I Can Do This... Right?

Today was the dreaded meeting with the diabetes educator. Dealing with this while still plague-ridden was more than I wanted to handle, but I gritted my teeth and went anyway...

...and found out it might not be as bad as I feared.

First and foremost, I'm pregnant. (NO, really?) That means any restrictions still have to be sensible to growing a human inside me. Therefore, while yes I have to count carbs and watch my glucose levels, and yes I have to poke my finger 4x a day (and pee in a cup every morning to be sure I'm not deforming baby's brain with ketones), I'm also not being completely restricted from carbs or sugar or fats or anything else. In fact, I'm supposed to make sure I get at least 150g of carbs every day! I can have a damn cheeseburger for lunch, so long as I lay off the bacon and have a salad instead of fries on the side.

Second of all, I'm not SUPPOSED to let myself get hungry. Smaller meals, more often. (Heard that one before, eh?) I have been directed to eat 3 meals plus 3 snacks every single day. And I figured out today, about the time I started feeling bad that I hadn't had my afternoon snack, a sugar-free skim latte counts as about 1 carb selection, perfect for a snack! Yum. And heaven on the sore throat.

Third, she gave me my actual glucose numbers from the 3 hr test, and they weren't nearly as bad as it sounded. I don't know if Julie was going off a different set of numbers than the diabetes education folks use, but of the 4 readings only one was even close to being out of normal range for pregnancy (it was right at the top number exactly) and the other 3 were within normal. I also learned that the fact that I was already down hard with this cold may have been enough to bump my numbers higher. So I might not actually be full blown GD yet. It can't hurt me to start being careful now, though. Apparently the pregnant body needs 3x the insulin as normal in the 3rd trimester. And with PCOS, I am already fighting an insulin resistance. It's just safer all around if I keep things monitored, I suppose.

Long story short, I think I might be able to manage this until April. And now, I'm going to go enjoy my 6" turkey sub on wheat, loaded w/veggies (only 3 carb points!) and try to beat back this plague a bit further. Wish us luck that baby cooperates tomorrow for the ultrasound and I'll be able to announce girl or boy!

p.s. - For my costume today, I took strips of muslin and wrapped my belly. I was a mummy. ;)  Happy Halloween!

WTF

I think there's an universal law somewhere that says you've gotta have crap go wrong once in a while. And it never rains but it pours, right?

I am sick. It's a stupid cold. I feel like I'm dying. WTF, pregnancy?

I spent 3 hours in the clinic yesterday, being poked repeatedly (4 times, not counting the re-try on one) to take a blood test because suddenly my glucose levels are too high, even though they were normal 2 weeks ago. WTF, pregnancy?

I eat decently. I try to make good choices and stay fairly close to a low glycemic diet when I can. No, I'm not perfect at it, but I do make an effort to cut out/down cholesterol and fat and sugars and such. I just got the call back from the aforementioned blood tests. I have gestational diabetes already. WTF'ingF, pregnancy???

I'm whiny and grouchy as hell because of this übercold ravaging my system, and then I get bad news on top of it. How is this even REMOTELY fair right now? (For the record, the first person to tell me, "Life isn't fair" will find my foot lodged sideways in their rectum.) I am so frustrated and annoyed and upset. I know it's not the end of the world, but seriously? Couldn't I just have a normal run through this? Or at the VERY least, not have complications until later, when I don't have to be paranoid for another 5.5 months?

Maybe it's the virus talking, but I am feeling pretty crapped on right now. Bah.

Not Too Exciting, Just An Update

Another prenatal visit checked off the list! This one was quick and painless. Mostly just to check in with test results, discuss how things are going, and do a quick heartbeat listen. 160bpm this time. Jana hadn't heard it yet, and she was really happy to get to run the doppler.

So... getting used to the weird swooshy-dropping-fluttery feeling of baby doing gymnastics is not quite so magical and awe-inspiring as it is often made out to be. Now don't get me wrong, it is freaking neat to know there is a little live being inside me wiggling around making that sensation. But the first day that I could really feel baby somersaulting (and HOO BOY was she/he active that day, right after the day I spent w/the uncomfortable pressure. Guess my uterus stretched enough to give her a running start at tumbling!) I spent the whole day queasy and finally puked up my dinner before calling it a day and attempting to sleep. It was the worst I'd felt since the morning sickness wore off. Y'know that feeling when you're stepping off something just a little bit too high? Kind of a dropping of the stomach? It's like that. Only sustained for anywhere from seconds to minutes at a time. And every round of it made me queasy like a roller coaster gone bad. I'm finally adjusting to the sensations now, but she/he can still get an occasional flip in that slams into the uterine wall w/enough force to make me catch my breath and stifle an *urp*. Amazing what a couple of ounces with mobility can do to a person.

In 2 weeks, I get to do the really fun glucose tolerance test, drinking 1/2 bottle of nasty sugar water (lemon-lime!) They're also doing a blood draw that day for the other genetic screening.

2 weeks after that, I have another prenatal visit. I'll only be 18 weeks along, but Jana said we could possibly take a peek on their (somewhat inferior) ultrasound machine, maybe get a look at baby's gender? Hopefully baby will cooperate and be all spread eagle for us. :D