Well hello, you!

Long time no see =)

If it makes anyone feel better, I have about a bazillion blog entries "drafted" but haven't had time to finalize anything yet. 

A few weeks ago I tried to make a video entry.  I wrote out my notes so that I stay on topic and did this whole shpeal about life with a newborn and fitness and where I am in regards to my goals.

Where is this fantastic video entry, you ask?

Um, the microphone setting was set to an external mic, not the internal one in my laptop.

FAIL.

I may decide to post it just for giggles later.  It's funny watching myself speak with no sound! 

In other news...

Phillip just turned 12 weeks old!

He is full of giggle and laughter these days.  He loves music! When my husband or I sing a song, Phillip likes to "sing" along.  He loves when we carry him and dance around the apartment- HATES when we put him down!

He is almost 25 inches and weighs over 15lbs now.  He's in the 90th percentile for weight and 95th percentile for height. Which means that out of a group of 100 12 weekers, Phillip weighs more than 90 of them and is taller than 95 of them.  WOWZA! Go, baby, go!

As for me?

Well, I haven't stepped on a scale since I realized I was below my pre-pregnancy weight (yay!). Probably because I'm afraid I've gained some of it back.  

And last time I checked I'm still 5'7''.

Confession- my eating habits haven't been as healthy as they should be.  I think it comes from being so restricted in my last trimester because of gestational diabetes.

I'm still enjoying all the food I missed! 

I gave myself 6 weeks to heal, indulge, and enjoy.  

But now that we're past 12 weeks I'm thinking that it's time to get things back in line.

Not as easy as it seems....

I plan on breastfeeding Phillip until he's one year old.  I have about 40 weeks left to go! 

Being on a diet can greatly affect my supply and I'm not sure I want to risk that.

The fine line is between eating enough calories to keep up with both my and Phillip's needs but to make sure those calories count and aren't just empty.

And what about exercise, you ask?

Huh.  Well it's very interesting.

Before sitting down to jot this little blog post, I believed that vigorous exercise will cause my supply to drop.  And that lactic acid would build up in my milk and my baby may refuse to drink.

HOWEVER....

As I typed out my thoughts on exercise and breastfeeding, I thought I should insert a source in here, you know- so that my readers don't just take my word on it.  

And guess what? My fears have been debunked!

According to www.kellymom.com, one of the greatest resources for breastfeeding mamas, exercise at a 50% or 75% exertion DOES NOT affect supply! Even at 100% there isn't a noticeable drop.

SOURCE

Well, color me misinformed.  

Just goes to show you not to believe a word I say... unless I have a source, of course! =)

With all that being said, guess it's time for me to get back into the exercise groove!

Just have to find the time... it's tough when I gotta take care of an infant.  I'm back to work full time now so I only get a few hours of quality time before Phillip's bedtime.  Soon after he's in bed I'm exhausted! And because he's still nursing, he depends on me and me alone for his nutrition.  

He does get a bottle when I'm at work but I prefer to nurse him myself when we're together. I'd rather not give him another bottle feeding just so that I can exercise.

Maybe we'll work in some neighborhood walks this weekend?  I gotta start somewhere!

Don't want to push myself too far... let's face it, it's exhausting taking care of all this cuteness:

Birth Plan versus Birth Reality Part 3

My Birth Story

**Warning- This post is as completely honest as I can remember all the events.  I'll try to get as many details as I can remember.**

My birth story starts about a week before Phillip was born.

Threatened with an induction due to gestational diabetes, I tried all I could to encourage baby to come on it's own (I refer to him as it here because at the time we didn't know his sex).

I spent a lot of time walking- about an hour 3x a day around our apartment complex which is up on a hill. 

During the evenings I would sit on my exercise ball and bounce around to help open up my pelvis.  I also would squat against a wall (with the help of my husband) and do pelvic rocks (on hands and knees) before bed to encourage baby to move down.

I was able to encourage my husband to massage a few accupressure points know to induce labor.  One of the most well known points is behind the ankle on the external part of the leg.  On the internal part of the leg, about 3 finger lengths above the ankle bone, right below the calf is another point. 

Alas, none of my efforts worked.

My induction was scheduled on 12/28 at 11am.

At 9ish in the morning the hospital called and asked if we could push it back to later that afternoon or evening because they were so busy. 

I said no problem! We called our Bradley Instructor since she was our "phone doula" to update her.  She suggested I try Castor Oil, a laxative, to encourage my uterus to start contractions on its own. 

My husband mixed 2oz of Castor Oil with 2oz of OJ.  It was NASTY.

We waited a few hours and nothing.  No contractions at all.

The hospital called and asked us to come in at 2pm- we told them we would be able to come in at 3 and they agreed.

Obviously we were trying to stall as much as possible to give natural labor a chance.

At 3pm I was admitted.  They were still running behind and the nurses told me that the resident OB would be by shortley to check my progress and start the medication, if needed.

4pm- Resident OB shows up and checks my progress.  

Now, if you read my previous posts you know I wanted an unmedicated birth. After he checks me he tells me, "Don't worry, the next time you'll be checked you'll already have the epidural." I told him no I wasn't getting the epidural.  His reply, "Are you sure? You know it's going to hurt more than that with a baby coming through there."

Jackass.  I wanted to kick him in his face.  That's not what you tell a woman about to get induced!!

Anyway, he checks me and I'm 3-4cm dilated and about 70% effaced.  Baby was head down and at a -2 station.

What does that mean?  Well, 10cm is the the goal for dilation (opening of the cervix), 100% is the goal for effacement (softening of the cervix).  Baby's station tells us how high the baby is, starting at -3.

-3: high

-2: head is entering pelvis

-1: head is in pelvis

0: head is in the center of pelvis, most narrow point.

1: head is at the top of the birth canal.

2: head is halfway through

3: head is crowning.

So based on that check from Dr. Jackass, I didn't need the medication at all.  They would just start me right away on Pitocin.

7pm- "Right away" when a hospital is busy means 3 hours later.  But I didn't mind.  We turned down the lights, lit our flameless tea light candles, sprayed our lavender room spray and took a nap.

When the nurse started the pitocin I asked to start at the lowest dose possible.  She agreed and told me it may be awhile before things start happening.

9pm- Contractions start but they aren't very consistent.  Some I can't even feel! We continue with our napping =)

We brought some music with us on our iPad but didn't use it.  The hospital had great TV stations- even a 24 hour family friendly comedy station!

12am- Active labor starts.  My contractions were now 2 minutes apart and peaking at 30 seconds.  I was hooked up to the telemetry unit so that I could walk around.

