Gestational diabetes - just a few silly questions

[SellyMevs]

I thought I was pretty clued up on diabetes but last Friday I was told I have gestational diabetes and everything I thought I understood suddenly doesn't make any sense..

My GTT came back impaired and after 2 days of monitoring my blood sugars, I was started on insulin (novorapid in the mornings). I've been recording my sugars regularly - the usual fasting and an hour after every meal, but the midwife also recommended before any car journey as I have an hour commute to work and back.

Can I expect any pattern with my sugars? They are high in the mornings after breakfast, so that's when I have my insulin and the midwife is working out doses to manage it, but the rest of the time it's hit and miss. The hour after lunch and dinner is normally fine with a few discrepancies, but today before I drove home I was over 8. I hadn't eaten anything for 4 hours, and was higher than the reading after lunch which had been taken 3 hours earlier.. Yesterday I had the same lunch, had a snack in the afternoon and was less than 4. Does this just happen?!

Also, the midwife seemed to be quite specific in saying to record it an hour after I start eating a meal, rather than an hour after I finish eating.. is this right and does it make much difference to the readings? I can be a fairly slow eater so meals do extend over 20 - 30 mins some days.

Some advice would be great.. I'm due to phone the midwife again tomorrow but I'm just a little confused in the mean time!

I always measured an hour after I finished eating... I'd check that with the diabetes nurse. And I often got different readings for the same meal - your body's in flux when you're pregnant so I'd say that's to be expected!

I was told an hour at the diabetes clinic after I start eating.

I test before meals as well and I'm often high before dinner. Target is below 5.6 before meals.

Lots of women have most trouble in the morning as that's when a lot of the hormones which cause insulin resistance are released. Have you tried upping your protein and loweing your carbs at breakfast? I normally have a protein shake to start and a couple of pieces of high fibre toast with peanut butter and get good numbers.

Try not to go more than 3 hours without eating something. Ideally have 3 meals and 3 snacks (mid-morning, mid-afternoon and just before bed) and try to have regular intervals between them. If you go too long without eating either your liver will release too much glucose or when you do eat, your body is in starvation mode and the glucose remains too high as well.

This whole GD thing is very trial and error. You've seen that having a snack in the afternoon works for you, stick to it!

Also, try and always pair your carbs with protein (and fat if possible). That slows the absorption of the carbs into the blood stream.

Good luck!! It's quite a learning curve!!!