Upset, depressed - positive result from diabetes test

[mommamia8]

Sorry ladies but I just need a place to vent.  Well I did my 2 hr gloucose tolerance test after I failed the first time and the doc just told me I failed 2 out of the 3 blood tests.  So now she is going to refer me to the diabetes clinic.  I am so frustrated!  I know this is not the time to go dieting but I have no idea what to eat.  I have only gained 15 lbs and I'm 30 weeks along!  Yesterday, after work I looked in my fridge to start cooking for supper and just started crying, I had no idea what to make.  I ended up making some pork chops (comfort food) and vegetables.  I have a 3 yr old so then I had to make him some mashed potatoes and a hot dog so that he would have something to eat.  I have no idea where to even begin to manage my eating.  I never thought I was a bad eater.  There is so much conflicting evidence on the 'diabetes diet' on the internet.  Some say have carbo's but then I hear carbos are the culprit.  UGHHH!  I just don't know where to even begin!  I'm just so hoping this will not affect my baby and she ends up having diabetes.  Ughh... sorry ladies again but I just really need some support and I know I can always go here and someone will listen.  Thanks!

[Momoftwogirls]

my friend went through this with her last pregnancy - they sent her to a class at the hospital where she learned what she should/shouldn't eat. She was able to control it w/diet. No fun - but better for you & the baby. Just remember they screen for it so you and your baby can be healthy. in the 70's they didn't - and my Mom lost TWO babies full-term before they figured out she was diabetic. Such a shame.  It will be ok - disappointing news, I know - but this is good info to know!

[jd1419]

I was diabetic with my 1st one and the same thing happened to me.  I was so upset at the tings I could not eat (just on the overwhelming days).  It did get easier--Just stay away from high carb foods and just beacause something says sugar free it does not mean it is carb free.  I was kind of strict with my diet I only gaind 17 lbs my whole pg (8 1/2lb DS).  I ate soups and chicken a lot of the time.  Ham & cheese sandwichs (form Hardess are my favorite) would have it with out the bun--or just the bottom of thebun to limit carbs--The dieatician office should be able to give you a good meal plan to live by for the next 10 weesk--Remember it is only a very short time to go and you will have that helathy little one.

[deanne11]

MY FRIEND HAD THIS TOO.  SHE CONTROLED IT BY DIET UNTIL LATE IN HER PREGNANCY AND THEN SHE HAD TO DO SHOTS ONCE A DAY.

HER BEAUTIFUL LITTLE GIRL IS FINE...MAY GOD BLESS AND WATCH OVER YOU.  I PRAY IT'S A SIMPLE CONTROL BY DIET

[petanka]

I hear you girl. I was dealing with the same issue last week, but it turned out that I did past the 3 hour test. Anyway, there should be quiet a few posts from the last two weeks or so and some of them had pretty good suggestions. As the posts above me said, it is just a way of controling your sugar and carb intake. So, you may have to have more eggs for breakfast then cereal or yougurt. You may have to switch to whole wheat bread and pasta if you want to eat that and unfortunatelly, there will be no icecream for you. The good thing is, you only have 10 weeks to go (hoping you are not going to go over) and by the time x-mas rolls in you should be enjoying yourself and your little one. I was lloking into like 13 weeks and I am a carb maniac! Good luck to you!

[ange800]

Hey there I had gestational diabetes with both my pregnancies its not that bad. Your 30 weeks so you havent got 2 long to go I picked it up with both pregnancies at 28 weeks its all in my family so I had a good chance of getting it yes your children and you have a chance getting it later in life but it all depends on what your diet is and careful what you feed your children and breastfeeding reduces the chances of your child getting it. You will see a dietition and will gets loads of info on what foods to eat im so craving a chocolate bar but know I havent got long to go.
Foods that are less than 10g sugar per 100g and less than 5g of fat per 100gr are great for you.
Meat and veges for tea or salads with no dressing are great
grainy breads the grainier the better.
Fruits that fit in the palm of your hand I just ate apples mainly.
I guess you will get a list of foods its like being on a diet I have been doing the diet for 6 weeks and have lost 3kg
Good luck I know its a pain but it can be controlled take care.

