Okay so a little about me I have been a diabetic since I was three. I am 28 years old now andalmost 36 weeks pregnant. My last A1C was 5.2!
My normal OB was away this week so I had to see a doctor whom I have never met before. She asked me how have my blood sugars have been. I was honest and told her that last night was rough, but that I talked to my Endo weekly and was told that this can happen sometimes. I am freaking out now because she called me a poorly controlled diabetic and was putting my baby in jepordy.
My question to you guys is, has anyone else ever experianced one high blood sugar in the last trimester? Was your baby okay? I talk to my Endo almost every day.. I try my hardest but now I feel like the worst mommy to be in the world... any advice?
Lindsay
PS. I should also add that my baby is in the 50% for growth and weight.
Uh… seriously? She yelled at you for ONE high evening and you have a A1C of 5.2? I’m sorry, but it sounds like this lady has absolutely no clue what she is talking about. What a jerk. Honestly, I would have said, “Uh, do you even know what an A1C is?”
I know a woman that had at least one high a day during her pregnancy and her baby is healthy and happy! And her A1C was not as low as yours. Hope that helps put things in perspective.
Please don’t worry or beat yourself up over this. My last pregnancy was a twin pregnancy with double the amount of placenta. The placenta is what produces the anti-insulin hormones. It was a battle every day for me to keep my bgs in a “happy” range (especially while chasing after a toddler!). My A1C was consistently 6.0 throughout my entire pregnancy with my twins and guess what?! My twins are perfectly healthy, happy, handsome 8 month old baby boys now.
Congrats on your pregnancy! Enjoy the last weeks before you meet your little one!
Warm Wishes,
Pam
T1 for 30 years, diagnosed at age 3
Proud Mama to an almost 2 1/2 year old daughter and 8 month old identical twin sons
would you mind defining high ? what numbers exactly you guys talking about? for me it’s impossible to keep my BG in normal range all the time. I see 170- 200 couple times a week and yet my A1C is very good (around 5).
Thanks everyone… this makes me feel SOOOOOO much better. I talked to my Endo this morning and she gave me the same advice… I think what frustrated me the most is that it was some person who is not a diabetic & cannot possibly understand how much work and effort it takes to simply keep your blood sugars on target was telling me that I must be doing something wrong &/ or my endo was not a good endo… It was a slap in the face that really hurt!
My reading was 285. It was extremely high and took forever (about 4 hours to come down). Once down I had many lows throughout the night…
I think you are going to be fine - especially with an A1C like that!!! My daughter is now 3 months old and is doing fantastic. Throughout my pregnancy, my A1C’s were in the low 6s and I always did my best to keep my blood sugars in control. However, my blood sugars were not perfect and compared to many I read about out here, they were elevated. Every week there seemed to be a change and it always took me a day or two to figure out my insulin needs … thus there was always some point where there was an elevated blood sugar or two … it is so important to be diligent but I think that there is also so much stress associated with being “perfect” and you need to remember that you are going through weekly changes like any pregnant woman. That means cravings, too!!!
Lindsay-
It’s ok. Your baby will be born healthy. In my 3rd trimester, I had one blood sugar reading in the 300’s and when I tested for ketones it came up moderate. I freaked and called the on-call nurse. She said that as long as I had corrected for it, and kept checking my bs to make sure it was on the way down that it would be ok. She said that one high number wasn’t going to do lasting damage.
Just want to add- I’m lucky to live in the metro DC area where the docs have lots of patients like us & are often involved in the world of research too.
I’m in the 37th week of my second baby (27 years with Type 1), and am gaining more weight than we ever want to, having the occasional high BG, and am super insulin resistant- I hate my daily insulin totals! : )
But, I see my OB & endo all of the time of course & have been having weekly sonograms since the 35th week- and everyone says the same thing- “the placenta is not your friend” as in, it’s unpredictable at times just how insulin resistant we can be. And it’s gobbling up the insulin and turning it into weight for us, rather than doing it’s usual superstar job.
And they are consistent- the extra weight gain & occasional high just keep proving what they already know- we’re diabetic! : )
By the way, my doctors said there are plenty of women (gestational diabetics too) who try as they may, have major problems with blood sugar control during pregnancy- and in most of those cases, the baby is fine when born.
Boo for the ignorant OB you met. I have no patience for ignorance in the medical field. I once had an endo who said the insulin pump was out of the question for me during pregnancy and that “women in europe who are pregnant use oral meds”= needless to say, I fired her. : ) Who wants someone treating them for type 1 that thinks pills could help?
Congrats on your fabulous A1C & I’m guessing your baby is already here- or will be soon- so congrats & good luck!
Carolee
Hi Carolee,
Thanks for the congrats! My baby girl was born on October 15th… and I can honestly say that it is GREAT to not be pregnant anymore! Also with that said… DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THE WEIGHT GAIN I gained way more then I could have ever thought to have… and I ate 100% perfect! two weeks later I have already lost 40 lbs! It really is the insulin and swelling that cause the gain.
On that note, I live in the same area as you… I agree that the some of the best docs are in our area… but it’s also true that some doctors are ignorant! I told my regular OB and Endo what happened and the reassured me that I was doing great… However, in the back of my mind I still felt a tremendous amount of guilt!
I definitely saw 285 when I was pregnant…more than once! I now have a healthy 5 year old and one year old. They had no problems at birth and were normal sized. Blood sugar control is very very very tough by 36 weeks. High blood sugar, although to be avoided obviously anytime, is most damaging early on when organs are forming.
Your baby will be fine.
It sounds to me like you are doing great so far! Congrats on the 5.2 and if it were me I’d have yelled at the new doctor! Did she realize you were T1? Oooo, I’d have come unglued at the guilt and the calling me an uncontrolled diabetic. Nothing pisses me off more when I"m working my butt off than that kind of thing! Congrats and your baby will be fine!
