Weight loss is not the goal and I honestly don't care whether I gain, maintain or lose as long as baby is safe. I figure the diet change will cause some pounds to shed and then I'll just gain slower than I was.

camichael84 · July 2016

@jln27 @AlwaysAuntNeverMom Interesting. I'm going to mention eating less carbs to the Endocrinologist at my appt on Friday then. I can keep my lunch and dinner numbers way under 140 if I eat in the 20-30 range (I've done it from time to time and always get great reads after). With my first, I could eat 60 carbs and still stay well under 140, but not the case this time. If the doctor is okay with me eating under than I'd rather do that to control meal-time numbers. If they're going to put me on insulin for my fasting, I'd like to be on as little as possible.

I lost in the beginning with my first when I switched to a low-carb diet as well, but was eating at the top of my limit, so OB was never worried. Haven't lost this time, but haven't gained in the last 3 weeks either. I put on 14 lbs in the 8 weeks prior, so the diet slowing my weight gain vainly makes me happy. (Obviously, healthy baby is my main concern, but if I can see a silver lining in my GD, I will.)

tinypikachu · July 2016

@camichael84 did they recommend you get to the limit with each meal? The RD recommended I keep it close to 45-60 and I pretty much eat what I want, I just really prefer protein (unless it's chocolate, duh!). When I had my follow up, I showed her my food journal and numbers (I do go higher on carbs for dinner but not the limit) and she said I had plenty of room for more carbs but to keep doing what I prefer as far as food choices goes.

camichael84 · July 2016

@AlwaysAuntNeverMom Since this is my second pregnancy with GD, I don't check in with anyone. At the nutrition class, yes, they were adamant we should get to the minimum to avoid ketones. I did weekly check-ins last pregnancy, and that nurse was the same... adamant I should eat at least the minimum. She never explained the ketones to me specifically like my nutrition class this time did, just that not getting enough carbs could be harmful.

It wouldn't be difficult for me to eat less carbs, as I ate pretty low carb when I was on Weight Watchers. Mainly fruit with the occasional starch here and there. When I eat carbs, I prefer to go big... pasta, pop, and sweets... basically things that just aren't going to work with GD, and I have to avoid anyway.

jln27 · July 2016

@camichael84 I have the same problem. When I want carbs, I want a LOT and all the bad stuff. Pasta, donuts, sweet drinks. Not a good way to eat for anybody, much less diabetics. And I do hope the doctor approves lowering your carb intake and that, if you do go that route, it helps!

As a kind of experiment, I had two slices of pizza for dinner tonight. About 50g of carbs in one sitting, the most I've had in two weeks. Not over the limit, still don't want to overdo it because sugar spikes are still bad with or without insulin resistance... and my number was only 118 an hour later.

I don't really know what to do with that information other than relax a bit. Still going to keep up with the diet and lower carbs (not too low, of course) but maybe add some more back here and there with self control and portion sizes playing a big part.

Knottie51481210 · July 2016

Hi ladies just had my 3 hour GTT on Tuesday, still waiting for the results, I'm kind of nervous about the whole thing, I have a terrible time eating at work and often don't get to, but in the end we have to do what's best for the baby.

Ladies, what was your one hour GTT? I think mine was 157, this is my second pregnancy and both times I've had to do the 3 hour GTT. My first 3 hour test had one above normal reading...I don't know what to expect for this one.

If getting a bite at work is difficult, I can't imagine how testing and correcting if needed will be.

camichael84 · July 2016

Endocrinologist put me on insulin. I knew it was coming, so I'm kind of relieved at this point to be finally getting things more in control. This will also allow more freedom regarding carbs, if I choose.

I did bring up minimum carbs to her. She said she's fine with 100/day. That amount will allow me to take less insulin, so I'm going to try to stick to close to that most days. But I also plan to have carbs for breakfast from time to time again. That's been the hardest part of my diet restriction. I'm bored out of my mind with my carb-less (or close to carb-less) breakfast options.

@sarafuss Where do you inject yourself? They told me I could do it anywhere there is fat, but to rotate it around. I'd like to utilize my stomach as an area, but a little scared with being pregnant to do it there. Would like someone with experience's advice!

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