Anyone want to join in a support thread for those with gestational diabetes?

[CantSleepWontSleep]

Since it seems to be reasonably common, I thought maybe we could have an ongoing thread where we could discuss issues relating to it, and maybe share ideas of meals that work for us to keep blood sugars down.

I was just over the threshold on my GTT nearly 3 weeks ago, and have been monitoring my bloods 4 times a day since last Thursday. Had my first visit to joint diabetic/obstetric clinic this morning, which I found thoroughly impersonal and demoralising, so am feeling a bit low about it at the moment.

I am nearly 20 weeks, so still have a long way to go. Am hoping to control it just through diet, but consultant gave me a prescription for insulin 'just in case I need it'!

Am having the most problem with my after breakfast reading. Have been told to keep it below 7 one hour after eating, but even with the cereals they have recommended, I am getting around 8-9. Dietician has recommended trying baked beans on toast for breakfast instead. Is anyone else struggling with this one, as they said it is a common one to find raised due to steroids produced by the body in the mornings?

CSWS you've failed in your quest to score a full house at diabetes bingo

Who didn't tell me I could have a fry up everyday?

When I last spoke to my dietician I said 'you know what, I can have lots of meat and my BS are great!' She said...'not so. protein is not good for your body to have to convert'. I dunno about these dietician folk. Mine thinks that rich tea biscuits are the work of the devil.

I'm off to buy 8 lbs of sausages, 4 packs of bacon and a crate of eggs...whistles

Oooooh otter1980 are you excited or are you at the pissed-off-get-this-baby-outta-me stage?

I'm hoping that fiodyl tells us what really did happen but I'm going to fetch a cushion first to hide behind - just in case.

And yes otter1980 you are correct...my DH is an arse sometimes

I will hate your dietician as well as my own then jw! If we can't eat protein or carbs then we're all screwed really aren't we! Add some mushrooms and tomatoes to your shopping list jw, and then you can say that you had 2 portions of veg for breakfast - who could argue with that ?

Can you have a slice of carrot cake for me otter. One with nice sticky cheesy icing.

ah well all food is the devil y'see! and what exactly are you supposted to eat? no carbs, no sugar, according to your dietician protien is bad? Dust for you methinks. My friend (also a GD pregnancy, we met at the hospital) pointed out that unless we were careful our babies would end up being like gillian Mckeith, obsessed with poo, seeds and leaves...

when i asked my consultant when I could eat normal food again she looked shocked like it was a suprise i asked, I did wonder how long she'd been doing the job [humm]

bit of both on the baby front, been climbing the walls for last few weeks deperate for baby to come out before they induced us, now I have just accepted that shes not doing anything she doesnt want to... DP did decide that she would arrive on the 15th very early on in pregnancy so having spent ages telling me off for trying to get her out before EDD hes now trying hostage negotiations...

if you would like to list the cakes and biscuits you would like me to eat on your behalf I would willingly martyr myself to your cause!

Ah saint otter1980 patron saint of gateau I would like you to eat at least half a packet of chocolate hobnobs for me and several Mars Bars. Please, hear my cause. Thanks.

I shall add mushrooms and whatever else I can get away with. I suppose cornettos are not on that list though? Anyway dust is sooooo last season....I'm on fluff this week

Hope you LO pops out soon for you today otter1980. And as they say on the tv, the day is but young. You have by my reckoning 13.5 hours for the blighter to surrender and come out with her hands up!

CSWS shall we start up our own business of maternity voodoo dolls? Full range including midwife, consultant, dietician, stroppy receptionist, and optional narky DP? Complete with 100 pins?

Whaddya think?

OOOO!!! I'd pay good money for a voodoo doll of the scary consultant who actually refused to acknowledge my presence in a room until I started bringing DP with me and then would only address DP... He also scared the crap out of me by saying C-section at every second breath.. (which i want to avoid as I am freaked out by the cutting thing, i am a big wuss and not sure how we'll do this birth thing...) plus one of the midwife who takes blood so badly that your still bruised a week and a half later, who passes comment on your BMI when shes bigger that your 39 weeks pregnant self?

mars bars chocolate hobnobs - I'd been dreaming of the plain ones, how has i forgotten the chocolatey goodness?

11 hours 15 mins into hostage negotiations and LO isnt even picking up the phone. My internal organs are still being held hostage...

Sold! to the lady at the back with the bump Shows otter1980 how to do the curse over evil consultant and fatty midwife....

You know otter1980 I've just licked my monitor where you typed 'Mars Bar' and 'Hob Nob' and it tastes just as I remember - of dust Bleugh.

Not fair. Want the real thing. I'm so envious you're having your LO so soon and allowed to pass from the Dark Side back to land of fairy cakes and Star Bars.

OK Ill tell seeing as you asked, its not that bad tbh but I was just so unprepared it was a big shock, and I have since found out that some of the things that happened were probably unnessessary.

I was booked in to be induced at 38+5 weeks as they tod me baby was getting too big-she was actually only 6lb1oz.
The induction took 2 days and I was strapped to the bed with the CTG monitor constant and syntocinon drip in one arm and 2 drips for insulin and glucose in the other.

Eventually I had a c-section but the epidural failed so I was put to sleep and DP was asked to wait outside.

When I came round I got to hold DD for about 5mins(difficult as drips were still attached) b4 they said they needed to take her for tests.I thought this meant in the room next door, but they actually took her to the SCBU 3 floors away. Eventually I got taken to see her and they told me her blood sugar was 3.3. and they had given her Farleys formula milk, but I could choose a diferent brand if I prefered!!!

