Glucose Challenge Test / Gestational Diabetes

divinemsm620 · July 2017

@jena333-2 a couple of hours. Maybe not enough time. I'm not excited for the 3-hour but hopefully I will pass.

Sugargirl1019 · July 2017

jena333-2 said:

divinemsm620 said:

@Sugargirl1019 is that true for others also? I had no idea. My typical breakfast is a bowl of cereal and some OJ. I had less of everything for the 1-hour glucose test but I did essentially opt to "eat normally," as directed. Maybe that's why I failed the 1-hour???

How long before you had you blood draw did you have the cereal and oj? As I understand it, if you don't have GD then your body will have an "appropriate" response and your blood sugar won't spike. But if you ate immediately before the test, then maybe?

Yea cereal should only affect you that way if your body has some kind of issue with insulin i.e. resistance. Although I've never seen what happens to a non-diabetic's sugar after eating cereal. You may take comfort in knowing you did nothing wrong and you were going to have GD regardless

divinemsm620 · July 2017

@Sugargirl1019 that's fair. I am still holding out hope I will pass the three-hour, though! Meanwhile I've starts to cut back on refined sugar and carbs.

Sugargirl1019 · July 2017

A girl in my Type 1 pregnancy group put a sensor on her non-diabetic husband! (Blood sugar numbers are in the UK range, look up a conversion chart):

Just thought I'd share this. My very healthy non diabetic husband is wearing a libre for 2 weeks so we can see what 'normal' looks like. What we've learned is that if you eat high carb foods, you spike! Even a functioning pancreas doesn't keep you 100% in target and on a straight line. His target is set to my pregnancy levels 4-7.8.

Breakfast - 4 weetabix and honey

Lunch - chicken and bacon baguette followed by a cake a little while after

Dinner - thin crust pizza and sweet potato wedges

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5020794/uploads/editor/33/u3eb1wev8ofc.jpg

I'm really surprised!!!

heatherlynn321 · July 2017

I think I passed my 3 hour test. I never heard back on Monday and they said no news was good news.

CSL522 · July 2017

Sitting here for my 3 hr test, they drew my fasting level and told me I will get the drink in about 1 hour after they see the results of my fasting level. I don't recall this with my first pregnancy.. I just drank the drink after the first draw. Is this how everyone else's was done?

tfrangul · July 2017

@CSL522 they drew my blood and tested it immediately then I drank the drink right away. They didn't wait at all. That seems strange to me. Did you all why you had to wait?

CSL522 · July 2017

I actually called my OBs office and work for the clinic that I go to (it's a multi specialty practice). Apparently it's clinic policy to make sure my fasting level was within the normal range. Rather irritating having to sit that additional time.

jena333-2 · July 2017

CSL522 said:

I actually called my OBs office and work for the clinic that I go to (it's a multi specialty practice). Apparently it's clinic policy to make sure my fasting level was within the normal range. Rather irritating having to sit that additional time.

Yeah that's extra crappy.

BecauseLove · July 2017

Anyone with GD doing seeing anything that is helping there fasting rate? Mine seems to be spiking when I don't sleep very well (even with the high protein yogurt around midnight). Just wondering what others are doing diet wise to help. Thanks!

bnmort8 · July 2017

My test was today fingers crossed all is fine! Doc also said no news is good news.

cchenal07 · July 2017

@BecauseLove
I noticed if I dont drink enough water or if I go off my eating schedule my numbers are off. I started eating a handful of walnuts and drinking a glass of water before bed. Usually I will have popcorn or something similar with it. I also keep a glass of water in the bathroom so when I get up in the middle of the night it helps. The weekend was hard with bbqs, fireworks, and being off work to stay on schedule.

hmclaren · July 2017

Add me to the GD club, my dr called this morning and 3 of my numbers were elevated :'(

Sugargirl1019 · July 2017

Hey, you guys can do it!! You're almost done!!

Hopefulmommy1980 · July 2017

Got a message from my doctor. I failed the three hour test

I cried bc I don't want to have a 13 pound baby but don't want to give up carbs and sugar.