The telemetry unit is this piece of machinery hooked up to my IV that allows me to walk around the nurses station while still being monitored for contractions and baby's heartrate.

Complete piece of rubbish! My belts kept falling down which gave the nurses a false alarm, thinking they lost baby's heartrate.  I was constantly trying to readjust the belts while walking and dealing with my contractions.

However, it still beats laying in a bed!

With each contraction I held onto the rails in the hallway and would squat down to open up my pelvis and encourage baby to move further down.

My husband also applied counter-pressure to my back using his hands and a home made heating pad made out of a tube sock and rice. 

2am- Transition hits. 

Transition is the most painful stage of labor- and also the shortest!  It's the body's way of preparing the woman to push.

My lips began to turn blue.  I got REALLY cold.  At this point I'm back in our room and leaning over our exercise ball on the bed while my husband massages me. 

I started to get tired to I climbed back into the bed and laid on my side.  I kept asking for blankets but all they gave me were these small sheets.  Not a big help at all!

Contractions were really intense.  And because my labor was induced, contractions wouldn't just peak one time, but sometimes would double up on eachother- even triple peak!

At this hour I ask for the epidural.  I started to doubt myself.

My husband asked me to wait another hour.  He reminded me that I was in Transistion and that this is the shortest phase- we're getting really close!

3am- STILL in Transition.

I went back and forth between standing and rocking on the exercise ball and laying on my side in bed.

My husband's massage techniques weren't doing anything anymore.

Contractions were still triple peaking so I told my husband AGAIN I wanted the epidural.

He AGAIN asked me to wait- assuring me it would be over soon!

4am- It is not over.  It is still going.

I got up from the bed to use the restroom. 

As I climbed into bed, my water broke! It was the oddest sensation I have ever felt!

Then things went SUPER FAST.

My baby's heartrate started to drop.  And it got SCARY.

Nurses rushed into the room to help my nurse. 

I got an oxygen mask thrown at me and was told to put it on.

They kept trying to find baby's heartrate but were having trouble. 

They did another check-

Nurse announced I was at 5-6cm.

Did you read that? 5-6cm.

I was admitted 12 hours earlier at 3-4cm.

On average, a woman will progress 1cm per hour.  I should have been close to 8cm at least!

When I heard my progress, I looked at my husband and told him- "This is it.  I'm getting the epidural".

He agreed.  At this point my body needed to relax so that it could open up more, since it wasn't doing it on its own.

4:15- The anesthigiologist is called in- so we waited for him to arrive.

All of a sudden I had a really really HUGE urge to push.

The nurse called my OB and helped me breath against the urge.

4:30- My OB arrived and checked me. 

I'm was at 9.5cm!!

Within 20 or so minutes I went from 5-6cm to 9.5cm.  A process that usually takes HOURS took mere minutes.  No wonder I was in so much pain!

I told them to forget the epidural, I can do this.  I was sooooooo close and I knew that I could finish the job.

5am- My OB checked me again and tada! It's time to push!

Contractions kept coming but with the pushing they were no longer painful.  It was actually the biggest pain relief to push!

Contractions got a bit stronger and my body started pushing on its own.  All I really had to do was hold my breath. 

As soon as I let my body do it's own thing, it started pushing up and out like the nurse told me before.

I truly believe that if I got the epidural, I wouldn't feel my body giving birth to my baby.  I would have been left out of the complete experience.

Baby Phillip was born at 5:58am!

6am- We tried to get Phillip on my chest for skin to skin contact but my cord was too short.

We waited for it to stop pulsing and my husband cut the cord and announced to the room that it was a baby boy!

I held him to my chest and we started breast feeding immediately.  He nursed like a champ!

RECOVERY-

I was walking around within a couple hours.  It wasn't easy, but I  knew that walking would help my body heal.

In the end I'm ecstatic about how things went.  While I didn't go into labor naturally, I still got the birth I wanted.

Yes, I had to compromise on the IV- I received Pitocin, glucose, and penicillin through my IV during the labor process.  Glucose to keep my sugar levels constant and penicillin to kill the Group B Strep bacteria that I tested positive for.  Group B strep is not fatal to the carrier (me) but when the baby passes through it can cause complications.  Fortunately for us baby was 100% healthy!

I was able to walk around and be mobile, as well as use the pain management techniques I learned in my Bradley Birthing classes.

Total success!!

My Bundle of Blessings

Introducing...

Baby Phillip

December 29, 2011

7lbs 13oz, 21 inches

My induction was scheduled for December 28, 2011.

I did not want an induction.  About a week before the scheduled "eviction/induction", I tried to encourage baby to come on its own. 

I went on hour long walks at least 3 times a day.

I also tried squats and pelvic rocks to encourage baby to move on down.

I bounced on my exercise ball whenever I could.

But this child did not want to come on its own!

Now I had quite a few people tell me that I should just be patient and let baby arrive when baby decided to arrive.

The thing is, because of Gestational Diabetes, my OB/GYN would not let me go past 40 weeks. 

Beyond 40 weeks, there is a high risk of baby being too big and thus having shoulder dislocation during birth or even more extreme- my placenta will age and stop giving nutrients to my baby or baby could be still born.

Scary stuff, huh?

I tried to coax the little one to come before the 12/28 eviction date because at least then I'd have a natural labor versus one kick started by Pitocin.

Pitocin is a hormone used to induce labor.  The scary thing with Pitocin is that contractions are not natural and more violent than if labor was started naturally. It's a rough ride.

I honestly was terrified of the induction because through my birthing classes and research, I know that one medical intervention can lead to another and I wanted a natural unmedicated birth.  The last thing I wanted was a Ceaserean Section and/or an Epidural.  I am more afraid of a needle going through my spine and being cut open than I am of giving birth.

Having an induction with Pitocin increases the liklihood a woman would get an Epidural to ease the pain (remember Pitocin contractions are more violent than natural contractions).  Having an Epidural increases the liklihood a woman would get a Ceaserean Section because she will be numb from the waist down and will not be able to labor efficiently.

I did my research and knew that I would have an uphill battle to get the birth I wanted.  I was dissappointed when my baby didn't arrive before my induction date.

We got to the hospital and later they started an IV drip of Pitocin. 

Five hours later I was in active labor and 2 hours after that I hit the transition phase.  Two and a half hours later I was ready to push but had to wait until I was completely dialated to 10 cm.  In 30 minutes I was ready to push and an hour later he was born!

So if you're doing the math, 10 hours of labor and one hour of pushing total. 

Now that's not too bad if it was a natural labor, but this was on high speed with Pitocin and contractions were horrible!!

Sorry to cut it short here, but it's feeding time for Phillip.

