Friday, April 25, 2008
GD
If anyone has/had/is diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes. What did you eat, did you buy a cook book? Did you deliver early? Did you deliver vaginally? I have tons of questions. I was supposed to have an appointment with the nutritional counselor today - It was canceled and will be a 2 hour meeting Tuesday at 8:30 am. My dr hasn't called , just the OB coordinator, my next appointment with them is May 5th. I plan on asking all of these questions again. I have a long post about this in my head but not sure I am ready to type it yet. I feel like my dr's office should have explained more to me. I do not have any other GD symptoms yet. I just failed the sugar test. But I have P.CO.S - and I Do not eat much sugars and carbs - I am wondering if these are closely related to why I failed ... I will post a more coherent post when I am able to verbally express my thoughts correctly ... I couldn't get my ovaries to ovulate because I am insulin resistant - I was told that I should be on Met.formin for the rest of my life ... I figured I was going to fail and they would give my the Me.tform.in back - as I have seen and researched it to be a form of treatment. Am I missing something? Am I making it too simple? ... Head is spinning with thoughts/fears
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29 comments:
My sister had it and she just followed a low carb diet and was totally able to deliver vaginally. If you keep it under control you shouldn't have a huge baby that would require a c-section. :o)
If you are already eating low sugar and low carb you won't see much of a difference in your diet.
HUGS!
Deep breath -- it's okay! My friend had GD (and given my family history of diabetes, I'm fairly certain it's in my immediate future as well) but it's one of the most manageable complications you can have. More annoying than anything else, but if you're already watching your sugar and carb intake, you may not even notice the diet changes too much.
My friend delivered vaginally, full-term, at 38 weeks. Her baby was a totally average size. She says that only part of GD that she really hated was not being able to eat a slice of cake at her baby shower.
Another friend, due at the same time, also had GD, and made no attempt at all to manage it, despite advice from her doctor. As a result, her baby got a bit big, but she was still able to deliver vaginally as well, at full term. No harm done.
I am in the exact same boat. It is scary when you read the information on GDM, but I know of a lot of women who, once they changed their diet, had no complications.
The diet that is recommended is the 2,200 calorie diet from the American Diabetic Association. You can find it on their website.
Hugs to you Farah. I don't know much about GD except that medical science has definitely figured out how to handle it & its no longer pioneer ground. Good luck on tuesday
Delurking to offer up my experience. Diagnosed with GD during my second pregnancy--met with the nutritionist who gave me a lot of helpful handouts and booklets as well as a glucometer to check my blood sugar with four times a day. Your nutritionist will probably go over a smart eating plan in hopes that your GD can be controlled with diet and perhaps some light exercise.
This second pregnancy, that didn't work for me entirely so they ended up supplementing me with a med called glyburide. A pill I took once a day for the remaining duration of my pregnancy (was diagnosed at 23 weeks, tested me early b/c I had GD-tendecies but not full blown GD during my first pregnancy).
Glyburide was able to control my fasting numbers (morning blood sugar reads taken before you eat anything) and I vaginally delivered a normal sized 7 pound girl at 37w5d (took me kind of early as my amniotic fluid was dipping slightly).
Good luck--you can do this, it'll be tricky at first as you take all of the info in and get your feet wet testing the water but it's not so bad.
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me along the way.
Was diagnosed with GD during my first pregnancy and tried sticking to the diet. It made me sick and I had to stop, but I kept testing my blood in the morning, after each meal, and before bed time. As long as I watched my sugar level, all was well. I delivered vaginally to a 6 lb 7 oz baby.
With my second pregnancy, I was one of the lucky few who did not develop it.
Talk with your doctor and request a blood monitor as well as a referral to a GD Class. Write down all of your questions and concerns.
And something else that helped me. I had a "Blood Sugar Buddy". A friend who was also pregnant with GD. The two of us helped each other.
I don't know too much about it either, although it does seem rathar common. I will be having my test soon too and am a bit nervous about it!
I hope you get some answers on Tuesday and sounds like you are getting some good ones on here too!
I remember Bea at Infertile Fantasies has written a lot about GD and eating during pregnancy. Look in her archives for posts about good snacks, etc.
I don't have it but know people who have. I agree with baby deax- low carbs, low sugars. Probably if you are already doing that you won't have to change much. YOu'll just have to prick yourself several times a day to prove that everything's okay. My friend who had GD delivered vaginally a week early. She didn't have GD with her 1st baby and delivered early then too so I don't think you will have a problem. Don't be scared- just write down your questions so you can get some clarification next week. :)
That's a bummer...but things still turn out great nowadays for people with GD. Two of the girls I work with recently developed GD with their pregnancies. Both were checking their blood sugar 3-4 times a day from then on out. The doctors had them change their diets a little too, although for you it sounds like you're already following the diet they would have someone follow. There probably won't be any really big changes for you. Both girls had vaginal deliveries near term. One baby was 7lbs, and one 8lbs. Both did great and one is 2 months old now and one 4 months old.
A C-section is not a mandatory sentence with a GD diagnosis, so try to take it one step at a time and maybe you'll be one of those boring vag delivery women. The extra monitoring can be a little annoying and timeconsuming, but you've had so much already (lovenox, etc) that I'm sure you will transition better than most. I just wanted to say that I'm jumping through the screen right now to give you a hug though because you've already been through enough, and don't deserve any of this extra crap. I know this is stressful, but we're both going to make it through these pregnancies because we're tough cookies and we're going to be great moms. Lots of hugs sweetie!