BecauseLove · July 2017

I am off to the dietitian today...to report my numbers and some of my food diary. Will be interesting what she thinks I should modify. Ps. I have totally popped out pregnant looking huge...wondering if it has been my diet changes since getting GD (before that I had only gained 4-5 pounds the whole pregnancy (6 plus months)...seems like I gained a ton when i moved over to the GD diet or in the last month).

divinemsm620 · July 2017

For those who took the 3-hour test, how long did it take for you to get your results? I have mine tomorrow morning and am just looking forward to having an answer ASAP.

mrsvp614 · July 2017

@divinemsm620 I had my results the next day, within 24 hours.

lauraf314 · July 2017

Just going in this morning for failing my one hour by one point... boo. I didn't have anything with my first pregnancy, but this one is certainly sending me for a loop. Fingers crossed please!

divinemsm620 · July 2017

@mrsvp614 thanks - am hoping to get results today! They called me the same day for the one-hour test.

@laurabean34 Good luck!!!! Keep fingers crossed for me too. I just had my fasting blood draw done and am waiting for those results before the glucose drink.

BecauseLove · July 2017

divinemsm620 I had my results within 24 hours.

divinemsm620 · July 2017

I got my results within 2 hours. I failed. I feel terrible, like I've been harming my baby. And selfish for choosing to do the test today rather than a week earlier. I hope they can get me in for next steps soon.

ColoradoHiker · July 2017

@divinemsm620 You have not been harming your baby. Assuming someone isn't already diabetic to begin with, there's no way to know if you'll have GD until you take the glucose testing. Most of the time, it's handled with proper diet, and sometimes medicine. I'm sure your doctors will make sure you get the counseling, etc, very soon.

Don't beat yourself up for something you have zero control over. And think of it this way- this is supposed to help you and your baby be as healthy as possible, rather than have complications (like a high birth weight) later on.

jena333-2 · July 2017

divinemsm620 said:

I got my results within 2 hours. I failed. I feel terrible, like I've been harming my baby. And selfish for choosing to do the test today rather than a week earlier. I hope they can get me in for next steps soon.

Oh darling, please don't feel like this! But being honest, I also felt awful when I found out - like women have been having babies for millennia, but *I* am doing it wrong?!?!

BUT - thank you modern medicine, because now we KNOW and now we can make better and healthier choices for ourselves and our LOs. Try looking at it like an opportunity to make awesome choices, and that this is one more thing you can now do to ensure the health of your babe.

I don't know what your numbers were, but I am personally finding it pretty "easy" to keep it under control. My doctor didn't tell me to keep a food journal, but I have been to help myself. It shows me what kinds of foods have what kinds of sugar responses in my personal body. For me I'm finding that I can do a decent number of carbs, as long as I balance them with plenty of protein and stay well hydrated.

It's normal to let yourself "mope" and feel bad for a little bit. But you can do this!

cchenal07 · July 2017

@divinemsm620
I know it is hard to get the bad news. I cried for two days. But after a week of following the diet and checking blood sugars I found it wasn't as hard as I thought. I find it fairly easy to stay in my numbers and usually know what went wrong if I have a higher number. I actually feel better and find it easier to control weight gain. I do miss cupcakes though. I have a growth scan tomorrow and I am hoping the diet is working and baby is not huge. It takes a bit, but I bet if you follow all guidlines you will be ok and proud of what you can do.

divinemsm620 · July 2017

jena333-2 said:

divinemsm620 said:

I got my results within 2 hours. I failed. I feel terrible, like I've been harming my baby. And selfish for choosing to do the test today rather than a week earlier. I hope they can get me in for next steps soon.

Oh darling, please don't feel like this! But being honest, I also felt awful when I found out - like women have been having babies for millennia, but *I* am doing it wrong?!?!

BUT - thank you modern medicine, because now we KNOW and now we can make better and healthier choices for ourselves and our LOs. Try looking at it like an opportunity to make awesome choices, and that this is one more thing you can now do to ensure the health of your babe.

