Saturday, February 27, 2010

GD: A better day

Thank you so much for holding my hand during my mini-meltdown yesterday. I guess yesterday there was just one too many straws on this camel's back but I'm better now. I had my 30 week check up (Wow! 30 weeks!) and met with the final OB in the practice. He was super nice. I wish it was a given that doctors had good bedside manner and I didn't have to be this thrilled to get what should be the care I'm entitled to but it is what it is. He told me my one-hour was too high to warrant a re-test and he was worried I could pass the three-hour and be a false-negative. Because of my insulin-resistance issues I'm already at high risk and the one hour confirmed something is wonky. He said if my numbers continue to be this low then they'll reduce the times I prick myself and relax some of my eating restrictions.

Today was a much better day GD-wise. I reduced my portions considerably. I had a veggie sandwich for lunch but I ate half of it for lunch with vitamin water and then had the other half as my snack two hours later with a grapefruit. This made it much more manageable and I've made a promise to myself to trust my instincts. If I am too full I'm not going to push it. I've been trying to do research on the eating sugar issue but am turning up nothing, maybe somebody reading has an answer? The dietitian said I could absolutely not have sugar ever and to take Splenda instead. But- the GD booklet I have just lists one tablespoon of sugar as 1 carb and doesn't say don't touch sugar. I had 1/4 teaspoon of sugar in my tea with breakfast and my reading was 83. The vitamin water I drank had 2 servings of carbs which was sugar but my reading after lunch was 80. Sugar is not skyrocketing my numbers so why can't I just have it and incorporate it in my carb counting? Is there something I missed? I called the dietitian to ask but she never returned my calls.

Thank you for advice on pricking myself too. Today was much better. I made sure to wash my hands in warm water, I then massaged around the area I would prick to get blood circulating and after pricking I squeezed a little. This helped get enough blood out and I didn't have to spend twenty minutes stabbing all my fingers.

Jack and I were eating dinner and I told him- I can't believe it: We have nine more weekends without him at most! Then he will change our lives forever! But Jack pointed out, our lives have already changed. Our conversations revolve around him. Anytime he squirms or moves my hands move over my belly. I have the equivalent of a medical clinic's worth of medicine supplies for him. I have altered what I eat for him. I altered how I sleep for him. In some ways, in a real way, he's already here and my life has already changed because of him. Remembering who this is for helps make it all worthwhile. (Though- I still reserve the right for an occasional mini-meltdown!)

10 comments:

  1. You can have sugar. You just have to work it into your carb allowance. I know they said 1 teaspoon = 1 carb but in reality 1 teaspoon only has 4 grams of carbo...not even half of one. The most important thing is to test and see how your sugar reacts to it.

    I am sitting here drinking a cup of coffee for the first time in over a month with a teaspoon of REAL sugar and I plan on testing to see what it does to me. *shrugs*

    Also, the RN told me to hold your arm down below your heart straight up and down, massage, and squeeze. Also, what number are you pricking on? I usually do 6. I am on aspirin so I sometimes have an easy time with it. The mornings are the hardest times for me.

    This GD stuff was very difficult on me the first month...I am now starting to adjust my wicked ways ;) lol.

    ReplyDelete
  2. So glad it is more manageable!

    And I love Jack's perspective on how your son has already entered your lives!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Glad to hear you're able to relax things a little bit. I'd probably experiment and as long as my sugars were reading fine, I'd be more relaxed about the sugar thing. Personally I'd rather count sugar as a carb and avoid the artificial sweeteners.
    This little one has changed your life from day one already - it will just be different after he's born.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your last paragraph has me sitting here IN TEARS! Good tears, but still! Whew!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'm sorry the diet has been such a stressor for you! I think you hit the nail on the head -- listen to your body. You have your stomach and your meter for feedback, and unless you want advice, I'd leave the doc out of the diet. He sounds a bit rigid to me. If I'm not hungry enough, I don't eat my entire meal. I am measuring 40 weeks already for goodness sakes, my stomach is the size of a walnut. But if I'm hungry, I eat. My numbers have been low, so sometimes I have a tiny piece of chocolate after a meal. My doc said this is completely fine, experiment within the general guidlines and keep an eye on the numbers.

    Good luck!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. As long as your numbers are in the right range, I don't see why you couldn't have the sugar. You see a spike, you'll know not to risk it again!

    And I'm glad things are better in that department. One less finger prick a day sounds like a great thing to me. Bad on the dietician for not getting back to you!

    ReplyDelete
  7. My hubby is a diabetic and you do NOT have to avoid sugar. Most dieticians are NOT specialist in diabetes so they really don't know what the hell they are talking about with regulating blood sugar. COUNT YOUR CARBS...that is the important part. Your body does need some carbs to function and does do better with complex carbs not pure sugar. Also, splenda is a bit iffy for diabetics. It does cause blood sugar issues with some diabetics so be careful. The biggest things to avoid are sweetened drinks. The sugar in that goes straight into your system and ups blood sugar quickly. Good luck!

    ~ICLW

    ReplyDelete
  8. Glad to hear that you're having a better day & GD seems a bit more manageable for you, as you said definitely worth it in the end! Congratulations for reaching the 30 week mark & hope the last few weeks of your pregnancy pass by smoothly!

    ~ICLW

    ReplyDelete
  9. I was scared too! I have read that "bloody show" means labor could come within three days...or a week or two! There is no certainty when it comes to when labor is going to start - so frustrating!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. So glad to read all is better. Your perspective on how he is already there is amazing! And yes an occassional meltdown is so in order, for all of us k?

    ReplyDelete