Gestational diabetes support thread

[NoRoomForALittleOne]

I thought I'd start a support thread for those of us being tested, just diagnosed or being treated for GDM.

So collapse on a sofa, grab a low carb snack and come and chat about blood tests, finger pricks, diet changes, medication and birth plans...

Thanks will def get some nuts and try those. Is it different for everyone though as my lowest reading has been after pasta ? Potatoes and bread are sending it up. Haven't tried rice yet but making curry later on in the week so will see what the readings do after curry and rice. Have been reading some of the thread , it seems toast with peanut butter is quite good so will try that. When you have fruit or a new snack do you check an hour after to see if it's ok or are you not supposed to do that?

Mrs whibble - I found my readings went high whenever I got ill including when I had my whooping cough vaccine. It meant that at every cough/cold etc. I had to really restrict my diet but when I was well I could eat alot more freely. (I was ill alot in the 3rd trimester .)

mummy - I think breastfeeding is meant to help stabilise your blood sugars and is encouraged but if your baby is suffering from low blood sugar they are keen to intervene and add formula. a few people here suggested expressing colustrum pre-birth so they could supplement. I never got round to that but would hand express it in hospital and then out ds on my boob to try and make sure he got as much as possible to pass his blood sugar tests post birth.

Mrs whibble - I found my readings went high whenever I got ill including when I had my whooping cough vaccine. It meant that at every cough/cold etc. I had to really restrict my diet but when I was well I could eat alot more freely. (I was ill alot in the 3rd trimester .)

mummy - I think breastfeeding is meant to help stabilise your blood sugars and is encouraged but if your baby is suffering from low blood sugar they are keen to intervene and add formula. a few people here suggested expressing colustrum pre-birth so they could supplement. I never got round to that but would hand express it in hospital and then out ds on my boob to try and make sure he got as much as possible to pass his blood sugar tests post birth.

mummy I haven't tested post snack actually but have tested after fruit and porridge and fruit for pudding and it's been ok.

Basmati rice vs non basmati makes a big difference to me. I think it is a bit individual though, yes, and mrs yes, the jab could be making a difference as having a cold does.

Hmm, easter and chocolate is banned. How annoying!

How's everyone doing?

I totally agree that basmati vs non-basmati makes a huge difference. By the way, I have managed to eat a SMALL amount of very dark chocolate without disaster. It's not preventing my cheesecake or chilli beef cravings but I'm coping without Easter eggs!

Hi All,

Well looks like I'm joining this thread (and indeed mumsnet!) :-)
Was diagnosed with GDM last Thursday at 26w+1.
Marginally fell foul of the fasting threshold and 1hr threshold on my OGTT (was within the 2hr threshold), so have to monitor my blood glucose every other day (pre- and post- prandial at breakfast, lunch and dinner) for the next fortnight (and all this over easter too.... sobs) Am hoping to goodness I can get this in the bag with diet, as the thought of having to inject myself with insulin is pretty scary to me right now.

Getting my levels within target (

Welcome bogwoppit (good user name). It's not much fun but you sound determined and it gets easier as you get used to it. I even find myself cheered by visiting the hot nut shop and stocking up on my favourite Turkish yoghurt now, even after missing out on chocolate all weekend. I also feel healthier and have lost a bit of weight which is some consolation.

Tbh my readings are still a little bit unpredictable even now 6 weeks in. Sometimes I think I have pushed it and get a reading in the low 5s and other times I think I have been good and get borderline or over. But generally I have found small meals interspersed with nuts and seeds for snacks are best and rice and new potatoes the safest carbs. Trying not to fall asleep straight after dinner is also key but challenging as knackered after running round after dd and working.

As for amount of carbs, no more than 1/3 of a plate should be carbs, with the rest split between protein and veg. Lower fat is best but obviously you can't be saintly all the time. Drinks are hard. Fizzy water and coffee are my only options really as not keen on diet drinks.

Good luck!

