Gestational diabetes

[Solymar]

Looking for advice please,

Just had a call from the GP to say my blood results have shown increased sugar level of 8.5 so they suspect gestational diabetes. I need to wait for a GP telephone consultation tomorrow to find out further info.

Has anyone experienced this before I can explain what normally happens?

I was having a hormonal day beforehand so now I'm in bit blaming myself for not having a better diet and exercising more etc

Hi Solymar

I am 34 weeks pregnant and was diagnosed with GD through a Glucose Tolerance Test at 28 weeks. The GTT involved fasting overnight then bloods were taken then I had a syrup drink had to sit and wait for 2 hours then more bloods taken and they compared the results.

The next day I got the call and had to go in as they confirmed I had it, I was a wreck, upset & crying and feeling awful that I was putting baby at risk. It has a high chance of genetic factors, it is not your fault and is quite common.

What it does mean is that you will be treated as high risk, there is likely to be strong encouragement for you to be induced at about 38 weeks, you will need to keep testing your blood sugars at home. I test 4 times a day, my numbers should be below 5.5 when I get up in the morning and not higher than 7.5 after eating.

Diet helps considerably, as does some exercise if you can manage it (I am on crutches and struggle to walk so I fail at this) ideally you want to look at Low GI diet, minimise sugar and basically make healthy choices, my GD is currently controlled by diet alone and I aim for no more than 15-20g of carbs per meal but I do eat carbs which are wholemeal and small amounts. It gets harder to regulate your blood sugar as pregnancy progresses and you may need metformin (a tablet) or insulin injections.

What it means for baby is that if it is not managed there is a risk of a bigger baby (I am having regular growth scans) and the baby can get used to having extra sugar so that when baby is born the have a low blood sugar episode which can be treated by having some colostrum ready by pre-expressing in the last couple of weeks.

www.gestationaldiabetes.co.uk/ This website has been helpful to me

Thanks so much for your reply I'm pleased to hear it isn't just me who got so upset over it.

Waiting for the GP to call tomorrow so will see what they say about next steps.

Thanks again X

Hi Solymar. I'be just been diagnosed today. My levels were 5.6 before and 8.2 after. I was really upset and scared but just had a chat with a diabetes nurse and feel a little bit better.... Just worried about my baby. Did you speak to someone today? X