I've talked with ppl who had GD, and they had a vaginal birth. As far as food goes, I'm not 100% sure about that.
Plus, doctors are far more educated on it nowadays. Don't feel bad if you take up the full 2 hrs with your questions. Don't leave there til you feel they've all been answered reasonably.
You'll get through this. You got this.
God, I wish I knew. This whole GD thing is complicated, but you may be onto something with your existing insulin resistance. That's odd that you had no other symptoms, too. Ugh!!! I am thinking about you.
Farah,
I think the ADA in my post is the American Dietetic Association and not the American Diabetic Association.
My doctor gave me a handout (from Eli Lilly, but still) about a meal plan and diet exchanges. It is very, very similar to Phases II and III on the South Beach Diet. They have great cookbooks, so finding meal options should not be a problem.
I have no advice, but I have known so many people online and in RL who had GD. It happens a lot and people get through it. I remember one friend eating a lot of soup for lunch (sorry, that's all I have to offer... that and many well wishes).
My mom had GD with my little sister and my little brother. Both were delivered vaginally without any meds. So those are still options for you. P.S. did you get the fabric samples I sent you a few weeks back for your sling?If so could you let me know which one you chose?
sorry to hear about GD... I know lots of women that had GD and delivered vaginally, full term and healthy babies. Hoping and praying that all goes well with you
hugs
GD is not too much of an issue, as long as you manage it.
Usually the first line of management is diet, if that fails it's usually insulin. Met would be unusual in this situation.
I bet you'll feel much less stressed about it once you've had your appointments and got more information,
xx
J
hope you get your answers!
I haven't heard of anyone being put on metformin after the end of the first trimester...that doesn't really mean anything, I'm not a medical professional. I'm just adding my two cents.
All I know is a friend of mine had GD with her second child and delivered vaginally. Her daughter wasn't too big and she literally came out before the doctor got her second glove on.
You're in my thoughts and prayer!
My friend had it with my God-Daughter, she followed a low carb and low sugar diet, she delivered vaginally.
Thinking about ya, HuGs!
Ugh, yeah maybe we do have the same OB! Sorry you are having to deal with all this.
I agree with all the pp though, you shouldn't have to do much differently if you're already on a low carb/low sugar diet (I am too, more just as a lifestyle thing).
Hi Farah,
Long time reader, first time commenter. Had to write in and tell you my experience. I am currently a little over 35 weeks pregnant (via IVF) and have GD. (Am also on Lovenox, fun times, although that will end at 36 weeks). Anyway, the first line of defense was to meet with a dietician and go to an education class, where I was given a suggested diet to try for a week. I ended up losing weight, and was not in a position to do so, so the dr put me on insulin. It is a pain in the arse, but after the Lovenox, no biggie (it doesn't sting or burn and the needle is smaller). The biggest frustration is the foods I cannot eat.
I now eat a lot of peanut butter, eggs, meat, salads and nuts. Definitely not a low calorie diet, but this way I get my protein too. The dr has not once mentioned a c-section to me, and I am not planning on one unless necessary. I have been told that I will not be allowed to go past my due date, and have been going once every two weeks for non-stress tests and once every two weeks for growth ultrasounds. Based on the results of these tests, your dr will probably be able to advise the best delivery schedule/option. My dr has mentioned inducing me, but has indicated she will wait as long as possible to see if my body can start labor on its own (which I am hoping for). In any event, it is stressful and another layer to add to already stressful times, but hang in there. My guess is that if you need to be treated with meds, it will be with insulin.
Hugs, Anne in Boston
wish I could help. :( lots of hugs.
I had GD during my pregnancy and was so stressed and overwhelmed by it all. I did deliver vaginally at 39w2d. My baby was fairly small due to the diet though... He was 6lbs. 12oz. After reading a bunch of info online I was so upset. Meeting with the nutritionist and collaborating closely with nurses helped me immensely. I assumed I needed to watch my caloric intake but they were more concerned with my carb servings. I found that Aunt Millies Fiber for Life Wheat bread is really low in carbs and I ate Dannon Light and Fit Yogurt as another staple. My fasting numbers were out of control despite what tricks they had me try so I HAD to do insulin. I tried glyburide once only to have a severe reaction at the smallest dose and wound up hypoglycemic. I did MUCH better on insulin and never took more than 8 units before bed. I guess research is still out on whether or not to take metformin during pregnancy. In my thinking if I would have stayed on it (PCOS/insulin resistance dx) then I wouldn't have had the blood sugar problems in the first place. I guess there is no proof that it doesn't harm the baby after the first tri so they don't like patients to stay on it. I found as I went along that eating more carb servings before bed helped my insulin stay under control even further. I know it will be hard not to stress about it and focus solely on GD and all the special testing and such but try to take it easy. Please email me if you need to talk!
GD is not uncommon, I know a bunch of my friends who got it in one of her pregnancy but no with others.
There is no risk if you have it under control.
Everything is going to be just fine!
HAPPY 31 WEEKS!!!!!
I am an L&D nurse, as the girls here have written, most GD births go fine.
However, women with GD &/or PCOS are at higher risk for certain complications. The best thing you can do is continue to follow your MD's advice on management of your condition, and eat as advised by the diabetes counselor as best you can. A fellow nurse brought some ADA diabetic cookbooks to work the other day and the stuff looked GREAT!! I copied a bunch of the recipes and I'm not diabetic :)
Most of our GD patients are managed by diet alone, if not the next biggest GD group takes glyburide. If that doesn't do it, they take insulin.
I hope you have a great birth and babymoon!
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