Ps there is an option of metformin tablets in between diet control and insulin but I am still diet controlled despite a few high readings each week. My fasting levels have been good though, don't know why.

Longest lurker what does your diabetes nurse class as bad readings? I have still to meet mine but mine are usually over 7 every day and wondering if she will start metformin. Does anybody's wee really smell awful? I am wondering if it's the diabetes or wether I have a uti?

She circles anything over 7.8. She said borderline but below that is OK and told me to do a bit of experimenting to see what sends me over so wouldn't be worried about a few high readings in the first few weeks. She said they would start meds if I had consistently high readings and couldn't work out how to bring them down - but they've been a bit more haphazard than that. Am meeting her again on Thurs and still have a few unexplained high readings (one of 8.9 and one of 9.9, for example) but no more than the previous fortnight and she didn't start medication then (I thought she might). Consultant on 21st so he may take a different view.

Hi longestlurkerever. Thank you for your thoughts and advice. Glad to see it's not just me that gets some surprisingly higgledy-piggledy readings then!

In all reality this is probably a deserved kick in the pants for me to be more mindful of the things I consume, but having already sacrificed my caffeine (love a decent espresso!), red wine, soft cheese, and liver in it various tasty guises, right from my (surprise) BFP moment, this felts like a blow to what foodie enjoyment I had left! Oh well, little one is so so worth it, and I guess it's a good lesson regarding impending parenthood and the nature of the sacrifices to be made for ones children!

Bogwoppit
agree with you, it is a wake up call to existing lifestle and diet.

I somewhat expected to get diabetes at one point in my life due to other family members having it, what didnt stop me from eating excessive amounts of sweets all the time.

When I see myself now drinking decaf nescafe with artificial sweetener, what is TOTAL opposite what I did year ago!!! I love good coffee american style from filter machine, but never found good tasting decaf (or filter coffee) here, once I got pregnat so I moved on to nescafe what I would have never touched before and now even artificial sugar, gosh how I hated taste of these....

Hello, technically I don't have GD anymore, just popping back with a quick question if that's ok?

My baby is 4 weeks old today and I have my follow-up GTT in a few weeks. I really don't like surprises though so the other night I tested before dinner, (5.4) and after an unhealthy dinner plus easter egg-woops (6.6). Would you say this likely indicates that the GD is gone? I'm also planning on doing a DIY GTT before my real one. I know the finger prick test isn't as accurate as the veinous blood they take, but should give me an idea of what to expect.

coaster congratulations again on your lovely baby! I wouldn't like to promise as sometimes I get surprisingly low results after unhealthy dinners but I would say 6.6 after Easter eggs sounds very promising. Good luck!

Bogwoppit and zahrah - I am with you. Suddenly pregnancy has slowed right down again and I think it's partly because even pregnancy-friendly treats like mocktails and cake are out of bounds. Am going to try and stick to a toned-down version of the diet afterwards (as in - treats permitted but sugar not a staple part of my diet and healthy snacks and low GI the default) but will see how far I get before sleep deprivation overcomes my good intentions.

Fwiw I am still treating myself to one decent proper coffee per day.

coaster girl

I think you should be monitoring yourself randomly over a period of time.
My dad has diabetes for 20+ years, currently for years on insulin and told me that it the best way how to find out how the sugar in your blood really behaves. GTT is only one point in time and could be skewed due to various circumstances on that day. What is important for you is to really know how much sugar you have circulating when you are eating what you are normally eating over course of some days/weeks.

I take it, they didnt take the monitoring device from you after birth? I tought we would have to give it back.

coaster congratulations on your little one, and thank you for the hope that I too may well be able to partake in easter eggs again one day.

zahara and longestlurkerever I was convinced my work colleagues would sus my pregnancy as I went from enjoying a few french-press or pourover filter coffees in the office (sometimes even grinding my own beans), to none until I found a decaff that I'm reasonably happy with. Guess it depends what you like in a coffee (I'm a nutty notes rather the fruity notes person), but I have found Sainsburys TtD Decaff Columbian OK for a fix. No more almond croissants to go with it now though mind...