I promise to get into the details of my birth plan and birth "reality" soon.

Thanks for sticking by me! Love you all =)

Weight Loss During Pregnancy

**BLOG UPDATES- Have you noticed the new list of giveaways on the left sidebar? There's still time to enter! Also I've added more links on my Gestational Diabetes page to include more recent posts**

I had a hard cold reality check during this pregnancy: Being pregnant is not a license to eat all you want because you are now "eating for two".


In reality, a pregnant woman only needs about 100-300 extra calories a day to give the growing baby all the nutrients it needs.

We don't need to double up on portions or eat ice cream all day in the name of our child's growth!

In fact, if pregnant women were to double up on anything it would be healthy whole foods- good protein sources, fresh fruits and vegetables, and lots of water.

How much weight gain is too much?


It all depends on the woman's pre-pregnancy weight.

If a woman is underweight pre-pregnancy, she may be given a range of 28-40 pounds to gain.

Normal weight? 25-35 pounds

Overweight? 15-20 pounds

Obese? 11-20 pounds

If you're carrying twins, these ranges are a bit higher.

Where does all this weight go?


From the article linked above from Web MD:

Baby	8 pounds
Placenta	2-3 pounds
Amniotic fluid	2-3 pounds
Breast tissue	2-3 pounds
Blood supply	4 pounds
Fat stores for delivery and breastfeeding	5-9 pounds
Uterus increase	2-5 pounds
Total	25 to 35 pounds

Is it ever safe to lose weight while pregnant?


During my pregnancy I've read a lot of articles and books about nutrition during pregnancy.

Seems like everyone agrees that pregnancy is no time to go on a diet to lose weight or restrict calories.

However (make that a huge HOWEVER), what about women like me who have been put on special diets?

Restrictive? Not entirely- just my carb intake.

But still- cutting back on my carbohydrates has me increasing my fat and protein just to keep my calorie intake up so that baby can grow!

How having Gestational Diabetes affected my pregnancy weight gain-


According to my doctor's scale, I was 212 at the beginning of my pregnancy.

At 28 weeks, I weighed 231.

That is a gain of 19 pounds.

Because I was considered overweight pre-pregnancy, my weight gain was pushing the limits!

After starting the gestational diet, I've lost weight. 

At 37 weeks I weighed in at 220 lbs.

I lost over 10lbs in almost 10 weeks! Now that's great, if I wasn't pregnant.

So of course the big concern was- Is baby growing properly?


The week before my weigh in (so 36 weeks) I had an U/S with a GD specialist to make sure baby wasn't growing too large.

(Remember? One of the risks with GD is that the baby will grow too big too fast because of the extra glucose.  The biggest sign they look for is a large tummy, which is out of proportion with the rest of baby's body).

Well at 36 weeks baby weighed in at 5 lbs 15oz (round that up to 6lbs)! That translates to the 60th percentile.  Out of all the babies that are 36 weeks, my baby weighs more than 60%.

Now, that doesn't cause any real concern because 50% is just an average.  So of course some babies will weigh more or less than 50%.

And baby's tummy size? Right on the average mark!

Baby is growing right on track.

My OB/GYN (different from the doc that did the U/S at 36 weeks) hasn't expressed any concern over my weight loss.

He knows I'm following the GD diet and has even told me that losing weight was a good thing since I gained so much in the beginning.

But my GD doctor has expressed concern.

Every week I scan in my glucose results and my food log of everything I ate (how much, when, and how it was prepared).

One week they asked how my weight was progressing.  When they found out I went from 212-231-220, they were concerned I wasn't eating enough.

Their solution?

I was told to eat more fruit with my snacks.  Add more fatty nuts to my snacks.  Bulk up on protein.


Basically eat more but do not go over my carbohydrate limit for my meals.

Now this was really frustrating for me!

WHY? I've been following their meal plan and have on my own increased my protein intake.  I eat peanut butter EVERY.DAY.   It's hard to change your eating habits so quickly and then have to change everything up again.

I have one doc that isn't concerned about weight loss and one that is worried I don't eat enough. I expressed my frustrations to one of the nurses at the specialty clinic and she basically apologized for the mis-communication and gave me some well deserved praise and encouragement (I'm like a puppy- all about positive reinforcement!).

She said I was doing great with keeping my numbers in check and that she understands how difficult it is to change eating habits so rapidly.

That made me feel a lot better.

Plus, she probably deals with crazy hormonal women all the time and knows just the right things to say =)

The good news about all of this?


My eating habits are lot better now and I'll probably be able to keep this up after baby arrives.

Also, since I haven't gained that much weight during pregnancy, it will be easier for me to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight.

I only have about 2-3 weeks left of testing my blood sugar 4 times a day, keeping a food journal, and keeping in touch with multiple doctors.

I'm ready for Baby's arrival!

Holiday Blog Challenge Day 9

2012 GOALS AND RESOLUTIONS

A while back I posted about my fitness goals for 2012, after baby arrives and I get the green light from my doctor. You can read the original post here, but I'll summarize it for you, too.

1- Run a 5K under 30 minutes.  This is a 2011 goal that needs to be revisited. 

2-Sign up for a longer race.  I would like to run anything longer than a 5K (looking at some fun half-marathons right now!), but with no expectations.  No finishing times, no split goals, nada.  I just want to run and participate.  

A new goal for 2012? Clean up my eating habits!

Since being diagnosed with GD, I've had to watch my carbohydrate intake and follow a meal plan. Confession? I've been following the meal plan but not by being as healthy as I should be.

Example? I'm allowed 3 servings of carbs for lunch/dinner.  1 serving = 15 grams of carbohydrates.  You know what has 3 servings of carbohydrates (45g)? 1 Beef Supreme Chalupa and 1 Beef Taco from Taco Bell.  YUP.  Even with GD I have found a way to eat junk.

Even worse? I've been losing weight since being on the GD diet. Now, it's not bad to lose weight during pregnancy- as long as baby is growing.  What's bad about losing weight is that I can still eat crap "within my limits" and lose weight.  It's a false security.

So for 2012 I want to limit the amount of junk food I eat.  I should start building my collection of healthy recipes now, right? The only issue is that recipes sometimes intimidate me- they either take too long or get too messy.  Ugh, just something I need to get over and really look into simple, quick, realistic recipes.

I've asked this before but- What are your goals/resolutions for 2012?

What I Ate Wednesday

A trend here in BlogLand is writing themed posts for the day.

Some of my fave blogs have themes such as "It's OK Thursday" or "Speechless Sunday" or "Three Things Thursday", etc...

Today? I'm jumping on the bandwagon with "What I Ate Wednesday" and linking up with my girl Jenn on this one.

