Last Monday, I had the delight of seeing my baby girl on the big screen (ultrasound). My princess is already head down, so I didn’t get to see her face or much of her profile – BUT the rest of her body sure is cute. 🙂 After my ultrasound I was to meet with my OB and learn the results of my GTT from Friday (Glucose Tolerance Test). I was so nervous.
I’d read all week about Gestational Diabetes, what it means and was pretty confident that if Gestational Diabetes was a part of my journey i’d be okay. However, it clearly wasn’t something I wanted to experience.
I stepped on the scale, and had (surprise) lost another pound. Now, officially bringing my pregnancy weight gain to 4 pounds.
Blood Pressure – perfect range
“I’m doing great with this check up!” I thought to myself.
Then, the doctor comes in.
“How are you feeling” … “Any decrease in fetal movement” … (You know all the normal third trimester questions). Then, …
“How do you think you did with the GTT”.
I was silent for a moment then, I responded with “I hope I passed, but i’m prepared if I didn’t”.
My OB is very kind, she paused – looked at me in the eye and said “It’s going to be okay… You did fail the GTT. HOWEVER, you barely failed it” She went on to explain the test, my results and the risks of me developing type 2 diabetes in the future.
So yes… I failed it.
What does that mean?
1) I failed the test by 2 points. My actual diagnoses is “Gestational Diabetes Mellitus”. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. But, my understanding is that the difference between GD and GDM is that GDM is more commonly able to be controlled with simple dietary and lifestyle changes.
2) I will now be induced at 39 weeks, to prevent Baby Jimenez from growing too large. – This is something I’m still looking into, because I really don’t want to be induced – and I feel like there has to be information out there on WHY I’m now being told that I have to be induced.
3) New diet, Sugar Testing, Urine Testing, and monthly ultrasounds.
I met with the Diabetic Counselor on Friday morning to talk about number 3. Of course, going into the appointment I was a disaster. Although I was anxious and disappointed … mostly … I was just sad. I was sad that I wasn’t able to outrun GD, I was sad that Baby Jimenez would now be a “statistic”. I’ve read the reports, that babies with mom’s who have GD during pregnancy are more likely to develop diabetes and other health problems. I was sad, that THIS was now a part of my journey.
My appointment began by the usual.
Weight and Blood Pressure.
Weight – Lost 2 more pounds (total weight gain is now 2 pounds)
Blood Pressure – Still at perfect health.
The Diabetic Counselor was lovely. Her first words to me were, “you can do this!” I know she probably says that you everyone – BUT- it’s nice to hear. She then asked me about a thousand questions about my health, my family history, and Chris’ health. After that exhausting task I was handed a folder and probably ten different pamphlets of information.
I was doing well until she said “You know, after baby you might want to consider getting on a weight loss regiment”.
EXCUSE ME?
I smiled, and said “may I tell you something? I understand that I am still considered overweight, and that I need to lose weight. However, prior to my pregnancy I lost over 50 pounds through running and a modified diet. I am confident that post baby I will be able to continue on my journey to a healthy weight”.
She paused. Smiled back and said “I apologize, Congratulations!”.
To be honest – once I got that off my chest, we were both more open with one another about this new lifestyle.
The Lifestyle.
From now until December 6th, I will have to test my sugars four times a day and my urine once a day. I log all the information and then email it to the counselor twice a week. On December 6th, (my birthday) we have another appointment to see the baby (growth ultrasound) and check in with the counselor. If i’ve been able to keep everything under control with diet and exercise I will get to decrease the amount of finger pricks.
How’s it going?
So far, everything has been good! My sugars have been normal with the diet, and I’ve even almost adjusted to testing my blood. I will never cease to be amazed at the level of love my husband must have for me. He’s held my hand, and dried my tears as i’ve learned to adjust to this new lifestyle. He’s always supportive, and has even changed his eating to mimic mine. He’s reading labels, giving meal suggestions and just loving me through it.
How’s the baby?
The baby is fabulous. She’s healthy, active, not too big, not too small and we love her sooo
much.
