So we have found out some of the basics about gestational diabetes which is the most common gestational problem for pregnant women to develop. Basically as the pregnancy progresses I have developed insulin resistance or diabetes, it doesn't set in until about 24 weeks and it is a fairly manageable condition for most women. This intolerance can cause a couple of problems with the baby the most common is that she will get really really big if I don't keep my blood sugars under control (they told me 10-12lbs...my eyes about bugged out of my head when I heard that!) the size issue can cause some pretty significant problems with delivery so I have real incentive to keep my blood sugars in strict control! The other really big thing to worry about is that if my blood sugars are too high the last two weeks or so it can cause her to have some blood sugar problems for the rest of her life, another good reason to keep my sugars in tight control.
So what do we do...well for about 10 days they had me just check my blood sugars 6 times a day to get an idea of where I was at. Good news...they were really pleased with my numbers. So then we met with the diabetes consultant on Monday and she gave me some things to do and work on....the changes include some diet stuff and then testing my sugars closer to when I eat, these changes are having some mixed results. My blood sugars have been higher than recommended after I eat which of course is causing me to PANIC! but I saw my regular doc today and was instructed not to panic and to just keep doing what she told me to and to see what she says when I see her next week. Easier said than done. Basically if I can't keep my sugars low enough just based on diet then they will add some insulin (not looking forward to that).
Also we have to go in twice a week and do a non-stress test, basically I go into the Birth Place in the hospital and they strap me into the fetal monitors and watch her heart beat to make sure she is what they call "reactive", in other words they want to see her heart beat go up when she is active and kicking and then settle back down. Although its a little tedious to have to go in twice a week it is fun to be able to listen to her heartbeat all the time, and its reassuring to know that she is ok and doing well. We have had 5 NSTs so far and have a whole bunch to go, she has done well every time. The first one we had she got a case of the hiccups against the monitor and it was pretty funny because you could hear them through the monitor. And then today she was trying to take a nap which is not really helpful so they used this little buzzer thing to scare her....well lets just say that buzzer thing does its job because she reacted well after that...had a nice little temper tantrum :)
We also got an ultrasound out of this diabetes thing, small bonus, and got another picture of her...shes getting too big for the pictures too come out well. Its crazy how much bigger she has gotten since we first saw her at 9 weeks. She is a little miracle and I love her so much. We will probably get at least one more ultrasound to check on her size at which point they will decide if they are going to have her arrive early or if a c-section will be required and all of that fun stuff.
So that's the facts of what is going on. Even though the tests all show that Menolly is doing great it is hard for me to cope with the fact that my body is not doing this as well as it should be. Its really hard for me to be patient and wait for her to be here. I want her to get here now because I cannot stand the thought that I am putting her at risk. The most frustrating part is that there is only so much I can do to "fix" it and knowing that its only going to get worse over the next few weeks just stresses me out. I can't just will my blood sugars lower, despite eating what I've been told to eat my last couple of post meal tests have been high and now I just don't even want to eat for fear that my blood sugars will spike and cause her some problem. But not eating is not an option so I have to just eat and try not to stress too bad when my sugars come back high because the stress causes my blood pressure to be higher than normal....also not a good thing. I love this little girl so much that it is the worst feeling in the world knowing that I'm not doing the absolute best job of making her that I should be. It is unbelievably frustrating and heartbreaking knowing that I am the one putting her in harms way when that is the absolute last thing I would ever want to do. Lets just say that I cannot wait for the next 8 weeks or so to be over and to have her safe in my arms.
As of right now that is what we know and where we are at. I will post any updates as they happen.
I would also like to say that the Holidays were wonderful! this blog is already pretty long so I'll keep it short. we had a great Christmas dinner with the Kelly's, Mom and Dad. New Years was spent at home with a cold but it was nice to have a couple days with Forrest. and then last weekend we got up to Spokane to see Nicci, Joseph, and Addisyn while they were up from Colorado. Nicci and Selina threw me a wonderful baby shower, I am so blessed to have them as sisters. I wish we could have spent more time with Nicci, Joseph and Addi before they had to go back to Colorado but that's how life works....never enough time so we just have to be grateful for the time we do get.
Until next time.... Peace and Love!