*And through her post, I found another blogger named Jenn from Peas and Crayons and linked up with her, as well!*

I usually don't do themed posts because my writing style is more "free spirited" so to speak- I have a hard time fitting my thoughts into certain criteria and usually end up saying "screw it" and write whatever I want anyway.

It's one of my fave things about blogging- I write about whatever I want, whenever I want! And of course try to make it interesting to my readers.  I'm all about engagement, yo!

Moving right along...

You remember these Pumpkin Pancakes?  Well, I had some left over pumpkin and left over Chobani 0% Vanilla Yogurt. And left over Cool Whip (hello! I wasn't about to let my husband eat the entire container!).

So I decided to make a dip! A co-worker of mine brought in a Pumpkin Dip the other week and hers was delish! She used cream cheese, powdered sugar, Cool Whip, pumpkin, and related spices.

I decided to try my hand at it and see if I can make a version that was GD healthy- meaning not so much sugar and sneak in a way to get some protein.

It was a match made in heaven using left over ingredients from those yummy pancakes!

I mixed the rest of the pumpkin (about half a can), 6oz of Chobani Vanilla Yogurt, 2tsp of cinnamon, 1tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp of cloves.  Honestly I think I put too much cloves because at first it was really overpowering, but my tastebuds adapted and it came out delish!

I also scooped in the rest of the Cool Whip Lite.  It's important to note that I "folded" the ingredients in so as to not break down the consistency of the yogurt.

The result? A tangy pumpkin dip- perfect with cinnamon sprinkled Wheat Thins.

I'm not sure about the nutrition information but I do know that when I ate this last night as part of my evening snack, I had perfect glucose numbers this morning! 

The sweetness on the Wheat Thins blended well with the yogurt in the dip.  I think next time I might make my own cinnamon toast pieces and spread this dip on top.  YUMMMM!

Feel free to link up your "What I Ate Wednesday" post so we can all join in on the fun!

New Thanksgiving Tradition- Pumpkin Pancakes!

Whooo hoooo! Christmas time is here! If you've read this post, you know that Christmas is my most favorite time of year.

Before jumping into all of that- I wanted to share a part of my Thanksgiving with you all!

One thing I look forward to during this Fall season is the food! I love love love anything pumpkin and when I saw a few bloggers posting about Pumpkin Pancakes, I knew I had to jump on the bandwagon!

The husband and I decided to have a real low key Thanksgiving this year.  With the baby on its way, we wanted to enjoy our time to ourselves and really soak in the final moments of "just the two of us".

I couldn't just let the day slip away without doing something special.  So I decided to try my hand at Pumpkin Pancakes.

I started out with this recipe from Chobani.

Then I made a few modifications.  The recipe calls for 12oz of Vanilla 0% Chobani Greek Yogurt.  I decided to swap 6oz of yogurt for 6oz of pumpkin.



I folded 6oz of yogurt with 6 oz of pumpkin (I folded versus beat/mix to keep the texture of the yogurt) and then added one egg (whisked) and 1/2 c. of milk. Then placed the mixture on the side.





I then added all dry ingredients (according to the recipe above), and added the pumpkin spices according to the recipe on the back of the can.  It called for 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ground ginger, and 1/4 tsp. cloves. Now this is where you can take some liberty with the recipe.  When I mixed the dry ingredients together, I couldn't smell the spices.  I LOVE this mixture of spices so I added 1/2 more (1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. ground ginger, 1/8 tsp. cloves).  With the added spice the aroma smelled just perfect!



I then added the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and it was REALLY thick.  Maybe because I only used half of the yogurt?  Or because I used whole wheat flour?  I don't know.  It was more of a muffin dough than pancake batter.  So I improvised and ended up gradually adding about another 1 C. of milk, to get the desired consistency.



Once the consistency was at my desired point, I poured the batter into a pan on medium heat, waited until I saw consistent "bubbling" (technical term right there) and then flipped.

Topped the Pumpkin Pancakes with butter and a scoop of Cool Whip light.  Served with scrambled eggs (gotta have my protein!).



My critique on my specialty pancakes? There were OK.  Changes I'd make? I'd probably add more yogurt so that the batter isn't so initially dry- and instead of Cool Whip Lite I'd use real maple syrup.  I had to make some changes since I wasn't sure how this meal would affect my glucose levels.  The pancakes weren't light and fluffy but more moist and dense- I attribute this to the pumpkin.  Tasty (because I added more spice!) but not the consistency I was looking for.

Would I make this again? Absolutely! Now that I know what to expect and what changes to make to this recipe, it will be even better next year.

So how did this breakfast affect my glucose levels? It was high.  I mean really really high.  After one hour my glucose should be under 140- it was 153.  I tested an hour later and should have been under 120- it was 132.

The next morning we had some leftover batter so I made smaller portions and just had one instead of two.  It was still filling since the pancake was thick.  And it didn't spike my glucose numbers at all!

Lesson learned- Keep the portions in line and glucose levels will be just fine!

Hope all my U.S. readers enjoyed their Thanksgiving Holiday!

Frustrations with GD

One of the scariest moments of this pregnancy was being diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes (GD).

You can read about my related GD posts here.  My previous posts have covered my initial reactions, my fears, my plans, things I eat, and pretty much dealing in general.

Before I even took the Glucose Screening Test (GST, also known as "the 1-hour" test), I did a lot of research about what GD is, how is it diagnosed, and how is it treated.  I've touched a bit (ok, maybe closer to a lot) on GD before and you can check out some of the information on the Gestational Diabetes tab above.

What I want to get out in this post are some of the inconsistencies with diagnosing and treating GD.  I found during my internet research that many people feel that GD isn't even a real disease and that the diagnosis is so flawed that treating this "so-called" disease is actually dangerous.  The issue seems to stem from the fact that the guidelines for testing vary and the test results itself are questionable.

After being diagnosed with GD, I found an online support group of other moms to be, also due in December, and also battling with GD.

There are many threads posted within our group about meal plans, high numbers, strategies, work out plans, etc... that we quickly noticed that many of the women were being treated for GD differently.  Of course, every pregnancy (and every woman) is different so there is no cookie cutter treatment plan but the plans varied greatly enough where an abnormal test result for one woman is completely acceptable to another and vice versa.

I dug a little deeper because I was curious about other differences or inconsistencies that existed between our treatment plans.

Here is a brief summary of what I found:

Glucose Screening and Glucose Tolerance Tests ("1-hour" and "3-hour" tests, respectively)


We were given different instructions prior to taking our tests.  Wouldn't this affect our diagnosis? Before taking my 1 hour test, I was told to fast after midnight.  Some of the women in my group were told to eat normally, others were told to fast, others were given no instructions.  It seems to me that the difference in instruction could have greatly affected our results!

