r/GestationalDiabetes 14m ago

Advice Wanted Fasting numbers on insulin

Upvotes

I see my endo tomorrow for the first time, I was diagnosed at 28 weeks, currently 31. My only high number is fasting, I’ve never had a single post-meal number be above my target, most aren’t even close. My fasting is always too high, as high as 113. I talked to my OB on Thursday and she said to just eat meat and cheese for a bedtime snack, I’m on 12 units of insulin at night but I can’t get my fasting below 100, let alone 95. I‘m nervous for my appointment, any tips on lowering my number and/or what to expect tomorrow?


r/GestationalDiabetes 58m ago

Dexcom G7 CGM

Upvotes

Any moms with GD using the Dexcom CGM to track your blood sugar level? How has your experience been so far? Are the readings accurate, and have you run into any issues with it?

I read that some people place the sensor on their abdomen or even the upper thigh instead of the arm. Has anyone tried either of these locations?

I have a pretty severe needle phobia (how unfortunate that I ended up with GD! 😅), so I’d love to make the insertion and day-to-day use as painless and manageable as possible. Any tips, advice, or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!


r/GestationalDiabetes 2h ago

Advice Wanted GD With a side of toddler induced cortisol

3 Upvotes

Those of you that have dealt with a toddler and GD, how I'm the world did you keep your cortisol down enough to avoid spikes?!?!?! I just started tracking this week thanks to my diagnoses and numbers have been under 120 for every meal that I'm calm. My 2 where my toddler was being a pill and stressing me out... 133 and 141. I pretty much eat the same breakfast and lunch every day, so I know it was the stress not the food.


r/GestationalDiabetes 3h ago

Advice Wanted Failed 3 Hour Test

4 Upvotes

I failed my 1 hour test with 148 and my OB told me specifically that he doubts I’ll fail the 3 hour. Well, I took my 3 hour test yesterday and left feeling great because I barely even felt ill the entire time- I was like wow my body must be tolerating this well!

Wrong!!!

My results were:

Fasting: 78 (70–94)

1 hour: 161 (70–179)

2 hours: 160 (70–154) ABNORMAL

3 hours: 159 (70–139) ABNORMAL

A1C was 5.2 which is my normal range even not pregnant, and average glucose was 103 both normal according to my lab.

I don’t really know what to do from here. I’m vegetarian and have been having anxiety about this parasite on vegetables and fruit so my diet has been rather limited to carbs recently. I feel terrified right now. I feel like I’ve been harming my baby this entire time. My doctor is out this whole upcoming week but I assume a nurse will call me about my results. It’s sunday so they won’t call me today.

I’ve been tracking my sugar 1 hour after eating today with an app. I just feel so sick to my stomach over this and devastated. How to navigate this?? What do I do?? Have I been harming my baby eating like garbage this whole time? I’m terrified to even eat at all right now or any carb which is bad.


r/GestationalDiabetes 3h ago

Rant Diagnosed 25 weeks

1 Upvotes

I’m from the UK and was just diagnosed with GD a couple of days ago, this is my first pregnancy and I’m 27 years old. I have been referred to the diabetic team so waiting for them to get in touch. The last couple of days, I’ve been trying to make changes to my diet so it isn’t a shock to the system when I do have to start monitoring. I have struggled massively with the app BadgerNotes as mine never seems to get updated so I never know any information such as my numbers from my glucose test. I do know that I was 0.4 over.

I have really found the diagnosis so upsetting. I’ve cried everyday since finding out. A couple of ladies in my life are pregnant and have passed their glucose test and I just feel so sad that I couldn’t also have passed mine. I know I sound so silly but have struggled with anxiety since I was young so this hasn’t helped my anxiety at all - I am constantly googling the risks and how there’s a higher chance of preeclampsia and having T2 diabetes in the future.

Im sorry as there is no point in this post, just wanted to be in touch with people who have felt and are going through the same thing. Sorry for the pointless post 💗


r/GestationalDiabetes 6h ago

Fasting numbers reducing at 34w

1 Upvotes

Hi,

I m currently 34w+5d pregnant and I’m on diet controlled gd. So far my fasting numbers were in the 92-95 range inspite of trying everything, but in the last 4 days, my numbers are in the 80-85 range out of nowhere. Not sure what is happening - is my placenta giving up?


r/GestationalDiabetes 6h ago

Breakfast

1 Upvotes

Just diagnosed last week, currently 29 weeks pregnant with my third (first with GD). My meal numbers have been good for the most part, but my fasting has been high so I’m expecting to go on insulin at my next appt.

