Gestational Diabetes - Mount Pleasant, MI

Thank goodness for Slim-A-Bear ice cream bars and sandwiches made by Klondike. Look for them at the grocery store. I am 34 weeks along and have been on a diet for over a month now due to gestational diabetes. Sara Lee also makes cheesecake bits in the frozen food section. I can eat 7-8 of them at night as to equal 1 carb (15grams). They are lifesavers!!

Hi A.,
I had it when I was pregnant with my second daughter. she is 2 months old now. I didn't get it either why do I have it. Cause I never been a junk food, sweet tooth,or stress kind of person. It was very hard to limit you food and not eating things you like to eat. I have a c-section schedule with her and she still came 3 days early. She came out healthy and no problems with the c-section. Just keep it up on you diet and it will go away after you deliver. Good luck and no need to stress too much.

Hi A.! Congratulations on expecting new life! There is nothing like it!

May I ask you a few questions? Are you looking for a long term plan or do you want to go with the easiest option for now? What are your blood sugar numbers? Is the Dr talking metformin or glucophage?

Would you like to talk about some options other than a prescription?
Blessings!
M.

I had Gestational Diabetes with both of my pregnancies. I am not sure why it happens during pregnancy...but it just does. Some woman get this and other woman do not. It is nothing to fret over. I had c-sections with both of my kids...that was by choice only. Both of my kids were full termed. Idid not have any difficulties at all. I think the only thing that was difficult was not being able to eat everything that I wanted. I am a CARB fanatic! I had to go see a nutritionist and go over a meal plan that suited me. I had to definitely watch my carbs that I was intaking. The carbs is what turns into sugar. That is what they want you to watch out for. I also had to prick my fingers three - four times a day to test my sugar levels. I asked the doctor what would happen if I did not manage my sugar/carb intake. The doctor informed me that my baby would come out HUGE. I am not sure if there would be any serious effects for the baby. You may want to talk to your doctor about that.
I hope this helps you out.

i had it with my daughter. it is caused from your body not using the sugars properly. i was sent to a nutrionalist, to go over diet stuff and how to count carbs and check my blood. i was also seen by a diebetic specialist. by my last month diet wasnt doin it, i was on insulin shots. i had my girl 3 weeks early at 8 lbs. my diebetes whent away immeditaly. its a pain , ill be honest. good luck to you. any more advice or questions feel free to email me.

I had it with my last one. Is your doctor sending you to a Dietician? It is caused by your body not being able to use the sugars properly. I was able to control mine with the strict diet that I was put on. I had to take my blood sugars twice a day. I carried to term no problem, delivered naturally, and had a 7lb 10oz healthy boy, however I stuck to the diet religiously because I didn't want to give birth to a huge baby. You must keep your sugars under control or you could end up with a huge baby that may need a c-section or health problems. I wish you luck. If you need support let me know. Another thing you can do to help is excersie. I would do a 20-30 min walk after dinner. It helps keep you weight down and use sugars.

hi A.

i had gestational diabetes and i almost fainted when i seen the dietian to get my diet...lol but i survived. I actually delivered vaginally 4 days past my due date and my daughter was 6 pounds. I actually lost weight due to the diet instead of gaining weight during the preganancy which the doctor said was fine as long as the baby was developing and gaining weight. I am not sure regarding if it can be caused by stress or not in my case my dad has diabetes and i was told that if did not change my diet after the pregnancy as well that i am at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes sometime in the near future due to family . i hope this helps.. dont worry i will eat some sweet cakes on your behalf because i am sure you wont be able to have any..lol smile

K.

Hi A.,
I had it when I was pregnant with my daughter. Basically the last month or two of my pregnancy I had to go to the doctor weekly for a non stress test. I watched what I ate and fortunately I did not have to take medication or do anything different, just watch the sugar and carbs, that was it for me. My daughter was born 3 days past my due date, she was 8.7 lbs and I did not have a c section. As soon as I delivered it went away. I doubt it's caused by stress. Basically if diabetes runs in your family or if you are overweight your risk is higher. Also if you had gestational diabetes your risk of getting type 2 diabetes is increased as well so if you are overweight you should try to lose weight and keep it off forever to decrease your risk for the future. It's all about the pancreas and insulin, not stress.

I had gest. diabetes with my son. I had to stick to a low-carb, low-sugar diet to keep my sugar readings low but other than that, there were no issues. I had a completely normal pregnancy and delivery and my son is as healthy as can be at almost 4 years old.

I don't believe this is caused by stress, but rather just the way your body processes things. My daughter was born 3 months ago and I didn't have the gest. diabetes with this pregnancy.

