Reply With QuoteIt's a routine test. There are no symptoms for GD so the only way to detect it is by having the test. Don't stress if you fail the first one. I did & then had the longer test & all was fine.
Registered User
do you have to have the GD check?
Hi All,
I have my 28 week check up on Wednesday at the birthing centre and they are going to arrange for me to have the glucose drink to check for GD.
The thing is I have no symptoms at all, no extreme thirst or hunger, no huge frequency of weeing etc and although I am pretty tired I wouldn't call myself extremely lethargic.
Is it just normal routine to have the test, do I have to have it?
Registered User
It's a routine test. There are no symptoms for GD so the only way to detect it is by having the test. Don't stress if you fail the first one. I did & then had the longer test & all was fine.
Registered User
No, you don't have to do the test at all if you don't want to. THe results of the test can be inconsequential and no cause for alarm. Many women don't have the test and it is completely up to you if you choose to do so or not. So while it may be seen as *routine* they cannot force you to have it.
Registered User
No you dont have to have it if you don't want to. I'm not having it done this pregnancy.
BellyBelly Member
I wasn't going to have it done, as I was fine with my 5 previous pregnancies...
But they sent me anyway, and I didn't fight it.
It was high the first time, so had to go for the 2 hr one.... which was 3 blood tests!! (one before, during and after the 2 hrs)
I wish I hadn't of, I was fine..... But both my arms are sore and very bruised...
Registered User
Thanks everyone....
it's not that I have anything against the test I am just trying to avoid absolutely anything that is unnecessary
not only that it's a time factor ..... I don't have a spare 3 hours during the week ... work isn't that plesant
Registered User
That's OK. I don't think they will put on a song and a dance that you didn't do it.
Registered User
Yeah im not against it either but i do find it unnecessary for me to have it since i have gone through 2 pregnancies without having GD and have no family history of it. My care providers respect my choice too which they all should.
Registered User
I had it done all three times now...i had to do 2 tests this pregnancy as my first reading came back high. ive never had GD...and the 2nd test proved i dont have it this time round either.
Think i was sent purely cos i am very overweight and they want to be careful...who knows. I hate BT's...so this wasnt fun!
Registered User
According to one of the midwives at my birth centre I am "obese" and therefore at risk.
I am 5'3 and was 74kg before falling pg and am now 84kg
I know I am a little heavier than my idea weight - mind you i think that is some scary figure like 56kg and I've been that weight and it's not a good look!!!!
I have a real issue with the BMI - my DF is an x amatuer body builder and according to the BMI index he is overweight .... even though he has about 10% body fat due to his weight / height ratio ..... GRRRR!!!!
Registered User
I hate the BMI. They arent going to tell a football player who has a BMI of over 30 that he is obese are they? But muscle is heavier than fat! it doesnt make sense.
Registered User
Antheia you should have seen the look on the midwive's face when i pointed that out to her!!! PMSL
I am all for being a healthy weight in relation to our height as i think it is really important for well being but I don't think that the generic figures are right.
I've been 56 kilos and I look ill yet according to BMI thats my healthy weight
Registered User
Yeah my BMI says my ideal weight is 50kg. The lowest i have ever been is 65kg and i looked healthy and normal. No way would i have been able to get any lower unless i stopped eating!
If you are using a birth centre it is usually a requirement because it rules out any high risk of GDM. Thats how they get their funding. They cannot force you to, its just encouraged because of the possible complications post birth for bub. But find out the info for it and make your own decision. Cheers,
Leanne
Registered User
I felt pushed into having this test in my first pregnancy - I have NO family history of Type 2 diabetes, I am very lean at 58kgs and 174cms tall, and very athletic - keeping up running through all of my first pregnancy.
So.......this pregnancy I said NO I am not taking the test. Again, I am feeling just wonderful, no symptons, keeping up my running and swimming - now at 31 weeks and I eat well.
So good on ya for questioning it - if you are imformed about the risks and know what to look out for and understand that the test itself is NOT very reliable anyway, then good for you.
Registered User
I didn't have it. Both my MW and I agreed that there was no reason to suspect I had it. And I was in a birth centre, so no, it's not neccesarily a requirement in a BC.
I am also Obese according to BMI, but according to my MW, I looked healthy and fit and was eating very well, so she completely ignored the BMI.
It's good to see there are still people out there that actually use their brains to think idependently and intelligently rather than jsut following protocol blindly.
Good on you for wanting to avoid unneccesary tests. I did, too and will with this pregnancy. I do understand that tests can be valuable, but I do think we are being poked and prodded to no end just because it's "routine". And just because we can.
So many women are being worried for no reason because tests come back inconclusive or as false positives. Health professionals commonly vastly underestimate the effect this can have on a woman's psyche and her attitude towards her body, her ability to birth and mother a baby and her attitude towards er unborn baby. Fear is such a destructive emotion. Yet, most people think that just by doing another test which "prooves" that everything is alright, the worries of the first test are being completely undone. Unfortunately, human emotions don't work that way...
Sorry for the rant...
Saša
Registered User
They said I had it the first time, I was 175cm tall and 70 kilos, so still right in the middle of healthy weight range when not pregnant. Anyway, I had to ***** my finger 4 times a day and monitor what I ate. I dont' believe I had it at all, as not once when I did the ***** test, was I even slightly above AVERAGE let alone high.
Second time they said the first test was high, so I went for second test and they poked and prodded me (think I had three needles in one hand, 2 in other, and both arms as they couldn't get a good vein.......) and I was fine.
I have been debating whether to have it this time. Both my babies were full term and weighed 3.3 kilos so absolutely no risk of being big (which is one of main concerns of GD). So not sure if I will. Good to hear people's opinions, I think I might avoid it this time. xoxo
Registered User
I'm not sure how much family history or, 'how you feel' plays into the GD equation........ a lean, fit girlfriend of mine, with a good diet and no prior history family history of any type of diabetes, ended up getting GD with her second pregnancy. She modified her diet and gave birth to a beautiful 10lb baby boy.
But as people have pointed out, you don't have to have the test at all.When i had it first time i had the drink, went away, then went back an hour later foor the blood sample. I know there is a GTT and a GCT which take different amounts of time. But i am pretty sure the basic one only takes an hour. Although different pathology places prob have different protocols. If you wanted to have it done and time was an issue, you could ring around a few pathology places and find someone that does the hour test.
Totally up to you.
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