For the 3-hour test, I wasn't given any clear instructions.  I took it up on myself to fast since that is what my Google results told me.  (I should have just asked my doctor, I know, but too late now).  Again, women were told to fast, eat normally, and others were told to increase their carb intake.

Shouldn't the guidelines before the screening and tolerance tests be identical?  Wouldn't this be a type of control for the lab tests? I'm no science gal but I do not that basic instructions before a lab test should be consistent if we're going to use the results.

For a quick recap, during the 1-Hour exam a pregnant woman is told to drink 50g of glucose in this sweet syrupy drink.  An hour later blood is drawn and glucose levels are measured.  During the 3-Hour exam, a pregnant woman has her blood drawn first (called the fasting draw), then 100g of glucose is given in the form of a drink, and then later blood is drawn at 3 1-hour intervals.

During the 3-hour exam some women are not allowed to walk around or engage in physical activity.  They have to just sit there during the whole ordeal.  Other women are encouraged to walk around after drinking the glucose.

I now know that walking greatly decreases my glucose levels after a meal and can't help but wonder if I were allowed to walk around, would my numbers have been different?

Treatment of GD


After being diagnosed, most women are put on a GD friendly diet- low(er) carbs and more protein. Most attend a class with an RN and a Dietician.  We learn how to eat and how to test our glucose levels in the morning (fasting) and after meals. Granted, since each woman is different, our meal plans will differ to some degree. Some women can't have fruit or milk in the morning or before noon, some have no restrictions in the morning.

So where are the significant inconsistencies? They lie in testing our glucose and whether our levels are abnormal or normal.


I test my glucose levels 4 times a day: fasting, 1-hour after my first bite for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  I also have 3 snacks in between meals. My fasting number needs to be below 95 while my number after meals need to be below 140.  Sometimes I can test 2 hours after my first bite if finishing my meal takes longer than 30 minutes (like at a restaurant).  If I test 2 hours after a meal, my number needs to be below 120.

Some of the women in my group test after 1 hour, others after 2. Some women need their glucose levels to be below 135 and some below 130 an hour after a meal. Others only test at 2 hours (their glucose limit is the same, 120).

So some of my glucose results that are above 130 would raise a flag for their doctor but is perfectly acceptable by mine.  *It's important to note that the levels of 95 and 140 were given to all the ladies in my diabetes education class, not just me*.

Same for the fasting number.  Mine needs to be below 95 but other women were given limits of 90 or 100.

So why does this all matter? 


If there were inconsistencies before, during, and after these tests- how do we know the test results are accurate?  There seems to be some vital controls missing.

There are also some groups of thought that feel the treatment of GD through a restricted carb diet does more harm than good.

Don't get me wrong- I am NOT saying that we should throw GD out the window and forget about it.  From what I've read, there are risks to the baby that result from insulin-dependent diabetes (pre-pregnancy).  It seems that the diagnosis and treatment of GD stems from that.

When GD is not controlled and glucose levels are extremely high, not only does mom have to create more insulin but so does baby.  Baby's pancreas goes to work overtime to deal with the high levels of glucose that cross the placenta.  And that's normal- when we ingest too many carbs, a healthy pancreas goes into overdrive to break down the glucose.  When the body no longer responds to the insulin or stops producing it that's when we have issues.

What's scary is that in uncontrolled glucose levels with baby's pancreas working overtime, once baby is out of that environment (high sugar in mom's blood), baby's blood sugar can dip dangerously low after birth.  And that is scary.

I understand the risks but wonder if maybe just maybe there is a better way to diagnose and treat GD.  Maybe something a bit more consistent??  I think I'd feel more confident in my treatment if I knew the diagnosis and treatment didn't vary so much from doctor to doctor.

There's not much I can do about it now though. So I'll keep trucking with my meal plan and exercise routines and trust that I'm doing the best for my baby.  That's all a parent can do right?

I have an ultrasound appointment in a few weeks to check up on baby's growth.  I'm praying all is normal and that my hard work is paying off!

Weekend Recap & Aloha Salads Review

Oh Monday- Back so soon, are we?

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!

Ours was pretty standard- ate, shopped, ate again, thrifted, ate some more, rearranged our apartment...

You know, pretty standard.

And yes, I now use "thrift" as a verb.

thrift (v)- To find a great deal, to shop with the intention of not paying even close to full price.  Also used as thrifting and thrifted. Derived from the adjective thrifty.


There you go.  Thrifted.

The highlights?

I found a $3.50 Banana Republic blazer at Goodwill.

Yes, you read that right- $3.50!! Originally marked for $7 (and can you believe I even debated that price?) but at the register it was 50% off!

SCORE!

We also found another gem this weekend, this time a food gem.

One day for lunch we ate at Aloha Salads.  

The hubbs and I have never ate there before.  Honestly, I wasn't in the mood for a salad but needed something healthy and with the right balance of carbs.  Most salads I know of are very low carb, which is OK most of the time, but I have a range I need to meet for my Gestational Diabetes.

From it's website:

Aloha Salads has expanded since 2003, opening stores in Kahala Mall Shopping Center and Kapolei Commons Shopping Center but its core mission remains the same—to serve healthy, fresh, locally grown food of the highest quality at affordable prices.  It remains dedicated to supporting local farmers and fishermen while providing its customers with the freshest, healthiest and most delicious ingredients available.  Our field greens come, not by boat from the mainland, but straight from the North Shore of Oahu.  Our tomatoes come ripened on the vine in Hau’ula, Hawai’i delivered by the farmer himself.  Our mangoes come from a farm in Mokuleia, Hawai’i, handpicked at the perfect ripeness.  Our ahi comes, always fresh, never previously frozen or injected with CO2 straight from Hawaiian waters. 

Aloha Salads deeply cares about its customers’ health.  To that end, its signature salad dressings are made without the use of hydrogenated oils or trans fats.  Instead, they are made with Canola or olive oils.  Even its breads are made without the use of such oils.  Their sandwich breads are made with extra virgin olive oil and nutrient powerhouses like flax seeds.  The pita bread is entirely fat and sugar free.

The husband ordered a Chicken Curry Wrap.  I couldn't find that item on their menu to give you all the great details but basically it's a curry chicken salad wrapped in pita bread with fresh veggies.

His verdict? It was REAL good!

