6 weeks, 2 days pregnant and I am SO THANKFUL of all the posts here on TuDiabetes about pregnancy.
My last A1C was higher that it should have been so I will admit that I am a wee bit nervous as to how things are going to go.
I have had diabetes for over 22 years now (I'm 32) - I have great medical care (I see an endo, eye specialist, kidney specialist...)
Should anyone have any advice to share:
- keeping my sugars on track
- preventing lows in the middle of the night
- how to not have my family worry about me (my health) so much
- etc. etc.
I would love to hear/read it!
Thanks,
~ Meghan
Congrats! How exciting! We are going to start TTC (tring to concieve) in April - its kind of crazy but we would rather not have a baby around the holidays! Anyways, my sugars are in check by eating 15 carbs breakfasts and 30 carb lunches and dinners - that sums it up food wise and then I try to exercise as much as possible- at least a walk every day. Ohh and cant forget 15 carb snacks twice a day!
Keep us posted!
Excellent advice. I have been trying to spread my carbs more - I’ve always been on a pretty low carb diet (under 50 a day) - so I’m trying to add some more (especially with fruit and veggies).
Thanks for the congrats. It’s very exciting - although we are ‘ready’, I didn’t actually think I’d be able to get pregnant so quickly - Nov baby! Good luck in April!
Hi Meghan! Congratulations!! How very exciting 
I am currently 36 w and will be having this precious girl on March 31st via c-section (to protect my eyes). One way to prevent lows in the middle of the night is to eat some protein before bed. I just about always checked in the middle of the night, though… mainly because I had to get up to use the restroom anyway, haha!! The family thing… well, don’t expect that to ever go away 
Try not to update them on all of the things that the docs are monitoring but do spread any good news you receive when things are going well. That will help them to know that you are well taken care of and that you will get a lot of extra monitoring to make sure things continue to go smoothly, which is an advantage to “normal” pregnancies and not an indication that things WILL go wrong!
Good luck and PLEASE let me know if you have any questions at all!!
Can you tell us more about “protecting your eyes”. I know that it’s suggsted to have an eye appointment before conception, but I don’t really understand what they are thinking happens when you are pregnant. Are there certain things you can do to help?
Hi Annette,
My Maternal Fetal Specialist (MFM) put me on low dose aspirin to help protect my kidneys and eyes. Also, keeping your blood sugar as stable as possible without many fluctuations is important (which of course I am sure you would try to do anyway… although, perfection is impossible, so don’t get too worried if there are swings in your bs because there absolutely WILL be).
I think the concern with pregnancy is the increased blood flowing through your body (twice as much as non-pregnant) and even the possibility of increased blood pressure (…from my understanding, anyway). The c-section is recommended to prevent hemorrhages caused by the pressure of labor, according to my OB.
MFM told me to see my eye doc once each trimester so they could just monitor my eyes. I had laser surgery for retinopathy about 8 years ago, but since then had had no issues. My 1st trimester eye appointment came back with nothing new and then I didn’t go back until my third trimester and there were some new trouble spots, which is why the c-section was recommended, to prevent them from getting worse. If I had no changes, then I likely would have been given the green light to have a vaginal delivery (although my ob would not let me go past 38 1/2 weeks due to increased chances of the placenta getting worn down, although, many women with diabetes go to their due date without any problems…my ob is just extra cautious).
Please let me know if you have any more questions… I am happy to help however I can!!
If my 6-week-old ever lets me put her down long enough to blog about my experience, I will write a lot of advice and post it. Till then, I’m pretty good about responding to specific questions via email! Best of luck!!!
Hello from another Megan I’m 5 weeks 1 day-- and I have the same questions! I’ve had diabetes for 23 years this month…would love to keep in touch through this interesting time!
And CONGRATS to YOU too!
Thankfully my numbers are down - I wear the pump and have been wearing a sensor (which tests my blood every 5 minutes) - and also test about 20 times a day… I’m almost becoming a little ‘freakish’ about it but… I know it’s for a good cause.
I see my pump nurse again tomorrow… but haven’t seen ANYONE else. My endo doesn’t want to see me until April 7th… and then who knows?! I believe I will be working along with a different Dr/ OBGYN…
I look forward to hearing all about your process too!!! Congrats again!
Congratulations Megan! What an exciting time for us all!
Let’s keep each other posted… when we learn new things… share with one another!
Good luck with everything!
Congratulations Megan! I would love to keep in contact with you during your pregnancy as I myself am almost 20 weeks pregnant. I am still working on getting my Hga1C down, and man is it sure hard to do, especially now that I am in my second trimester, and my sugars are going from lo to high from my hormones. I just had my 19 week detailed ultrasound and it was so amazing. Baby looks great, and there seems to be no problems I am also testing my sugars numerous times of the day, it’s almost like a game for me now, LOL! Anyways, I would love to share our experience with eachother, so please feel free to keep in touch with me.
Take care,
Amanda
Wow 20 weeks! That’s great Amanda! I feel as though that is FOREVER away! lol… almost at 8 weeks now - and so far so good.
My A1C was high at conception… dr’s want me to get monthly checks now.
My sugars have been pretty good… but what I have most enjoyed is making myself eat ‘healthy’ foods throughout the day. I must admit, I was not always the ‘best’ diabetic - sometimes skipped a meal from time to time - but not now!
Could you tell me - what week did you get your first ultrasound? I’m feeling so consumed with various Dr’s appt and I haven’t even had one yet with an OB GYN!
Anyhow - Keep us posted… Hoping that the next weeks go wonderfully for you.
~ Meghan
I had 12 sonograms during my pregnancy, Meghan. I had a really early one to confirm the pregnancy at 6 weeks (fertility doc) and then the first time I saw my obstetrician at 9 weeks. After that though, every sono was with the high risk OB (perinatalogist). He did the first one at 13 weeks (the Downs screening) and the next at 18 weeks (where the sex was confirmed). After that, it was every 4 weeks (22, 26, 30) and then weekly starting in week 33. Fairly standard schedule from what I understand.
Early on, they are checking brain and heart growth mainly and the position of your placenta and state of your cervix. Toward the end of the third trimester, they are checking the level of amniotic fluid in the uterus, the bloodflow in the umbilical cord and kidneys, and the overall size of the baby, making weight estimates every two weeks.
Try not to update them on all of the things that the docs are monitoring but do spread any good news you receive when things are going well. That will help them to know that you are well taken care of and that you will get a lot of extra monitoring to make sure things continue to go smoothly, which is an advantage to “normal” pregnancies and not an indication that things WILL go wrong!