I have been a type 1 diabetic since 1996 and i plan to get married this year and start trying for more kids, i already have a daughter who i gave birth to in 1994 before my diagnosis. I really want to know the implications for me as i will be 36yrs when i start trying again and I’ve heard stories of all kinds of complications of diabetes in pregnancy. Please i would really appreciate any contributions and advice for me and my fiance. I’ve started taking Pregnacare for conception is this too early. I also find it very hard to control my sugar my last figure Aic was 12.5Mmnol. Am really getting worried as i would love to have two more kids and preferably have twins. please anyone that has tips can respond to this. Thank you.
I had my daughter in 1997 at age 30 and at the time and a diabetic for 7 years. My doctors said “with health care monitoring and doing the things you know you need to do. There is not reason you should not have a normal pregnancy like anyone else.”
Obviously there are risk factors and everyone is different, but have all your screening done prior to getting pregnant so you know where you stand and make sure you are in control before you get pregnant.
I had to eat every 3 hours and I tested about 16 times as day. The nice thing was I had a sonagram every month and toward the end every two weeks. So I could see that everything was ok. During my pregnancy my A1C was 6.5, it wasn’t easy but you know it will be well worth it. Expect you baby to be in the NICU, they have to be weened off the insulin. I have an I was had gestation diabetes with my now 18 year old and I was a type 1 with my now 11 year old. Many blessing!
Thanks a lot for this glad to hear that you and your kids are doing so well. I would like to know what kind of tests one has to do before pregnancy. Thanks a lot.
Before you get pregnant your Bg have to be under control. The first 2 months when the babies organs are forming it is also important to have a tight control over you BG. Unfortunatly if a woman’s bg is out of control she has a greater chance of having a baby with birth defects. Read hereand here Here is advice from Mayo clinic
Good luck - I hope you have your twins.
Hi, Rosemary! Before having kids, the docs want your A1C 7.0 or lower, otherwise, the baby’s risk of defects increases.
Also, they will check your eyes and your kidneys to see if pregnancy will have additional risks for you. Talk to your endocrinologist, he or she can order the tests.
You might also have to change your current prescriptions. For instance, if you are on an ACE inhibitor, they will pull you off it. Also as your pregnancy progresses, you may have thyroid issues and they like to keep track of that.
I would recommend you see a doc before getting pregnant. I talked to my endocrinologist as well as to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist. Those initial consultations were very helpful and you can get all your questions answered.
Lara
Mom to a six-year-old and T1 for 35 years
Lara gives great advice, get all your test and be in control. Good luck, keep us posted!
Ok thanks i was actually seeing my gynecologist and i didn’t know that the endocrinologist should be involved too from the preconception stage. Thanks so much for this useful information.
You need a high-risk OB, and not just a regular gyn. Maybe your endo can give you a referral. If you have a university hospital nearby, they should have some on staff. Let us know what happens and good luck!
hi rosemary,please get your diabetes incontrolled before,during,and after have your baby.try to get that a1c below 6.5.about the weight problem,you can do it with help from people who love you and most of all yourself,you take control and do it for your baby.i go to weight watcher and it has helped me greatly.watching what i eat is not as hard as i thought it would be.TRY IT//GOD BLESS///smiles>i am not pregnant//TO OLD
MY DEAR ROSEMARY,please,please,DO NOT get pregnant until you get everything incontrolled,you will have complications with that a1c 12.5,talk to your dr about your insulin dose,diet,and weight loss.with bg high you run all kinds of complications with the baby life.so please see you dr stat alone with a dietician,and start exercising to get everything right for this pregnancy
Hi Rosemary! Hope that you are doing well.
You should join our group, Oh Baby, for women who are pregnant or planning to be pregnant someday.