I ordered the Kahuku Spinach Salad.  I saw that it came with pita bread so I was happy to get some of my carbs in there.  The salad included spinach, Kahuku Shrimp (grilled), avocado, egg, bacon, and tossed in their own papaya seed dressing.  The shrimp tasted like it was grilled FRESH- you know when shrimp is firm and still juicy? Yeah that was the sweet spot! The shrimp had really great seasoning- kinda spicy but went so well with the rest of the salad.  I thought about offering the hubbs a taste but used my better judgement!



The best part of the entire meal was knowing that all the ingredients were local!

It was a bit more than we expected for salads, but hey, when you're paying for such great quality, what's a couple extra bucks?

For my salad, hubby's wrap, and 2 drinks- total was around $23.

But we were so impressed we're definitely going back soon.

There are 4 locations on Oahu (again, from their website)

Downtown Honolulu, Kailua Shopping Center, Kahala Mall, and Kapolei Commons.


Hope you all had a GREAT WEEKEND!! 

Surviving the Holiday Season- My tips and tricks.

I always feel like Halloween kicks off the "Holiday Season".

Once the Halloween candy is brought into the office, it becomes a non-stop parade of goodies for about 9-10 weeks (we celebrate after New Year's here!).

I've been on diets for as long as I can remember and only in college did I learn the difference between dieting and living a healthy lifestyle.

Dieting to me is synonymous with restriction, deprivation, struggle, difficult, and NO!


Living a healthy lifestyle to me rings more with balance, choices, forgiveness, and YES!


I've learned a few tricks along the way to make sure my new eating habits and workout routines were balanced properly in my life.  In fact, I like to use the word "harmonious" over "balance" because let's face it, sometimes not working out or indulging once in awhile will take the lead over healthy eating 100% of the time and consistent exercise.

My healthy living tricks:


1. If you're going to indulge, make it GOOD.  Make it WORTH IT.

Example: Because of my GD (gestational diabetes), I have to really watch not just how many carbs I ingest, but also keep a strong handle on my sugar intake.  My treats are already limited.  But after talking to my doctor and sharing my frustration of the timing of having GD during the holidays, she mentioned that a treat once in awhile isn't going to do damage.  It is constant elevated levels of high glucose that causes complications.

I know that a treat once in awhile is OK.  But with GD, my choices carry much more weight because the don't just affect me, they affect my baby as well.

So for this Holiday Season, I've made the choice to go ahead and have a treat on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day (if baby is still inside my belly by then!).  How do I decide what treat I'm going to have?  Well, my favorite of all time is Pumpkin Pie.  I love anything pumpkin.  I'll stay away from the cupcakes and cookies and candies but give me a slice of that pumpkin pie! I may even pass over the pumpkin pie for a more unique dessert- like a pumpkin creme brulee (I've only had that once in my life and will gladly forfeit pumpkin pie this year if anyone has a recipe and wants to make me some!).

Another example? One of our fave restaurants has a chocolate souffle cake.  NOT a  chocolate souffle, but a flourless, dense chocolate cake that tasted like the outside of a souffle. Well, after trying it a few times we decided to not order it again. Why? Because there many really really good restaurants that offer chocolate souffles here in Hawaii that are about 10x better than the cake.  So why waste calories on something we just kinda like?  We'd rather skip the cake and have frozen yogurt instead.

2. It's all about portion sizes.


So now that you got your fave dessert in mind, it's also important to watch your portion sizes.

I know, I know, we hear that all the time! So what does that mean? Simple- have one cupcake not two, have a slice of pumpkin pie not the whole thing, maybe 2-3 cookies not a full dozen.  Simple math, right?

But how do you stop from just having one slice, one cupcake, 2 cookies? I bargain with myself.

That one slice of pumpkin pie is a freebie... anything else whether it's a cupcake or cookie or another slice of pie is an additional 30 minutes of exercise.  Sure 30 minutes may not be enough to burn off the extra calories but it's more than what I usually do.

3. Remember that a holiday is just that- one day.

I think it's so easy to get wrapped up in the "Holiday Season" that we tend to indulge all season long.  There are so many parties to go to and people to visit, be sure that when you indulge you 1) make it worth it and 2) stick to portion sizes.  And don't do it at every party and event you attend!

Love your grandma's cookies? Then have some.  Going to an office party the next day? Try to fill up on more veggies and lean protein and stay away from the sweet stuff. Don't keep using parties as an excuse to have your fill of sweets.  Pick a party that you know will have the good stuff and plan accordingly.

And guess what? If you indulge in two parties in a row, throw in some extra time in your workouts!

And if you really can't let go of the extra sweets, remember that these parties will come around again next year.  Give yourself permission to have it, just not now.


It's all about balance and harmony.  Find your middle ground without compromising your goals.

You are worth living a healthy lifestyle.  Don't throw it all away- have a battle plan!

Do you have any tips or tricks for sticking to a healthy lifestyle during the holidays?


What's your favorite dessert this season?

Blah Mondays

Today was a pretty rough day.

1) It was Monday.  I loathe Mondays.

2) They turned OFF the AC in our work building.  Something about working on the main chillers that keeps the galleries nice and cool.  Hello?! What about the pregnant lady! It was pretty horrible.

3) Work was super busy (on top of the heat!!). I'm covering for a co-worker who is going on vacation so I need to brush up on her tasks which include all deposits and check payments.  FUN.  This is also the time where we have to process payroll.  We have a deadline for Wednesday morning. 

4) In addition to working in the heat, trying to brush up on all the responsibilities of my co-worker, processing payroll in time, I have had 2 abnormal glucose reading today.  One hour after breakfast my glucose was over 140 and one hour after dinner my glucose was over 150. 

BUMMED. OUT.

Breakfast consisted of 2 whole wheat pieces of toast and peanut butter.  I've had it before with NO PROBLEM! The difference today? I ate breakfast at work.  Usually I eat at home and then get some movement in (ie: walking to my car, walking a block from the parking lot to my work place, walking upstairs to my office).  But today I sat at my desk and ate my sandwich and buried my head in my work.

Dinner was 1c. of brown rice, 1 chicken breast, and some broccoli.  I've also had this before with NO PROBLEM! However, because I was so busy with work, I forgot to have my afternoon snack.  So I'm thinking that because I didn't have a snack, my body released stored glucose and that caused my insulin to spike.  I really don't know.

Now I'm super nervous about what the doctor is going to say when he sees 2 high numbers in one day, both with meals that are within my plan.

This may mean that I need to go on an anti-hypoglycemic medication. 

Going on medication scares the BEJEEZUS out of me.  It just screams "life sentence" in my head, even though deep down I know that this isn't necessarily true.

I thought I had accepted the fact that if my numbers continued to be abnormal even though I was following the meal plan and exercising, I may need to go on medication.