Hi A.,
I've had gestational diabetes with two out of three of my pregnancies. You either get it or you don't, so it's nothing that you did or didn't do. You will have to check your blood sugar several times a day and follow a diet. (no big deal) If that doesn't work on it's own, then you will have to take insulin to control your sugar levels. (still not that big a deal)

The good news: This all goes away as soon as you give birth. They will check your baby's blood sugar levels on a regular basis to make sure they stabilize. Usually within the first 24hrs after birth.

You will probably get regular ultrasounds to watch the growth of your baby. Sometimes the diabetes causes large birth weights, so the doctors want to watch for this. I did not have this problem, as a matter of fact my largest baby (7lb, 8oz) was the pregnancy I did not have diabetes! Also, I have never had to have a c-section.

So just keep an eye on you sugar levels and follow the diet, and everything should be just fine.

Good Luck!

Hi A.

If you end up finding you have it, send me a note or post again. Apple Cider Vinegar did wonders for my numbers when they suspected I had it (early at 11 weeks! but was too nauseous/sick to confirm or not with 3 hour test). I know it sounds hoaky, but I tested my blood 4X a day (until I could stomach the 3 hour test) and took apple cider vinegar daily...and once I could finally stomach the 3 hour at 28 weeks, the doctor asked if I even drank the stuff because my sugar level came back almost unmoved!

Hope you don't have to worry about it, but if you do it is manageable and does go away. And it is nothing you did, but stress definitely will not help.

Contact me if you want the info on the vinegar I used (again, I know it sounds strange) Good luck.

Hi A.,

Don't worry your little heart. Some women get it during pregnancy. When you see your dietician, please do your best to stick to whatever diet they give you. I had it during pregnancy, and did not have to have a C-section. I did have a scheduled Induce labor for both of my sons. Just continue to pray, and keep you focus on delivering a healthy and happy baby. Also, after delivery try to continue good eating habits and daily exercise so that diabetes does not come back to hunt you later in life. You have to be there for your family. Our job as moms are a very important part of the family.
Have a Blessed Day!!

Hi A.,
I teach HypnoBirthing Childbirth Education and have worked with Moms with GD. It does not mean instant C-section or even early delivery. Don't buy into that. What it does mean is that your diet needs to be reviewed and changes will most likely need to be made. Your practitioner will be monitoring the size of the baby in hopes that baby does not grow too big. Another thing not to totally buy into! Ultrasounds are difficult to actually estimate the real size of the baby. They can be 2 lbs off either way. Getting closer to your due date, there are natural methods to try to help labor get going. Your practitioner will more than likely give you a date that he/she is 'willing' to wait for baby until inducement is needed. Please do not get worried about this date. Again, there are natural methods to try to get things going. Give me an email if you are interested in more or even HypnoBirthing classes. www.YourPeacefulBirthing.com

Hi A.,
I had GD with my first child. I delivered early but because I had a fibroid that was large. But my daughter was 6lb, 10oz. and she was 6 weeks early.
It was a pain monitoring my diet especially with the cravings. I was on medicine but did not have to take insulin shots. They sent me to a dietitian and I had to test my blood sugar levels a few times a day.
If the baby was too big at the time of my due date, they did talk about doing a c-section. Because it was my first and they didn’t know if I could handle a large baby.
Now I'm pregnant again and they are starting everything early in hopes that it won't get bad.
Good luck.

I had it with my second pregnancy, but not my first. I didn't understand why I even had it. What it came down to was family history. I was not overweight and was not a junk food or big sugar eater. It basically came down to the fact that my father is a type 2 diabetic and that was a contributor to it. I met with a dietician one time, she gave me a meal plan with how many carbs I could have at each meal and how to measure my food out. It was kind of a pain at first, but then I found a great website with tons of recipes for diabetics. Check it out www.dlife.com It had really yummy things to make (which I still make today) and also you can learn more about gestational diabetes.

I don't think you get this because of stress, but I do know that stress can raise your sugar while you have it. And it definitely doesn't mean you have to have a c-section. I think the reason why women end up with a c-section is because the baby stores the excress glucose it is receiving from the mother and it just turns to fat. Which then creates a larger child and possibly too large to have naturally. I did have a c-section but that was only due to the fact that my children had large heads (hahaha) and my first child was a c-section.

Also I did not take insulin shots because I stuck with and I mean STUCK WITH my meal plan. It helped with not gaining a ton of extra weight for not only myself but also for a healthy baby boy weighing 7lbs 3oz. I have been tested since and the diabetes is completely gone. But they had mentioned to me that keeping up with a good diet will help prevent it from recurring or getting type 2 later in life....having gestational diabetes raises your chances later, so better safe than sorry.

I really wish you well with your pregnancy and just remember, stick with a good diet and everything will turn out fine. Plus your doctor will monitor you and your baby through out this. AND you are almost at the end, once you have that precious little baby you can celebrate with a nice piece of cake or bowl of ice cream. Good luck!