[ange800]

Oh yeah and watch the carbs it says in my diet plan to limit it to 1 egg per week while pregnant not sure why for breakfast I eat weetbix with low gi yoghurt and 2 pieces of toast (grainy)
with a little bit of marg and vegemite and that has been great for me and  cheese yum low fat tho good luck again cya:)

[twinsmommy]

Hey, chin up! I know it's not fun, but luckily you're already 30 weeks. Remember that toward the end your placenta gets older. This will help you control your numbers.
If you want to start already, here is what I had to do: 30 carbs in the morning, 45 for lunch and dinner. You need to leave a minimum of 2 hours between meals/snacks and maximum 4. It's easy to get depressed when you realise that milk, bread, pasta, fries are all carbs, but you can work around it a bit.
Like you could have bacon and eggs as much as you want, but just 2 slices of bread in the morning. Drink coffee as much as you like (decaf ;-) but limit the milk or juice... Snacks are 30 carbs each. Your dietician will want you to spend those 30 carbs on something healthy like crackers or milk, I allowed myself potatoechips for one of those snacks (you need something tasty!!!). Play around with fry's, bread, rice and pasta, you might find your body reacts better to some carbs than others!
I made a schedule so I could eat as often as possible (started with drinkyoghurt very early and stayed in bed until I was "allowed" breakfast.
Like: 7AM yoghurt, 9AM breakfast, 11AM snack, 1PM lunch... It's not the total carbs a day that counts, it's the way you spread them throughout the day!
1 tip: if you eat, eat quick, if you make that cookie last for 30min your bloodsugar will be higher than when you eat it right away (I know, it's a waste, but I did it with chips once and had 219 even though it was only 30carb...
And last but not least, don't be afraid if you need insulin. You get to eat 15 more carbs for bf, lunch and dinner (that's almost a can of coke C2!!!) and the shots hurt less than the fingersticks!
Hang in there!

[lib and jrs mom]

It's not so bad.  I have had gd with my last preg as well as this preg.  I couldn't control it with just diet either time, so i had to take an oral medication.  You would be surprised how much you can still eat and enjoy, you just have to do it in moderation and at the right time of the day.  I have a hard boiled egg in the morning for breakfast with a glass of milk when i take my am dose of meds.  The rest of the day, as long as i watch my carb intake and no processed sugar, i can have all the things i like.  also, i love salads, and most of what you put in a salad is considered "free food" meaning it doesn't really effect your blood sugar.  you just have to watch what dressing you use.  
i started my diabetic diet with this preg the moment i found out i was preg. because i knew with a history of it it was bound to return.  so far i have gained 3 lbs, and will be 36 wks preg tomorrow.  the baby is healthy and growing appropriately.  i eat a lot throughout the day, they encourage about 3-4 snacks a day plus the 3 meals a day.  so try not to worry to much and just enjoy the rest of your preg.

[mommamia8]

thanks everyone for the advice, its great to know there are people out there who really understand.  I'm going to be so glad when I finally meet with the dietician.  I know I just have to stick it out for the next 10 weeks (or 9 weeks since I'm leaning towards the c-section like my 1st one) Although this has really opened my eyes that this should be a long term goal and continue eating healthy from now on.  It's better to start early with eating healthy than later I guess!  

Do you think my gloucose levels are what is making me soooo tired recently?  I started getting dead tired around 28 weeks when I was diagnosed but I just assumed it was due to hitting the 3rd trimester?