Thank you ladies

They didn't take the monitoring equipment off me, I sort of expected them to. It's nice to be able to keep an occasional eye on things though.

Guys

would like to know what are your birth plans? Can you share?

I think we all are looking at early induction at labout ward, so medicalized birth. I will post a separate topic but wanted to first ask here.

I am hoping for use of pool on Labour ward with hourly monitoring though Will have to get out of pool to actually give birth. If I don't go into Labour before 40+6 or I need medication then I will be induced and then I might opt for an epidural. Consultation and scan on 21st so hoping to get a better idea then.

Well, I can share my induction story...

Yesterday, I went in to be induced at 37 weeks due to 'accelerated growth' on the 36 week scan.

I had a VE initially as they wanted to give me a sweep rather than start prostin pessary straight away but they said my cervix was closed so they put me on the monitor for a pre-pessary trace. When they put the pessary in, they quickly whipped it out as I was 2cm! I was given a sweep about 10am and then left to it for a bit. As I have a history of fast labours, they moved me to labour ward so I got the pool room!

At 2pm, I had my waters broken and was monitored for 10 mins while the pool was run. I was allowed to get in the pool before labour was truly established so I did. It took me until 5:15pm to have consistent, regular contractions at which point the consultant came in as she was unhappy that I wasn't having continuous monitoring. I was happy to have it. It was the midwife's choice to not use it because I was on all fours. Anyway, at this point I asked for gas and air. Then wanted to get out of the pool NOW!

DS2 was delivered on the bed with the aid of copious amounts of gas and air at 5:52pm. He was born with his hand by his face then shot his arm out superman stylee before the rest of him delivered so no shoulder dystocia this time. He weighed in at 7lb 12oz (the growth scans over-estimated his weight).

He has now passed 3 blood sugar tests so doesn't need any more.

Congratulations noroom! Enjoy cuddling your lovely ds and glad to hear all is well.

Help please. Started metformin this morning, felt starving all day been eating as I usually do (well how I have been since got diagnosed with gd) felt funny before tea dizzy, sweaty, starving did bloods and got a 3. Is this to low? Do I need to ring the maternity unit? I am 19 weeks

mummy By all means give the mw a call but don't panic and try eating something. I called the mw when I had can post lunch reading of 3 and a fasting reading of 2.3 but she wasn't overly concerned. That said I was diet controlled and I know it's different if you're on medication so to be on the safe side I would call your mw to check.

Metformin can't make your blood sugar too low it only cuts out the highs. You need to eat/drink something to get your blood sugar up because you will feel yucky at that level. Make sure that you snack between meals and that you are eating enough to try and even out your blood sugars. Sometimes your body 'over corrects' a high blood sugar and that's why you get a low after a high.

It's probably your baby going through a growth spurt mummy. I had a couple of days like that and then it went back to normal.

Saw the diabetes midwife yesterday. She said that my readings were "excellent" and I shouldn't worry about the odd high one as everyone has to have the occasional treat (sad state of affairs when a single hot cross bun is the height of vice but hey ho). She also said that until recently gdm didn't stop you using the mlu, but she hinted that there was some sort of "incident" and although it would have occurred anyway the mlu had to be extra careful so as not to appear a dangerous option. She said though that if my readings are controlled and the baby is growing OK I am no higher risk than anyone else so I am wondering about making a final push for the mlu when I see the consultant. That's not for a while though as it turns out the 21st appointment is a scan then midwife follow up, not the consultant as I thought. She was reasonably reassuring about the labour ward too though - you get your own room, two of them have pools in, and dh can stay post delivery. I am not convinced she was talking about your own room for the whole period though - seems unlikely. Then again they would boot me out of the mlu at some point post delivery if they needed the room so maybe there's not that huge a difference.

Hope everyone is doing OK and the newborns are settling in.