I don't know what your numbers were, but I am personally finding it pretty "easy" to keep it under control. My doctor didn't tell me to keep a food journal, but I have been to help myself. It shows me what kinds of foods have what kinds of sugar responses in my personal body. For me I'm finding that I can do a decent number of carbs, as long as I balance them with plenty of protein and stay well hydrated.

It's normal to let yourself "mope" and feel bad for a little bit. But you can do this!

@jena333-2 My numbers were 96 fasting, then 198, 187, 128. So the fasting number was a TINY bit over (95 is the top of the normal range) and the last number was normal but the 1- and 2-hour numbers were quite elevated. And although it has been a while since I've felt this way as this pregnancy has generally gone really well, being PGAL, I am now experiencing the return of the "why can't my body do this?!?!?!" anger/frustration/emotional mess.

@ColoradoHiker @jena333-2 @cchenal07 Thank you all for the reassurance. I have been crying for the past two hours. I'm quite sure I can make the dietary changes; that's just going to amount to effort and attentiveness. I'm just feeling really worried for my baby (and VERY guilty for my choices to put off the test for a week and eat some extra junk the past few days even though I had an inkling I would fail today). I'm also annoyed that at the last U/S they wouldn't measure him because that hadn't been specifically ordered. So, I have no idea how big he is right now. I guess I will find out at my 30-week appointment on Friday whether they'll want to schedule one or more ultrasounds to measure him as the due date approaches.

I also got an appointment Friday morning to see the nurse who will teach me how to test sugars and what to eat. I know in the meantime I can cut back on carbs, sweets, and fruit. I love my breakfast cereal and have been living on fruit though, so now I am sad.

IdleFancy · July 2017

@divinemsm620 I am so sorry that your tests didn't go well! After mine, I definitely felt the same way--there were a few inconsolable crying jags in that first 48 hours. It's an understandable, natural reaction.

Everyone here is right, though. You can absolutely do this and your baby will be all the healthier for it. You will probably be surprised by just how much leeway you have in your diet and how manageable it actually is, as everyone says. I've been tracking for two weeks now and yet to have an out of bounds number, even while eating moderate amounts of pasta/bread/etc. Every body is different, but between diet and medication back-up, you and your wee one should be absolutely okay come September.

Plus, plenty of us are dealing with the same thing! Just combing through this thread and similar threads on other BMBs set my mind at ease, after diagnosis. There's so much wisdom and help on these boards. You've got this, mama!

BecauseLove · July 2017

Anyone in this post that is taking insulin or meds to help control levels?

Sugargirl1019 · July 2017

BecauseLove said:

Anyone in this post that is taking insulin or meds to help control levels?

Do I count?

BecauseLove · July 2017

Sugargirl1019 Sure.

I am just meeting with a Dr next week to see if they are going to put me on meds or insulin to help with my fasting rate etc but I don't know if there are any specific questions I should be asking. Also curious how that impacts delivering early or not...including induction.

Sugargirl1019 · July 2017

@BecauseLove They may do metformin (pill), or a long acting insulin once a day, especially for fasting numbers. It shouldn't have any effect on your delivery - they will induce if they want to regardless of insulin or not.

BecauseLove · July 2017

Sugargirl1019 Thanks for the note. Strangely I was on met far before getting pregnant and into pregnancy due to having PCOS. And it gave me awful symptoms but kinda was the norm for ages.....I asked my dr if I should stay on it to help prevent GD and they recommended not to stay on it so I went off around week 12....so kinda odd if it is what they put me back on. I guess I will find out more come wed dr's appointments

divinemsm620 · July 2017

@BecauseLove well, I might be in your camp sooner rather than later. I FINALLY managed to actually get a reading off the meter (having trouble using the strips) and my fasting number was 116. That's a couple of day after making the dietary changes.

