Gestational Diabetes help

[firsttimemumtobe122]

Long story short - I had to go into the anti natal assessment unit on the weekend after feeling poorly and they found I was Hypoglycaemic (3.8 mmol). There was a staff changeover and all of the patient care just went out the door with the previous staff and I ended up going home with no answers except to contact my community midwife for further testing.

I can't get a midwife appt or get blood tests until next week, so I've bought a blood sugar monitor so I can keep a log of my readings in the meantime ready for my appt.

My kit just arrived and I just used it for the first time, about 30 mins after eating some fruit. My level is 14.1 mmol. I'm not sure though if it is this high as I've tested too soon after eating, I'm trying to get info on the web and the answers I'm getting are that it shouldn't spike like that regardless of whether I've just eaten and that my first phase insulin response isn't good??

I'm going to retest in an hour.

Hi - I've had gestational diabetes in two pregnancies. It does appear to work slightly differently depending on your hospital trust so this is my experience!

I had to test one hour after eating and the target level was 7.8 and under.... if I had any readings over 10 I had to call the diabetic midwife.

HI THERE U SHOULD TEST 1 /2 HRS AFTER EATING TESTING STRAIGHT AFTER YOUVE EATEN WILL BE HIGH INDEED HOWEVER CERTAIN FRUITS HAVE NATURAL SUGARS IN THEM TRY HAVING PEANUTS OR SUM SORT THAT WILL HELP U TRY MAINTAIN A LOWER SUGAR LEVEL .WHEN U GAVE DIABETES CERTAIN FOODS WILL SPIKE YOUR SUGAR LEVELS SO TRY AND STICK WITH FOODS SUCH AS SALAD NUTS VEGS FISH EGGS .BUT THINGS LIKE BREAD BISCUITS YOGURT CHIPS WILL SPIKE IT

I think that's a high reading. Cut all carbs, no fruit, or obvious sugars.

There's a great Facebook group if you search for gestational diabetes UK, lots of great advice and diet help.

When I had GD the testing routine was.

First thing in the morning before any food and drink.

Then 2 hours after each meal. Ideally between the meal and the test there should be no substantial snacks as the idea is to see how your body breaks down the sugar over a 2 hr period so adding more sugar part way through impacts that.

Alongside your sugar numbers you also need to keep a food diary so you can see how what you eat affects your levels.

Easiest way to do this is to have an a4 pad landscape, split into 7 columns 1 for each day, something like the attached. It will make it easy to show to your MW or if you need one your diabetes nurse.

THEY SAY U CAN HAVE CARBS BUT IN A HANDFUL ALONG WITH EATING IN MODERATION EASY SAID THEN DONE WHEN YOUR PREGNANT AND HUNGRY .YOUR ONLY SUPPOSE TO HAVE A PORTION OF CARBS AS YOUR BODY NEEDS SMALL AMOUNTS OF IT BUTVWHEN U HAVE YOUR MEALS HAVE LOADS OF VEGETABLES AND SALAD AS MENTIONED BEFORE EGGS IS FINE AND FISH AND MEAT SO ITS ALL ABOUT FINDING THAT BALANCE I HAD GESTATIONAL DIABETES WITH MY SON AND HE TURNED OUT TO BE ONLY 6.4 IN WEIGHT ONCE U GET THE HANG OF IT U WILL BE FINE GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR PREGNANCY

That is really high; I just wonder, given that it was your first attempt and you'd just eaten fruit, had you washed your hands thoroughly before pricking your finger? It's easy to get a high reading if there anything on your hand.

It is possible to have an immediate spike but for your levels to look more or less normal by 90 minutes, so worth repeating something like this again regardless of your next result. If you get similarly high levels and you're sure there's nothing contaminating the test, I'd tell your midwife.

Forgot to say, your hospital result wouldn't indicate GD as it's low rather than high.

Are you overweight or do you have PCOS? Those would be risk factors for GD.

How far along in your pregnancy are you?

Thanks everyone @FatGirlShrinking yeah I thought that too but the midwife who took my blood sugar mentioned it and said I needed more bloods done but it never happened in my further 8 hour stay 😩😩 just aslong as baby is ok that's all that matters!

