Can you have high blood sugar reading without gestational diabetes?

[Colinthedog]

Sorry for the long post but feeling very anxious.

Had my 30 weeks scan a few weeks ago (I’m now 32+6) and was told baby had a big tummy, almost off the scale. I had none of the risk factors but they said I would need a glucose tolerance test as a precaution, which sent my anxiety off the scale (I’m very anxious anyway, particularly when pregnant, and anything amiss really impacts me)

So I spent a few days feeling really stressed while I waited for the test. Had the test and was told my results were normal. Phew. But I resolved to improve my diet after the scare as while I’ve been eating lots of fruit and veg, I know I’ve been overindulging on the treats and have put on about 2 stone since getting pregnant (bmi before pregnancy was around 24 and I was very physically active)

So I’ve eaten well over the past 2 weeks, but then was feeling really down in the dumps yesterday and ended up having a bit of a carb and sugar binge. Just mindless eating really. I know I ate too much crap. I’d been having some issues with blurry vision and floaters, plus some shoulder pain, so I called the dr who told me to come in for a check up (this was just post my binge). Blood pressure and protein in urine fine, but my urine had glucose in it (never had this before). He then did a blood test and said my result was 11, so I needed to repeat the GTT.

This has sent me into another spiral of anxiety. I was so stressed that he referred me to the maternity assessment centre to get checked over. I arrived about 2 hours later and they re-checked my urine and blood. All normal. No glucose, and blood sugar reading well within normal range. They said they will tell me after the weekend if I need to repeat the GTT, but midwife didn’t seem to think I have gestational diabetes and that it was likely a brief spike due to eating too much crap. Dr seemed to think it was GD, but was a bit puzzled by my normal results just 2 weeks earlier.

I’m now spending yet another weekend stressing out, so I wondered if anyone else has had a similar experience? Can you suddenly develop GD in a 2 week period? Or can you have a random blood sugar spike after eating too much rubbish in a short period? Any help would be really appreciated, thank you.

you need to see the midwife or a gp urgently.

blurred vision can be a sign of high blood pressure which rings alarm bells for pre-eclampsia.

I had blood pressure tested twice yesterday though and all normal? Plus no other symptoms so dr and midwife weren’t concerned

I've had GD three times, eating too many carbs always spiked my levels for the reading I took 2 hours post meal but went back to normal for the reading I took before my next meal. I was told the 2 hour post meal reading should be under 7 so it sort of depends on how soon after you ate he tested your blood sugar?

Thanks kitkat. Difficult to say as I was sort of grazing over a period of a few hours. Pretty sure I ate my last bit of crap within an hour of my drs appointment though.

I am not a doctor but have a little experience with this as, despite having a BMI of 18, I was sent for the GTT at 9w due to other risk factors (age and ethnicity, I imagine).

My experience is with the 1-hour GTT which I failed (reading of around 8.3) and the 3-hour one which couldn't be completed because I threw up halfway through. I've been pricking my finger 6 times a day for a month and measuring the glucose levels that way to see if I really do have GD.

In my experience, I would say that a reading of 11 is extremely high and probably indicative of something being amiss. I eat very healthily but have been eating huge amounts of chocolate (my only pregnancy craving!). Despite eating carbs as usual and indulging in sweet crap, sometimes in the hour before pricking, my readings have never been over 6.1 so I don't think I have GD at all. Not sure why I failed the first test...

So, although I'm no expert, I would say that it's worth following this up as that level does not sound normal for a non-diabetic.

I hope I don't make you more anxious, just wanted to share my thoughts!

Thanks Catsmize. I guess I’m just confused as to why I passed the GTT test only 2 weeks ago, and have been eating better since (yesterday’s binge excluded). And I did eat a LOT of crap in a really short period yesterday, much more than I normally ever would. Do you think it’s possible my body just couldn’t handle that amount all in one go?

Hope you get a negative result by the way

Thanks, Colinthedog! I understand what you mean as I'm also confused why I failed the test but appear to have perfectly normal levels when self-monitoring. Like you I also wondered if it could be to do with the inordinate amount of Ben & Jerry's I'd been eating in the run-up to the test but, tbf, I wouldn't say I'm too much better now

Without wanting to "sweet-shame" you, how much crap are we talking about just before you got that high level? Are we talking whole family-size chocolate cake levels of crap?

I always passed the test but had gestational diabetes. I ended up on tablets for it.

I was told by a diabetes nurse last pg that if you didn’t have gd you shouldn’t ever have any off readings and so having an off reading would be indicative that you have gd. Plus it’s very common for gd to get less controlled in the third trimester, so it could have been that your result was normal 2 weeks ago but now it isn’t. With dd I did regular bloods and up until about 29 weeks never got any off readings ever no matter what I ate, then I’d get the odd raised reading but rarely and by 35 weeks I was getting several high readings a week.

An embarrassing amount Catsmize, yes I’m taking those sorts of levels. Feeling pretty guilty about it now.

How can you have GD without failing the GTT Reastie? I thought that was the only way to get a diagnosis?

Try not to panic lovely. Easier said than done I know.

I failed my GTT when pregnant.

I managed it with diet and 1 metformin a day. I was desperate to have as natural a birth as possible. I didnt want an induction at all.

Docs were pleased with my readings and said I could choose when to have baby. They booked me in and DS arrived earlier than induction date. Yay!

Then DS has 3 blood tests to check his glucose levels. All fine. We were home within 15 hours.

Try not to panic. It can be manageable 😊😊 I dont know what's going on with your tests but I wouldn't be surprised if they monitor your blood levels just in case.

Colin I don’t know but I declined the gtt and told them I’d rather they treat me as if I had gd, which in the end they say I did! I also believe gd can come on at any point so you may have been negative before but that doesn’t mean you won’t get it at any point in pg. usually if you had tested negative they would retest if your measurements or scan suddenly showed unusual growth to indicate baby growing faster than expected.

Hi OP. You can indeed develop GD in a matter of weeks as this has just happened to me. Had the test at 28 weeks and passed with flying colours but had glucose in urine at 31 week appointment. I then had to repeat the GTT and failed. I'm 32+4 now and pick up my blood monitor on Tuesday. It can be overwhelming but the way I look at it is I get some extra scans now which is always great and if I can keep under control with diet then I should be able to go to the birthing centre and have a water birth!

11 is really quite high and normal considered diagnostic of diabetes. Did you wash your hands/use a wipe before the test?

No I didn’t wash my hands straight before, but did a urine sample before my appointment so washed my hands then. How does that make a difference?

And thanks for the messages everyone, and for sharing your own experiences. I haven’t really got the reassurance I was hoping for, so I guess I need to start preparing for a diagnosis next week. I’m just worried as I find my anxiety hard to manage even when everything seems fine, so not sure how I will cope with having to manage a condition which could negatively impact the rest of my pregnancy and the birth. But nice to know I’m not alone.

Certain medications do make a person hyperglycemic such as steroids

@colinthedog - traces of a previous meal on your hands can cause a false reading. This is unlikely with the glucose in the urine, but worth bearing in mind.

Thanks, although I washed my hands so seems unlikely. The midwife from the hospital actually called me today to say she thinks it’s the amount of junk I ate that caused the high reading. However she’s going to get a doctor to call me tomorrow to discuss whether I need another GTT. Based on my previous results she doesn’t think it’s GD, however I think I need to take the GTT again to be sure. Just hoping I can get an appointment in the next few days so I know one way or the other, don’t know what I should be eating!