I've had an issue with glucose in my urine this entire pregnancy it seems. This past week however, the midwives said enough is enough and wanted me to take a blood test to see whether or not I am diabetic. This really upset me since I did just fine on my Gestational Diabetes Screening, and also because the baby is a normal size.
I argued with the midwife a little over it, and then agreed to have an additional test done. They told me it was just a blood draw, and I consented, already knowing that everything would come back fine. Well, I get a call the next day, and am told that my results were "normal high" and due to that they want me to test my blood sugar daily. This sent me into tears. I'd have to prick myself 4x a day, everyday, for two weeks. Not what I wanted to hear. I asked what "normal high" meant, and was told it meant that I was of increased risk of possibly developing GD...Reeeeeally? I "might" "possibly" get GD "maybe"? This is why you're forcing me to do this? Needless to say, I was pretty upset.
SB reminded me that in the world of OB's there is a lot of CYA (cover your ...) that has to take place, and he also said that because I'm seeing midwives, they may have to be EXTRA careful. Well, that's great and all, but they're not the ones sticking their fingers 4x a day, and worrying about their bodies betraying them and their unborn babies. SHEESH.
So I complied. I kicked and screamed and cried, but I complied. The midwife who showed me how to use the monitor was confused as to why I was so upset. I found that upsetting...lol. She pricked my finger, showed me how to use the monitor, and gave me my first reading, a perfectly normal reading. When she asked what I had to eat that day? Carrot Cake. I responded that I had Carrot cake. Carrot cake that left me with a perfectly normal blood sugar level after the prescribed amount of time. I left the office with my new focus for the next 7 days, forcing myself to prick my finger tips, watching my intake of sweets (meaning, not having any), and keeping a log of what my levels were at each test. It was hard at first, I mean who wants to inflict pain on themselves? It would take me 15 loooong, palm sweating minutes to press the button that would cause the needle to prick me. About a day and a half into it, I began to only take 10 minutes, and by the time I took it for the last time it was able to press that darn button in about a minute. While, it got easier, it never got easy.
And so what were the results? I have normal, healthy, beautiful blood sugar levels. Normal numbers are defined as below 95 for fasting, and below 120 for two hours after a meal. I freaked me freak the first morning I took it because I got 135, higher than BOTH numbers. It made me second guess myself. I lost confidence and thought "Well, maybe there is something wrong with me". I felt down trodden and like a bad mom. It was pretty sad I tell ya!
After that though, every single other test showed a number WELL below acceptable levels; confidence made a full recovery, and I no longer felt like I was mangaging to abuse my child en utero. We have our follow up appointment today (09/16) where I plan on throwing this stupid log in their face and telling them that the added stress from this whole process is FAR worse than any minor amount of GD they may think I could possibly maybe have.
1 year ago
