After a fairly easy pregnancy (note: the pregnancy itself was fairly easy, while managing the diabetes and the related medical team took quite a bit of effort and emotional energy), I’m pleased to share that our little guy was born just before his scheduled induction date. Following with the easy pregnancy, the labor itself went very smoothly. It was quick and drug-free, surprisingly (only the contractions at the very end had me uncomfortable enough to consider the epidural, but it was literally a matter of 15-20 minutes of that before the actual delivery…had it gone on much longer, I think I would have strongly considered requesting the epidural).
We battled some low blood sugars for 24 hours, but after we got past that hurdle, everything has gone smoothly. He’s a cutie and was well worth the strict focus on diet and the many, many doctors’ appointments throughout the process.
This community was especially helpful and reassuring during the process, so thank you.
I’ve been following your updates and am happy to hear the baby is here! I can’t even imagine how exciting that is – congratulations!
So far my pregnancy is proceeding easily (KNOCK ON WOOD!) and my BG management is good too (DOUBLE-KNOCK ON WOOD!!). I only wish the ending is similar to yours – I really want not to be induced and go drug-free as well. It’s so encouraging to read it’s possible. (If you ever have the time for a few more details, I would be curious to find out the exact timing your induction was scheduled for – week and day; and whether your good control was at all taken into consideration when discussing the induction option.)
Thanks! My induction was scheduled for 38+6 so that I would deliver on +7 before I hit 39 weeks. It was a potential struggle…the first doctor I spoke with when it was time to schedule was VERY conservative and wanted to schedule it for 38+1 (the MFM was fine as long as it was during week 38). Luckily it was too late in the day to schedule and the doctor who followed up with me the next day said we could be more flexible, as they understood I wanted a better shot of going into labor naturally. The OB was open to pushing it back because of my good control. The MFM was militant about it being during week 38, “because of the significant risk of stillbirth.” I appreciate the role of the MFM, but felt throughout that they did not appreciate the good control I had of my T1D.
I went into labor on 38+5. All in all, less than 12 hours from when I first started feeling contractions.
Regarding the medical team, it was more exhausting than anything else. So many appointments (I generally had 2-4 per week towards the end of the pregnancy). My endo was supportive and understanding and complimentary about what I was doing. The OBs were generally really well informed about T1D and understood I had good control so they were fine to let me self-manage and would just check in. The MFM (high risk doctor) was the one who seemed to lump all diabetics (regardless of type of level of control) together, which was frustrating. She was not willing to compromise on the timing of the induction - it had to be during week 38, no matter what.
Otherwise, I’d say managing the diabetes took more effort and a lot more guilt than it does outside of pregnancy. I feel like I’m constantly hyper-aware of my blood sugar and the effect it has on my state of mind and how my body feels. That’s under normal conditions. Then, during pregnancy, every bg reading, every meal I have, if it goes out of that 60-140 range, comes racked with guilt about potential impacts on the baby. And then there’s all the well-meaning questions from the medical team, my family, and others who know about my T1D. It was all just a lot. I’m glad that part is over, but again, thankfully, the pregnancy itself went smoothly. I can’t quite imagine managing the diabetes AND a challenging pregnancy, although I can see that many women out there are doing just that successfully.