[twinsmommy]

It could influence how you feel, but not necessarily. You know, one thing that I remember as a good thing from that diet is that by timing your meals this way I suddenly wasn't hungry at night anymore. Before I had always cookies next to my bed, but not anymore!
Also, if you like gadgets. This is the perfect excuse to buy that carb/calorie-counting kitchenscale. (I wish I had it the first time around. I was ready to buy it when I failed the 1hour again but then I passed the 3 hour...) It looks so cool. You can just take a banana or something and punch in a code (they have like 950 differend foods preprogrammed) and it tells you how many carbs are in that piece of fruit! (the instructions you get from your dietitian are usually like "17 small grapes are 15 carbs, yeah, how small???), so... ;-)

[tam2girls]

Hi. I am not even pregnant and have not had GD with my other 2 but my doctor said that with PCOS and a family history of T2diabeties that I should change my lifestyle now to prevent it in the future. He said the best thing is porridge for breakfast(full of fibre and natural) nothing obvious like sweets and choc. But he also so said that it is best to avoid carbs no bread no pasta no rice and no root vegies.If you must have any of these foods he said make it multigrain and to only have one serve a day not with every meal. Also something that surprised me was he said avoid a lot of fruit because even natural sugar is still sugar. So here I am on a very restricted diet and I am not even pregnant.

Good luck I hope some of this helps.

[sherryroberson]

Having g/d isn't to bad. I've had it since i was 11 wks i believe, i'm currently 20 wks. I tried keeping my sugar down with diet/exercise, but it didn't work and i was staying to my diet, b/c i was loosing weight, so my dr decided to put me on insulin. I only take it once in the morning, he said i may have to increase later on in pregancy or not...depends...
But as for the diet, for lunch i usually eat 1 egg, and 2 pieces of toast, or 2 pieces of french toast, and 1 cup of juice (under 10g of sugar). Lunch some meat, 2 pieces of bread, veges, fruit, maybe a diet sprite. Dinner, 3 oz of meat, veges, bread, i aslo include some potatoes sometimes and leave off the bread...
and for a snack i eat some fruit/juice. And i've maintained my weight and my sugar so far..i don't really crave sweets so..
Look at the bright side, you only have 10 wks to go, so not to long! Don't worry to much as long as u do what the dr says it shouldn't be a problem, and the dr will keep a close check on u as well! when i started my insulin i went in the next week, then 2 wks, now 3 weeks! Good luck! :)

[misseltoe]

I was diagnosed with GD at 25 weeks.  For breakfast I am allowed 30 carbs, but no milk or fruit.  Because your blood sugar usually worse in the morning the sugar in milk and fruit can raise it.  

Two hours later I am allowed 15 carbs. An example would be one ounce of reduced fat cheese and five saltines.

Two hours after that I am allowed lunch. Which is 60 carbs.  

Two hours later afternoon snack which is 30 carbs, and it continues with dinner being the same as lunch and the evening snack being the same as the afternoon snack.

I am on insulin before bed, but it is not working for me and I am having to raise the amount I inject.  Which is frustrating me.

The diet is easy, but each doctor has his or her own version.  I am not allowed any juice and can only have so much milk, while others that responded can have both.  

It is overwhelming at first, but you will get the hang of it.  As my diabetes specialist said, "Everyone should be on this diet." because it is truly a diet balanced in everything.  Basically, it is just a diet where you eat fresh foods.  Which can be hard because most of us rely on convenience foods. I was eating diet frozen dinners for lunch every day and I do miss them, but I will do what needs to be done.  After I have this baby my husband has promised me all the food I want now but can't have.

Your baby does have a higher chance of getting diabetes later in life, but with a good diet and exercise routine it shouldn't be an issue.  This is good in that it teaches you what you should be eating and how to get your kid's meals to be more balanced.  Most of us could benefit from eating more fresh food and less convenience food.  

If you haven't seen the doctor yet (the diabetes doctor, I mean) then just how how you normally do and they will tell you how to change.

Oh, I'm also not allowed cereal as it is way over any amount of carbs that I'm allowed.  You also need to be sure to get a ton of protein.