It is still a hard pill to swallow.

(Have you noticed the new page up top titled "Gestational Diabetes"?  I posted some info and links I found during my research/panic that I think is useful.  I also linked to other Gestational Diabetes posts for the convenience of my readers)

Struggling With My New Meal Plan and Eating Habits...

I haven't been as strict with my diet as I should be and my glucose numbers show it.
This past week I've had about 4 abnormal numbers (meaning out of range) and I'm not sure if that will alarm the doc enough to recommend putting me on medication.

I can see that the reason why my numbers are so high is because I've been having more carbs than usual.

If anything, I hope they can give me another week to get everything back in line!

I also haven't been walking as much as I was in the weeks before.  Usually after lunch and dinner I go for a 20-30 minute walk.  Walking is known to greatly decrease glucose levels. 

My excuse? Well, the past couple days it's been raining around lunch time and I'm not about to go walking in the rain.  And at night? It's either raining or I'm too lazy.  Yeeeaaahhh.... I need to work on that!

A few nights where I haven't gone for a walk I sit on my exercise ball and work on some arm strength. It worked one night... and failed miserabley on the other.

My dietician has recommended a meal plan where I'm eating a limited amount of carbs, paired with protein, and sprinkled with as many non-starchy vegetables as I like.  I can eat a limited amount of fruits in the afternoon (meaning within the limits of my meal plan... so a snack will be a small piece of fruit no more than 30g of carbs), but not in the morning since that is when our bodies have the hardest time breaking down carbohydrates.  The breakdown is like this:

Breakfast- 2 servings of carbs (1 serving = 15 grams) w/ 1-2 servings of protein.
Snack- 2 servings of carbs, 1 serving of protein
Lunch- 3 servings of carbs, 2 servings of protein, 1-2 servings of green leafy vegetables
Sanck- Same as above
Dinner- Same as lunch
Sanch- Same as above

Yes, I get a snack after dinner.  One of my fave parts of the meal plan!

But lately? My snacks have been heavily carb loaded.  The other day I had a slice of pound cake (yikes!) that a co-worker made from scratch.  Today I had multiple servings of cereal.  Cereal wouldn't be so bad if 1) I limited it to one serving and 2) paired it with some protein.  I don't drink dairy milk but drink almond milk instead.  Thing is... there's hardly any protein in almond milk.

It is uber important to pair carbs with protein because it helps slow down the glucose from flooding my system.  This is also why complex carbs > simple carbs (example? brown rice > white rice).  When the body breaks down non-complex carbs (white rice, white flour, refined sugar, etc...) it floods the system with glucose and my body struggles to break down and/or store it.  However when the glucose is slowyly released, the body can handle it a lot better and my glucose levels stay pretty consistent.

When I checked my glucose levels after dinner tonight, I was over by 2 points.  I can't help but think that if I didn't stuff my face with cereal a few hours before, I might have been in a normal range.

My doc gave me the following ranges:
Fasting (before breakfast)- <95
1 hour after meals (first bite, not the last)- <140
*If I eat somewhere that takes longer than 30 minutes to eat, say like a restaurant, I can wait 2 hours after my first bite to test.  Then my limit is <120.

This meal plan is such a delicate balancing act for me.  It's HARD.

After these last few days though I found my motivation to get back to business and buckle down.  It's important for my health and also for my baby.

I've accepted that I'm going to make mistakes but I really hope the few bad choices I've made don't have a lasting impact on my baby. 

Tomorrow is a brand new day and I'm ready to start fresh!

I Heart 3-Day Weekends!!

Whoo hooo! I'm loving this nice break from work.

Last weekend I was in Maui for a wedding and things were super hectic. 

Yes- 7 months preggo and in the bridal party. I rocked it!

When I got back to Honolulu I felt like I needed a vacation from my vacation.  After the wedding festivities, I tried to hang out with all of the relatives I haven't seen in awhile.  It was really tough because my time there was sooooo short and I wanted to spend time with so many people! I even missed out on time spent with my girl at Jenns Adventures and a few other high school buddies.  It was definitely a bittersweet trip since we won't be returning till after the baby is born in December. 

When I got back to work on Tuesday, I was playing catch up all week! I felt like I was constantly behind. So this day off is a nice break for me.

We met with my gestational diabetes (GD) specialist on Wednesday and she said my number were really good!

Dr. Silva at the Fetal Diagnostic Institute of the Pacific is  really easy to talk to.  She answered all my questions and made us feel really comfortable. 

I'm really happy with my results, even though they aren't perfect, and confident that I'm doing a good job.

My husband even gave me a high-five as we walked out the door!

On Friday we went to dinner with my uncle from Guam, which was a nice surprise.  I had to be really careful about what I ordered because I know how disatrous eating at restaurants can be.

The place? Macaroni Grill.  One of the worst places to eat for someone on a special diet.  But I made it work =)

I ordered the Chicken Cannoloni (sp??) and it was OK.  I had a salad on the side to round out my meal.  The service was suuuuuper slow. But the company was great.  I only ate half of my dinner because (surprise surprise) it was a tad bit salty. 

We ran a bunch of errands on Saturday and spent the night chillin at home.

Sunday was equally relaxing.  We woke up late and had a light breakfast at home.  Then we headed out for a "cruise". 

You know, when hop in the car and just drive.  A CRUISE- island style.

We ended up at Crepes No Ka 'Oi in Kailua.  It's a cute little place that serves savory and sweet crepes.  I ordered a Bella Italia (tomatoes, onions, peppers, and sausage) and it was YUMMMM. The husband ordered a Pizza Crepe (cheese, pepperoni, marinara sauce, and olives) and was equally YUMMMM.

We sat at the bar in front of a mirror so of course I had to take a picture:

No, nothing is wrong with hubby's teeth.  The mirror was dirty and we tried 8 times to get a decent shot!

After lunch we walked across the street and browsed through a Pier 1.

I gotta admit.  Pier 1 Imports can be a bit pricey for our budget but the way they set everything up just sucks me in! Walking around I started planning our first dinner party when we find a place we want to get settled into.  Not where we live now, but somewhere, someday. God bless my husband for humoring me through that!

After our stroll we hopped into the car and ended up at the beach. Unfortunately, it was WAY too windy for us and we didn't feel like freezing when we came out of the water.  We sat there for a bit, took in the scenery and salt air, and then headed home.

We rounded out the night with dinner/leftovers, an evening stroll, and drive to grab some frozen yogurt. 

By the time we came home, we were walking zombies.  Such a great day, but we were wiped out!

So what are the plans for today? The husband is at work, I get to stay home.  I planned on cleaning the house but apparently that only entails making the bed, washing dishes, and blogging.  I may or may not go to Target later for some household items but we'll see.