I was diagnosed with GD with my first baby. I had to eat a protein rich diet and monitor my blood glucose 4x a day (two hours after every meal) and then keep track of what I ate and what my results were so that I could turn the paperwork into my doctor. I recommend Atkins, Southbeach Diet and even Meijers Lean Meals (in frozen section). You will be okay. Just keep monitoring your blood glucose as you are told to do. Maybe less than me, maybe more than me. I don't know if you would need to deliver a week early - it depends on what your OB decides and it is probably based on how well you control your glucose levels and how big your baby is by the time you are to deliver. My child was normal - 7 lbs. 3 oz but I still delivered her a week early by c-section. My son was just born this past April and I didn't have GD with him so it's different with each pregnancy. Take care.

Hi A. ~
I'm an OB nurse ....you have some great posts on here already. GDM (gestational diabetes mellitis) is not caused by stress, just some women get it, some don't. You may be more prone to regular diabetes when you get older. Sometimes diet is enough to control it, sometimes a pill like glyburide, and sometimes insulin is needed. Hopefully your doctor is sending you to a nutritionist or dietician. That's the best place to start. They will have you watch your carb intake, because carbs turn to sugar. Your doctor will probably monitor your blood glucose levels. What you can expect is possibly a larger baby ~ depending on how well controlled your GDM is. You've had 2 kids already, so it doesn't mean you'll need a c-section, or that you'll delivery early. Your blood sugar will pass through the placenta to the baby, but any insulin you make (or take) will not, so the baby makes its own insulin to deal with the extra sugar. During pregnancy, the baby can usually deal with it OK. After delivery, most hospitals monitor the baby for the first 24 hours, because he/she has all that extra insulin now and the sugar source has been removed. So sometimes their blood sugar level can crash. Some babies do just fine with feedings, while some might need an IV of sugar solution that will be weaned off slowly. Once again, it depends on how well controlled your levels are. And each baby is different.
Try not to worry too much, but listen to the dietician.
Good Luck!
D.

Hi A.,
I had gestational diabetis. I finally had a c-section because my son turned his head while coming down and I was not able to contract anymore.

They dont really know the cause of GD. I controlled it with a good diet. I went for a class at Beaumont and they guided me real well. Basically stay off lot of carbs.

Let me know if you have any further ques

I had it with my first child and had to see a dietician and be on a special diet, including checking blood sugar 4 times a day. She arrived 4 days before her due date and I did not have to have a c-section. I did gain 70 lbs during that pregnancy which wasn't much fun for me. So that is my story, I think it must be different for everyone though. My neighbor just had a baby and she had Gest. Diabetes and she only gained 6-7 lbs. The diet she was on and her body kept her from gaining any wait. Who knows maybe she just followed the diet better than I did.
So good luck with everything. I didn't have any other complications with the delivery either due to Gest Diabetes.

H.

Yeah, I had it.

Even though I followed the diet, my blood sugars were still borderline/high, so they put me on a pill that lowered it - it was a once a day thing.

The major problem with it though was that it was one of the medicines that make you sensitive to sunlight, so you go outside and get exhausted because your pregnant and have this medicine that makes you overly sensitive to sunlight.

The hardest part for me was counting the carbs and making sure you eat properly- especially when the cravings you are having are for things that aren't low in carbs!

I had a c-section, but that was because he couldn't get into the right position. Every time I went to the doctor's, he was in a different position on the ultrasound.

Oh - because my gestational diabetes had to be controlled with medicine, my doc had me do non-stress tests at the hospital to make sure that everything was going well because I was "a little more high risk" because of the meds. Which is how I knew he was in different positions -

I forget what they were worried about, but it was mainly because they wanted to make sure that he didn't grow too much too fast because with gestational diabetes you run the risk of having big babies/having other complications.

(But then they get concerned if you aren't gaining too much weight too...which happened to me because of the low carb diet)

So, I had to go to the my OB's office and the hospital weekly for check-ups for that last month, but I think that's more of an exception rather than the rule.

My son was exactly 7 lbs. The docs and I were both happy that he wasn't a "big baby."

That was my experience -

I hope it helps.

I had gestational diabetes with both pregancies. Fortunately during both I was able to control this with diet. I had absolutely no complications with either child. They were both born within a week of there due date and other than being bigger (1st one 8lbs14oz second one 9lbs13oz)they were fine. After the pregnancies were done my sugar went back to normal and I have not had any problems since.

HI A.,

To my knowledge gestation diabetes is not caused by stress. With that said, stress is not good for anyone. Sounds like you have a full schedule with two children, husband and working full time. I had gestation diabetes with my first baby. Watch your sugar intake, eat a good amount of protein (this stabilizes blood sugars). Also a good non-GMO soy protein is a good way to start the day.

There are things to help your body deal and cope with stress, have a healthy pregnancy and a happy you!

And one last comment, have your children help you with things around the house. You don't have to do it all yourself. This will help with stress too!

Take care,

M.