BecauseLove · July 2017

divinemsm620 I hope you can avoid it but if not I hope it isn't such a big deal. I will let you know what I hear from the dr with my numbers and if taking meds ends up feeling like a big deal.

EmilyE13 · July 2017

Uuuuuggggghhhh I just found out I failed my 1 hour by 6 points (146 with threshold of 140). And then I pouted and ate a bagel.

I'm dreading the 3 hour test, but I've done low carb/paleo/primal before so I am trying to talk myself into being confident that I can handle any needed diet changes. That won't make me any happier cutting out ice cream, though.

divinemsm620 · July 2017

EmilyE13 said:

Uuuuuggggghhhh I just found out I failed my 1 hour by 6 points (146 with threshold of 140). And then I pouted and ate a bagel.

I'm dreading the 3 hour test, but I've done low carb/paleo/primal before so I am trying to talk myself into being confident that I can handle any needed diet changes. That won't make me any happier cutting out ice cream, though.

First off, you may pass the 3-hour--fingers crossed for you!! And second, I'm a week into my adventure with gestational diabetes and I have had ice cream. My dr's office has me counting carbs and spreading throughout the day. 4 oz of ice cream is 15g carbs which is the amount they recommend for each after-meal snack! That's not a ton of ice cream but it's been enough for me to feel satisfied. I also picked up Blue Bunny comes (16g carbs each) and others have sworn by Halo--or something like that--which I haven't been able to find at my store. The harder part is fruit (tiny tiny portions when I want to eat an entire pint of berries or half a watermelon) and I'm pretty disappointed I'll have to avoid bagels and pizza until after my kid is born. But we can all do what it takes. As a FTM I keep telling myself there will be many many more sacrifices to make for this child and this one is (hopefully) temporary.

ColoradoHiker · July 2017

@divinemsm620 It's Halo Top ice cream. It's supposed to be high protein, low carb (I believe). you can check their website, it has locations where you can buy it. I've heard it's anything from decent to amazing, I was planning on checking it out at the store next time we go.

BecauseLove · July 2017

So I got put onto Insulin yesterday (daily) to help my fasting numbers (strangely this morning it was still high-so maybe it takes some time to process?)...and got another type of insulin prescribed for if I think I am going to go over my carb limit to help with after a meal numbers. She really encouraged me to eat enough carbs....seems hard to do with out my numbers spiking out but hopefully that additional insulin will help if needed.

Also my dr shared with me that they will monitor my blood sugar 24 hours after delivery but after that they won't...because my a1c's are all so good. So looking forward to day 2 with baby and eating yummy foods!

Also ended up having to transition from my family practice dr (who was the plan for delivery) to the OB department because of all my fun high risk factors (ama, obesity, ivf baby, and now GD). So far I am seeing it as a blessing. We are going to have a ton of extra appointments with ultrasounds and NST's and BPP's...so we will know how the baby is doing all along the way these last weeks of pregnancy. Baby has been breech a bunch so if that doesn't change it sounds like it will be a c-section. I felt good getting a Dr. that was ready to start making some plans and get things figured out.

BecauseLove · July 2017

EmilyE13 I haven't cut out ice cream..it actually is one of the easier sweets it seems to find decent carbs or have smaller servings to enjoy. We don't have anyone selling Halo Top ice cream within a 1-2 hour radius of me so I have just checked out the back of all the different ice creams. So far Mint Chocolate has seemed like it had the least (at least in the brand I bought). Yum! Summer is meant for ice cream...so yeah maybe we can't eat all (or even close to all) the ice cream we want but you can still have some. Same is true for other treats.

jena333-2 · July 2017

ColoradoHiker said:

@divinemsm620 It's Halo Top ice cream. It's supposed to be high protein, low carb (I believe). you can check their website, it has locations where you can buy it. I've heard it's anything from decent to amazing, I was planning on checking it out at the store next time we go.

I LOVED the salted caramel, but the texture of the oatmeal cookie is super offputting for me (it's kind of grainy, and has actual oats in it). I want to try the lemon cake next, because I hear it's the freaking bees knees.

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