g'day Seachange - sorry to hear you've got GD but at least you'll be able to manage it and look after yourself & bubba. I don't currently have GD (that I know of) but had it last PG. I don't know how many girls are in here atm, but a few of us who've had it previously tend to stick our noses in here
How are you feeling about it all? Any partic questions you have?
Not really that shocked as I have PCOS and the GTT results on their own the last time around was fairly high. DH also has diabetes so I know the routine.
However I'm also feeling quite down about myself atm - having to go to a new GP today and explaining all my preconditions made me feel fairly pathetic (my usual one is on holidays). And work is going to be oh so happy that I need to have another day off to see an Endo and dietician.
I'm seeing the Obstetrician tomorrow so I may have some questions then. Thanks for asking though!
So now I have a few questions - those that have had GD, when did you finish work? Did you have a VB or caesarian? Were you induced? Did it have an effect on the BSL of your baby when he/she was born?
hi seachange. sorry to hear you have GD - although i found it to be more of a PITA than anything else!
i was diagnosed with GD around 22 weeks from memory. i was diet controlled until around 30 weeks then on insulin twice a day. my answers to your questions are....(sorry in advance for being a bit verbose!)
when did you finish work? it was around 32.5 weeks. i was planning to leave at 34 & took my annual leave owing before that. the main impact it had on my work was the number of appts i had to go to. i went public & had fortnightly appts from when i was diagnosed with the obs but sometimes the endo & dr appt wouldn't coincide so i'd go two weeks in a row. i hope that makes sense! my work was quite flexible & i just worked from home on the days i had hospital appts.
Did you have a VB or caesarian? i had a VB - it did end up being an assisted birth (explained more below).
Were you induced? i was. i really, really didn't want to be but in the end i kind of gave in. i also had high BP that was diagnosed at 6 wks PG so i was kind of on their 'hit list'i guess! i had weekly monitoring from about 33 or 34 weeks - CTG & scans to check for movement & also the size of the baby & the amount of fluid around him. i managed to negotiate a 'reprieve' until i was 40 weeks. alot of people are very happy to be induced prior to this & i know there can be medical reasons but i felt that the weekly monitoring (some people also have to go twice a week) really showed that there was no real cause for concern and the BP wasn't causing problems either. i did a lot of reading about being induced & what could happen as a result. i didn't escape completely - i had an epidural & a forceps delivery but whether that matters very much depends on your own personal opinion.
Did it have an effect on the BSL of your baby when he/she was born? DS did have low BSL when he was born & as a result he was given formula as his first feed. i still feel quite conflicted about this & i really wish i'd been more aware of what was going on. they continued to monitor his BSL until he had a certain number of 'good' readings (above 3 i think, or maybe 4).
hope that helps a little - if you have any questions, just let me know!
I to have GD I was diagnosed this time at 23 week i'm now 30 weeks. This is my 4th pregnancy and I have had GD with all of them. I was quiet excited to come across this site as I don't no anyone else that has had the GD and noone really knows how hard it is for me to have to monitor my sugars and watch everything that I have to eat. My OB put me on insulin once a day this week so that is pretty hard as my las 3 pregnancy's were just diet controlled and I didn't need insulin my readings are only just enough to for him to worry.
In answer to seachanges questions I was induced with all my pregnancy's and have been told that they will induce me again. With my 2nd son they let me go a week over and he was 9 pound 11 ounces, my 3rd they induced on my due date and he was 8 pound 2 ounces. My 1st i went into labour with him on my due date but still needed to be induced as I didn't dilate with him he was 8 pound.
It's amazing how things have changed over the 4 pregnancy's as when had my 1st they didn't tell me how serious it could be to my baby I had my 1st 11 years ago. But by the time I had my 3rd the procedures and the attention they give you is so different. My 2nd needed to be put in a humidicrib for a few hours and my 3rd needed some oxygon. But otherwise they were born healthy and I have had all 3 VB.
Must be hard having 4 pregnancies and not knowing anyone else with GD. Sorry to hear that its moved on to insulin controlled - but hopefully it will start to balance out now.
Thanks everyone for the feedback about your births - I was just wondering how many people went to caesarian after this diagnosis.
when did you finish work?
I was due to finish at 36 weeks and I pulled it back to 34.5 (which is tricky to do IMO). I found I was too busy with the extra appointments and trying to organise food for work was a nightmare (but I do have additional dietary restrictions). When I stopped, my BSL's did get better, I can only assume due to the reduction in stress. Both DH and I swore that I'd finish at 30 weeks next time - which is what i'm doing, regardless of whether I get GD or not. I think I can eat better, exercise better to keep BSL's under control this time if I'm at home more. I wished someone had told me it would be better to finish earlier the first time around.
Did you have a VB or caesarian? VB. I was not told that there would be any reason for me to go CS over VB based on having GD. If anything, they said that GD babies can be a bit more prone to breathing difficulties, and the VB process is actually better for babies breathing. My DS was breathing fine when he was born.
Were you induced? Yes, at 39+1 (was gonna be just under but hospital was busy). Negotiated with obs, he would have pushed for 38 weeks had I been on more insulin, say 60-70 units (I was on only 18 units). I struggled to reconcile the literature that says GD is all a load of rubbish versus the medical evidence that shows increased risk of placental deterioration/in-utero death in over-term GD babies. Personally, I wasn't prepared to gamble with the health of my baby and accepted the induction. In it's way it was a blessing as we were far more prepared (with our doula) for all that induction brings. I had an epi, and DS was born with suction (failed) and forceps. I dont mean to scare you, but I wanted to know WHY they like to induce. I also had CTG monitoring every few days prior to induction which actually made me feel more comfortable we were keeping an eye on bubba. Incidentally, both my obs and I were in agreement that we couldn't accurately assess the size of the baby (there's a lot of error in the estimation methods), so that was NOT our reason for induction. And my bub was 7lb 7oz.
Did it have an effect on the BSL of your baby when he/she was born?
His BSL's were low but ok. He was admitted to SCN for 24 hours, but roomed with me - just back in SCN primarily for feeds. I wasn't warned about the typical standard SCN admission for GD babies until quite close (check with your hospital/obs about this). It gave me a big shock initially when I heard it would happen but the reality wasn't as bad as I feared. He then was later re-admitted and spent 60 hours under lights for quite bad jaundice. The mental preparation for the first SCN admission actually really helped me to deal with the second one. There's some literature to suggest if you can express colostrum prior to birth (I had NFI how to do this first-timer aroound) you can provide that if they need help, otherwise GD babies will often be provided with a FF to assist with BSL's. It's worth looking into to prepare yourself. Like Sloane, I don't thinK i was fully prepared for the fact he'd be given FF so early - and at the time for all these so-called "medical" reasons. This time round I will be resisting FF as much as possible.
My Dad has Type II and I think the other thing that threw me is that there are differences in the focus, the cut-off levels and how you manage your diet with GD. Sometimes you can do everything perfectly, but the insulin-resistance is influenced by your placenta and may go up regardless. One day a meal will be fine, the next day it will send your BSL sky high - so above all, don't beat yourself up - just do the best you can.
How are you finding it now? How are your BSL's going?
ajsmum - that's a shame re the insulin, but I hope it makes it easier to manage your BSL's. I found in 3rd tri I was getting some nausea in the evenings that actually settled down once I was on insulin. I imagine you must be really good at the diet now, how is it going?
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