No I'm neither overweight or have PCOS. I'm 22 weeks xx

Hypoglycemia isn't an indication of being diabetic, diabetics have high blood sugar ?hyperglycemia) because they produce too little or no insulin. Low blood sugar (hypo) is a result of the treatment, i.e. giving too much insulin in an injection. You'll need a GTT to diagnose GD, buy i would have thought spontaneous hypos are an indication that you definitely aren't diabetic as your blood sugar was low rather than high.

@UsernameN0Tavailable I know hypos aren't an indicator, that's why I was asking for advice about my high reading of 14.1mmol.

Did you get a lower reading on your second go?

This was my booklet from 2018. The high readings I circled and wrote what it was I ate in the notes.

@Yamaya mine was back I. 2014, based on the cross outs looks like the guidance changed from 2 hrs after eating to 1 hr. probably worth doing the test after 1 hr then OP.

You tested too soon.

You may also have had residual sugar on your fingers, and antibacterial hand gel can also affect readings.

@firsttimemumtobe122

Sorry from your post i understood it as you bought your own glucose meter because you had hypoglycemia and were worried that you had GD because of that. Were you already diagnosed with GD before you went to hospital with low blood sugar?

Different hospitals have different guidelines. The advice to be below 7.8 after an hour was done in my hospital about a decade ago but they were stricter than most back then.

Normal blood sugar should never spike up to 14.4 regardless of when you test, particularly just after fruit,. My slightly-GDed self tested at 11 at an hour after drinking the enormously sugary GTT drink. But it is so high that I do suspect there was an issue with the finger prick.

Hi, as others have said, ask your midwife for the glucose tolerance test if you're worried. The 3.8 reading isn't concerning on it's own.

Your fasting level which should be done first thing in the morning should be under 5.3 and one hour after food should be under 7.8.

Did you test again one hour after eating with freshly washed hands? Even residual soap can effect your reading.

Did they check your urine for sugars?

I have to test as follows:

As soon as I wake up - must be below 5.5
Before lunch - must be below 6
Before dinner - must be below 6
Two hours after dinner - must be below 7

14 seems very high but was maybe just because it was so soon after eating. Did you have clean hands?

Hopefully your midwife can give you more answers when you speak to her

I had GD in both pregnancies but I agree with what others have said as you don't know if you actually have it yet. Go back to you midwife and arrange to have the GD test. Once the results of that are back you can then make a plan if it turns out you have it.

It came back down to a normal range an hour or so later which is good. And is normal this morning before breakfast.

Could well have been contaminated as I am a newbie but will just keep tracking it daily now until my appt with the midwife.

Will be having the test done with my midwife, just so difficult to get an appt at the moment and having to wait a week which isn't ideal :(

Oh and not sure if the instructions on the machine you have say this but I was told to prick the side of my finger pad not the middle and to use a different finger each time, that way you can do ten tests, then go back to the other side for 10 pricks giving each finger time to heal so you don't end up with sore finger pads.

What was it that made you buy the glucose meter in the first place though? If you haven't been diagnosed with GD, I'm just trying to understand why you thought you had GD in the first place? Was there a high blood glucose reading while you were in hospital?

@UsernameN0Tavailable I went into hospital on the weekend and I had a v low reading - which explained why I was feeling so awful in the first place and barely able to stand up. The midwife who took the reading mentioned this could be the start of GD and mentioned something about the glucose in my urine sample too and then a shift change happened and I didn't see the same Midwife or doctor again and I got sent home and told to contact my community midwife for more glucose testing.

I wasn't aware at the time as I know nothing about it that GD doesn't give you low blood sugar, and I can't get a midwife appt or blood tests until next week. But after chatting to my colleague who has type 1 diabetes we thought it would be best if I monitor my blood sugars in the meantime before my appt as I continue to have bad dizzy spells. So even if it isn't GD there must be something causing me to have low blood sugar and dizzy spells.

I have GD with both pregnancies. I had occasions of high blood sugar and low blood sugar (this happened without taking insulin if I hadn’t eaten soon enough).
Before food I had the aim for 4.8. An hour after it needed to be less than 7.8. If I tested even 5 mins early it was generally more than this.
I avoided processed sugars and fruit snacks outside of meals. Carbs affected me differently at different times of the day so I had varying amounts at different meals.
You don’t want to self diagnose and try treat - you need to speak to midwife, doctor or someone that can refer to you for a glucose tolerance test. If you do have GD they’ll need to monitor you more closely and make sure you blood sugar levels are under control.