Hope you're enjoying your day!

Having a Plan Can Change Fear Into Confidence

I have always been afraid of becoming diabetic.  My grandmother has diabetes as well as my grandfather’s sisters.  I have childhood memories of asking my grandma why she couldn't eat this or that, my uncles having talks with her about her health, my grand-aunts poking themselves in the stomach with insulin.

It has always been in the back of my mind.

My mom hasn’t been diagnosed. Yet.  

But there’s still a chance it could develop due to eating and exercise habits.

I always thought of my mom as my “shield”, thinking to myself, “Well, she isn’t diabetic so until she is I don’t have a REAL reason to worry.”

I know better. Deep down inside I knew this wasn’t true.  But I never had to really deal with it.

Until I found out I was pregnant.

For the record, I’m the type of pregnant woman who researches A LOT of information.  I don’t stop at one source. I’m always looking for conflicting reports to see which one makes the most sense.  If I can’t understand the science behind something, I keep looking for a source that can explain it in small words. 

So once I found out I was pregnant, I’ve been reading books, joining internet forums, and signed up for a 12-week birthing class (shortened to 10, 2 more classes to go!).  I like to be well-informed and never feel comfortable taking someone’s word for something. 

That being said, I researched the tests doctors use to diagnose Gestational Diabetes and almost immediately was filled with fear that I wouldn’t pass.  I know my family history. I know my risks (being a Pacific Islander and overweight pre-pregnancy, and being over 25 during my first pregnancy). During my research I came across articles written by midwives and OB/GYNs that explained why the Gestational Diabetes test(s) was/were faulty to begin with (I plan to explain this in another post).

I also know that being diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes (GD) would be a hindrance to my plan of having an unmedicated birth.  Now some of you might wonder what is the big deal of giving up and unmedicated birth for the safety of your baby and yourself??

Well, according to my research uncontrolled GD causes macrosomia (large newborns, think 9+ pounds), pre-term labor, low-blood sugar for baby after birth, and a bunch of other things I can’t remember off the top of my head.  With those risks, a lot of my choices are now taken away. 

It is devastating.

Also, being diagnosed with GD automatically labels me as a high risk pregnancy, meaning the original plans I had for my baby’s birth have a higher chance of flying out the window.

For example:

-Intermittent fetal monitoring: I do not want to be strapped to a monitor the entire time in labor. I want freedom to move around (very important for pain management).  If my blood sugar is out of control, I will have to be monitored constantly and strapped to a bed.

-IV-hookup: It is not required in normal, healthy pregnancies to be hooked up to IV fluids. I prefer to be hydrated with my own choice of liquids.  But if my blood sugar drops or is out of control, my doc wants me hooked up to an IV to receive glucose water.

-Induction: No matter what, controlled or not, my pregnancy cannot go past 40 weeks for fear of a large baby.  I have no choice now that I’m high risk.  Research shows that some babies don’t arrive till 41+ weeks and are perfectly healthy! This is due to an off-estimate of the due date. But for me? NO choice, no matter what.  The only say I have in the matter is to try natural induction methods before my 40 week deadline.  

That's a lot of pressure to deal with!

So when the time came for me to do the 1-hour Glucose Screening Test, I was nervous to say the least.  I was told to fast for 10 hours before the test.  I was given a Glucola drink that contains 50g of glucose.  An hour later they drew blood to test my blood sugar. My blood sugar needed to be below 140 to pass.  It was 183!

As soon as I got the news, I was a crazy wreck.  I now had to take the 3-hour test and I knew for sure I would fail.  I cried after I got home from work (um, let's be honest. I cried at my work desk).  Felt like a failure.  Like I already let my baby down and put it at all sorts of risks. 

I tried to ask my doctor if I could at least postpone it.  After an emotional call where I asked him about GD and what would change to my birth plan, I was still shaken up.  I burst into tears right after hanging up with him (again at the office.  I think I'm building the reputation of THE crazy hormonal pregnant woman). 

I was so scared of the results and what the label would mean to the medical staff.

Needless to say I failed the 3-hour test and was diagnosed with GD.

The good news? My fasting test was great (72, needed to be below 95)! My doc is pretty positive I can control  my sugar levels through diet and exercise alone.

If I can’t, I’m put on an anti-hyperglycemia medication (pill). If that doesn’t work, then I need to take insulin.

He explained that I’d have to attend a diabetes class and take blood-glucose tests (finger pricks) 4 times a day. 

And that if I didn’t control it, my baby could get really big, have breathing problems after birth, and even die (yeah, I burst into tears after that one!). He shared that one of his current patients didn’t care at all about managing her GD and now her baby’s ultrasound is showing signs of a heart defect.

Cue more bawling.

(To my doctor's credit, he's not the type to use scare tactics.  This info is taken out of context to show the severity of the situation.  During our conversation I told him I wanted to know all of my risks and options.  I asked, he delivered.)

The next few days were tough. I had no diet plan and was scared.  I limited my carbs and sweets but wasn’t sure if what I was doing was enough.

I finally got signed up for a Diabetes class where I learned how to plan my meals and take my blood tests.  It wasn’t as bad as I thought.  I also have a meeting with a endocrinologist to discuss my results next week.

The positive outcome of all this:

I’m learning to eat better.  I get the gist of healthy eating (did you read above where I like to conduct extensive research? This applies here as well LOL) but now that I have a meal plan I have a better understanding of how my body reacts to carbohydrates. I've learned that my body is better able to handle carbohydrates if I have some sort of veggie and A LOT of protein.  Which is what I should be eating anyway.

My husband is eating better.  Because he eats what I eat (at home anyway, he’s on his own when I’m out of town or if he’s at work).

I'm moving more.  Early in my pregnancy I literally just stopped working out.  After my first 5K, I just stopped.  I wanted to rest and I was sooooo tired all the time.  I would fit in light walks here and there.  But now? Walking for 10 minutes after meals helps keep my blood sugar down.  I can usually only walk after lunch and dinner (the time after breakfast is usually spent in traffic. Boo!) but I've already noticed a difference in my test results.

It’s temporary.  The strict diet of carb counting is only until I give birth.  Obviously I will still be watching what I eat after baby is here but the strict monitoring of my blood sugar levels and my meals by my eagle eye docs will be a thing of the past.

The past few days have been OK.  I’ve had a few spikes in the beginning that had the endocrinologist worried but today has been good.

After a week of feeling like I was trapped in a tornado of chaos and feeling so out of control, I am now confident in myself and my ability to do what is healthy for me and my baby.

I got this.