Her blood sugar was ok within 24hrs but it took us about a week to get out of SCBU and that was ony cos we 'agreed' to bottle feed her.

fiodyl that's my absolute worst case scenario what happened to you, which is another reason I'm glad to be having an elective where I can be awake to bark orders at the staff there NOT to feed my baby with formula.

Gosh, how did you contain yourself what with the SCBU and the milk fiasco?

Sounds like a complete nightmare to me.

It is the worst case scenario which is why I recommend that everyone makes sure they know what coud happen and what needs to happens and what doesnt.

Re the milk situation I did say I wanted to BF and they agreed to let me try. The problem was that because they were filling her up via a tube up her nose, she never really got hungry enough to latch on and suck. But they wouldnt take the tube out until she fed on her own.Also I was only allowed to 'try' evry 4 hours as the rest of the time I was sposed to be 'resting' down on the maternity ward.

After a couple of days they told me I could express but as I didnt know how to use the machine(very scary contraption) and my milk had not yet come in, I didnt get very much so they still topped up with formula.

I only agreed to give her this mixed bottle feeding as it was the ony way to get out of there, get home and breastfeed properly.

Crikey! It gets worse fiodyl. I think I would have been in trouble if that had been me. For a start there would have been lots of 'fark', 'pish' and 'twonks' uttered, or something thereabouts.

I'm off to write my birth plan this afternoon - in stone ...with blood!!!

Hope that everything is ok for you and LO now fiodyl. Did you manage the BF once you got home away from the NHS fascists?

Liking the voodoo doll idea a lot. And MN are giving us free advertising by making us one of the discussions of the day - fame and fortune at last!

Have just enjoyed a lovely lunch of grilled bacon, mushrooms, a few beans, some bread and butter, and some eggs, made especially runny for the delight of my dietician!

Realised that when I had my toast based breakfasts earlier in the week, I used a different bread instead of burgen, and for 2 slices there is actually 12 carbs difference , so might be worth trying the egg on toast again with my usual bread. I will not give up in my quest to find a decent breakfast!

fiodyl - shocking that they could get the weight so wrong! 6lb 1oz is as light as a feather to me. Dd was 9lbs without GD!
I think I will put my instructions not to give formula in BOLD TYPE AND CAPITALS in my birth plan, so that they get the message. Maybe I'll have it tattooed on my fanjo too .

Otter - choc digestives for me please. Hob nobs are a bit dry for me.

Wonders who will be doing the tatooing on your fanjo

Oooh and we're famous so best not talk about CSWS's fanjo.....whoops!

Wow that's a big carb difference on the bread front. I'm still on the wholemeal ham salad affair which I had for lunch. I measured 7.1 on the blood sugar scale (and I'm on an 'after' day today). Just scraping in there. Dreading tomorrow when I have to check in with Diabetes Clinic. I just KNOW they're gonna put me on more insulin looks for the crying emoticon

Yes they did have to admit they were way out on her weight, it was based on a growth scan at 34weeks which said she was 5lb9oz then. So they either made a mistake or she only grew 8oz in 5 weeks!

once we were home I got in contact with a BF counsellor who heped us loads but DD still never latched on very well and always prefered a bottle, so I expressed as well. Unfortunatly other circumstances meant I had to stop competely not long after.

Did they not scan again at 38 weeks fiodyl? I will get 4 weekly scans from now on, so 22 weeks, 26, 30, 34 and 38. That's the only good bit I can see about having GD!

5.3 for me after lunch . Bet it will be higher from the same food in the morning though.

What's an 'after' day jw?

they did do a quick scan at 38 wks but didnt do any measurements, only checked baby was head down and engaged. Probaby cos they were already decided on induction.

and im really rofl at the tattooed fanjos. I was allset todo something similar when I got pregnant agin with DS. Strangly though I didnt get GD 2nd round so I didnt have to!

i presume an after day is
one day you test your BS before breakfast lunch and dinner
next day you test afterwards
well thats what i do

fiodyl what you described at birth is what i so want to avoid
i have got a doula this time round so if they even try to bottle feed him they wont get far
having all those drips and things all over makes me shudder
i am asking for my elective on monday i am expecting a battle and will be suprised if i dont get one and he gives in easily

It sure is disneystar and hope you're feeling much perkier today dear girl

Ah, I see. All my days are afters then.

I'm off to do my after tea bs. I was very good and had salad, sugar free jelly and a very large minute portion of ben and jerrys.

Shoot me now

Well my dietician did say that if I wanted ice cream then to have it with a meal, rather than on it's own, so it might not be too bad. She did say plain vanilla though (which I'm quite happy with).

You have tea early jw. Is that it for the night, or will you eat again?

fiodyl the bastards! we've been told by (nice) consultant (we have about 3 - its all a bit complex...) to BF straight away as she thinks its best for baby and shes written it in notes so hopefully that'll not happen. Also know that tests are done in same room at our hospital...

JW - cant believe that they'd put you on insulin for 7.1! It seems crazy that I have to keep mine below 7.5

right - on my little high horse - here are the National institute of clincal excellences (NICE) guidelines to the NHS on diabeties in pregnancy where it says in the CG63 Diabetes in pregnancy: quick reference guide that If it is safely achievable, women with diabetes should aim to keep fasting blood glucose between 3.5 and 5.9 mmol/litre and 1-hour postprandial blood glucose below 7.8 mmol/litre during pregnancy

yes I am a total loser and I do like to research everything (and I had lots of stuff from these guidelines ready to throw at nasty consultant when he was trying to c-section me too early for no reason...) BUT i would take that in to hospital and ask why you have to jump through these impossible hoops and are being made to feel like a 'bad mum' when these are the guidelines??!!!!

i will go sit in the corner and calm down now... sorry!