Gestational Diabetes? Share your experiences please

[Gabes_mommy]

Hi everyone,
My OB tested me at 9 weeks for GD since my baby beefcake DS weighed 9 lbs and 13 ounces. Apparently having a baby over 9 pounds is a high risk factor for GD even though I was never diagnosed with it during my pregnancy with him.

Anyway my results were borderline so they said I could either do the 3 hour test (no thanks!) or just start the GD diet and start taking my blood sugar so that's what I opted to do.

I have been doing the diet and blood sugar thing for a few weeks and it seems to be going well. My blood sugar has been good, within the target range. The most amazing thing is that I am dropping weight like crazy. I am down about 15 pounds already - this is a good thing since I started this PG about 40 pounds overweight. Will this continue or is it because I just started I wonder?

Was anyone else diagnosed with GD? Please share your experiences. What were your favorite meals and snacks?

Thanks!

 

[simonsmom]

I was on the diet and gave birth to twins ecah weighing 7 pounds at 38 weeks. my total weight gain was 15 pounds during the pregnancy. I was overweight to start. After birth I had lost 30 pounds from my starting weight. good luck! It's tough but worth it!

 

[Anjelica]

I was diagnosed with my first child with GD - she ended up 9lbs 9oz. With my second child I was borderline on the 1 hour test so they wanted me to come back and do the 3 hour test. I HATED the 3 hour test so I asked the doctor if we could just go ahead and treat me like I have GD or borderline and he agreed that was fine.

With my second child he was smaller - 9lbs 1oz - but I also had better control of the GD (and had lost some weight after the 1st baby so that helped). I did end up taking medication with the first one but with the second child I didn't end up taking as high doses to control the GD.

I know they treat GD very agressively which is good. I believe my two hour after eating numbers had to be less that 120/125 and my morning numbers I believe had to be below 100.

You need to find out which food(s) give you high blood sugar levels. For me it was processed breads. Potatoes and most other complex carbs were fine.

I found the "GD Diet" was very good. I always felt like I was eating because it spread my meals/snacks across the day. I remember Cheese sticks with some type of carb in the afternoon, etc. I also recall I had to stay away from fruits/juices in the morning per the doctor - apparently it makes your blood sugar "spike" higher than when you eat later in the day.

Good Luck!!!

 

[Heidict]

No matter how faithful I was to the diet (and trust me, I was), my numbers were bad so they put me on insulin. Ugh!! I developed such an empathy for insulin dependent diabetics. I was so grateful that I only had to do it for 7 months or so, I can't imagine having to do it everyday of my life. My heart just goes out to them.

The good things about having to do insulin was that I could give into my cravings and didn't have to restrict myself to their diet. I just watched my numbers and compensated on the insulin so that everything was within normal limits.

My daughter was born 6 days past her due date at 5lbs 15oz. So, not all GD babies are big.

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

My first child was 10lbs 1oz at birth but all of my tests had come out normal. When I went for the 1hr test with DS my blood sugar was 500 and the doctor sent me IMMEDIATELY to the diabetes clinic. Everyone agrees that I probably had something going on with my first.

Thankfully, I was able to control everything with diet and no insulin. I did lose weight at first. Even though I was overweight before I got pregnant, the doctor was very adament that I should NOT lose any weight while pregnant. After the initial weight loss, I just maintained and I think I only gained 10bls for the pregnancy. DS only weighed 8lbs 4oz at birth....he seemed tiny compared to dd.

This was almost 8 yrs ago, so I don't really remember what I ate. I remember DYING for pasta, which was a big part of my diet before that time. I can remember always carrying food with me. I met with someone from the diabetes clinic once a week and she was really helpful. She gave me lots of sample menues, which helped alot. Also, I was sopposed to call her with my numbers every few days and as long as I could tell her that a high number was because I knew I had been bad that day, she was okay with it. It was a high number when I had eaten well that worried her.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

I was 40 and 42 when I had my boys. I was diagnosed with DS#1, and DS#2 they just said I had it even though I passed the tests.

I followed the diet faithfully the first time, and my numbers were really good. The second time was alittle harder, but I kept my numbers in line. I was at my optimum weight when I got pregnant-both times, and I only gained 25-30 pounds for each baby. My first DS was only 6lbs 2 oz, and DS#2 was 7 lbs. 2 oz. They starved my babies! JK, of coure, everyone was fine. I just missed out on that "eat all you want" luxury that most moms have. I think they went way over the precautionary line because I was older. The biggest PITB was to have to go in every week to have blood drawn.

 

[Gabes_mommy]

Thanks for all the info so far everyone. It's great to hear that managing GD keeps pregnancy weight gain way down. I gained a lot with DS and never could lose it no matter what I tried. For example in Nov & Dec I was working out twice a day and following Weight Watchers and I only lost like 5 pounds in 6 weeks - so ridiculous! So now being able to lose weight easily is just so amazing. My OB also said losing for me would be good so I have her blessing.

I have to test my own blood 5 times a day and fax my results to them twice a week. I met with the diabetic teacher and that definitely helped a lot. I am a little nervous about being at WDW next week but I am going to try to get a salad with protein for most meals and then I am hoping all the extra walking will allow me to have a Dole Whip.

 

[MnMomtoboys]

I had GD for my 2nd and 3rd boy. By the time I had my 4th I was a diabetic. Ironicly the numbers were easier to control for the last child. The first time I had it we did the diet until the numbers were too hard to control. The 2nd time I went straight for the shots. For me my numbers were highest in the morning and would go down during the day. For breakfast I avoided carbs like the plague.

Keep in mind that your need for insulin is at the highest from 27 to 32 to 34 weeks. I could be off by a week or 2 but I do know that your insulin needs could be triple what you need normally. Also your body can decrease the insulin levels quicker being pregnant. I would be walking around feeling fine one minute and then bottoming out the next.

When I was in the hospital with Bryan I took my blood sugar one night and it was 37. AFter I pushed the button for the nurse I decided to run across the hall to get the juice myself. I yelled at someone in the hall to tell my nurse that I was 37. That nurse came in later and told me she stood there for a second and was wondering why I was telling me my age. We had a good laugh at that one. BTW they don't like it when you get out of bed when your BS is 37.

I was big on having salads, cheese and celery with peanut butter(that was my usual breakfast) Also it made it easier for me to cook up a big batch of chicken and freeze it in small servings. Or make it even easier and buy the chicken precooked.

I don't remember how much I gained for the first 3. I wasn't gaining much for my last until I started retaining water. Then I gained about 40 pounds. But after each baby I weighed less than I started.

 

[simba20]

Due to family histoyr (my father and brother passing due to diabetes complicatons), I was tested early for GD. I went in for a regular appt, and the nurse tested my blood sugar. I told her that I had just finihsed a sweet tea on my drive to the office, but it was "high" and concerned them, so I was sent off later that week to do the three hour test.

The 3 hour test came back borderline, but, again, due to family history, my doctor decided to treat me as a Gestational Diabetic. I followed the meal plan and tested my blood suagar for the next 30 weeks (yup I was tested at 10 weeks).

I also did not gain weight until the end. Most appointments I was losing weight. I only gained 15 pounds and one week after having my daughter I weighed 20 lbs less than atthe start of my pregancy (so I really lost only 5lbs). My doctor said my weight loss was due to insulin resistance, but I think it was due to eating "right." Oh yes, I allowed myself to have a few treats here and there, but being pregant was the one time I have truly eaten healthy...so wish I could get back to that. I learned to eat smaller meals, and learned the importance of protein in keeping my blood sugar low.