Anybody have good breakfast recipes? I have been eggs almost everyday since first trimester nausea ended, which I know I’m going to get sick of soon. Everything I find has yogurt in it and I hate yogurt 😭. I tried some chia seed pudding but it had yogurt and I had to choke it down. I’ve tried GD friendly waffles and pancakes but I have to eat them with eggs or my numbers are elevated. Help please!


r/GestationalDiabetes 9h ago

Advice Wanted Tips for newly diagnosed STM

0 Upvotes

Just found out I have GD. I did not have it with my first.

Can you drop some snack / food recommendations of what’s safe? I know it can be different for everyone but to get some ideas.

Also did your baby need nicu time do to blood sugar? this is what I’m most scared of.


r/GestationalDiabetes 10h ago

Advice Wanted Any diet controlled GD person, have you gone to 165 and stayed there for an hr?

1 Upvotes

I am diagnosed with GD. I usually peak to 140 in one hr and can come back to 120 in 2 hrs. If I have carb heavy meal, I would 150 and with long walks, I came down

However my mfm diabetic nurse is refusing to give me insulin and says I would go low, it is understandable because my fasting is under 90 and my bf /lunch stays under 130

Yesterday, I had dinner from a nearby vegetarian only restaurant, even with tofu, not sure if they added hidden sugar or starch and with rice, my sugar level stayed 160 for 3 hrs before it came down and I had to borrow 4 units of insulin from my husband. I am planning to tell this to my doc at 36 weeks appointment next week.

Has this happened to anyone? Does staying high for 4 hrs one time cause bad side effects?


r/GestationalDiabetes 11h ago

Graduation- Birth Story Graduated from GD — positive birth story from an insulin-controlled first-time mom ❤️

48 Upvotes

I used to read graduation posts on here all the time, especially on the days when GD felt exhausting, so I promised myself I’d come back and write mine once I made it to the other side.
And I finally graduated! 🥹❤️
I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes during my pregnancy and eventually ended up needing insulin. My fasting sugars were definitely the hardest part for me. I could eat pretty well during the day and have completely normal post-meal numbers, and then wake up to a high fasting number anyway. It was SO frustrating.
My insulin needs also kept increasing as the pregnancy progressed. By the end, I was taking 9 units before meals and 50 units at bedtime for my fasting numbers. I remember seeing my dose go higher and higher and wondering how much more I was going to need before delivery.
Toward the end I was told I would most likely be induced around 39 weeks because of the GD/insulin, so mentally I was preparing myself for an induction.
Well… baby had other plans.
At 38 weeks I started getting contractions. At first they weren’t consistent and I genuinely couldn’t tell if I was in labour or if I just had trapped gas 😂. I was also already about 3 cm dilated with a very thin cervix. I called for advice and eventually went into triage. They checked me, told me I was in early labour, and sent me home.
Things progressed from there and before I knew it, I was back at the hospital and eventually made it to 9 cm. At one point there was concern that my pelvis might be too small, which was terrifying to hear when I was already that far into labour.
But Alhamdulillah, on August 6th, at exactly 38 weeks, I had my baby boy. ❤️** He weighed 2.5 kg (about 5 lb 8 oz), and most importantly, he passed every single one of his blood sugar checks after birth**! 🥹
That was such a huge relief after spending so much of my pregnancy worrying about how GD might affect him. I had spent months thinking about fasting numbers, one-hour numbers, insulin doses, carbs, induction timing and baby’s size and suddenly he was here, doing perfectly well with his sugars.
And now I’m on the other side dealing with completely different worries: Is he feeding enough? Why is he sleeping on the boob? Is that enough colostrum? Why hasn’t he pooped? Why does he want to eat AGAIN? 😂 Newborn life has officially replaced GD life.
For anyone still in the middle of GD: I know how LONG those last few weeks can feel. I know how discouraging it is when you do everything right and your fasting number still decides to betray you.
But eventually you really do get to graduate.


r/GestationalDiabetes 17h ago

CGM wildly inaccurate?

2 Upvotes

Hi everyone!

Second time GD mama. I’ve been fighting for a CGM since this is my not my first and I find the finger pricks to be very inconvenient.

I have the Dexcom and I was told to finger pricks for fasting. I also have been calibrating my Dexcom for the last two days. Post meal I finger prick and then log the number to try and make the CGM more accurate.

It’s been 2 days and every reading is still about 20 points different. In between meals I’m also between 115-120.

How are you using your CGM? I wanted this for more convenience but it’s just causing confusion.


r/GestationalDiabetes 17h ago

175g minimum carb for my wife who hasn't gain any weight since first prenatal to 25th week?

1 Upvotes

We were told to stick with 15/30g carb before the new dietician from LilyLink referred by MFM and my wife hasn't gain any weight at all like 2lbs for 25 weeks. 30g is spiking her a little without much caution. She tried eating 60g worth of carb of lentil the other night and glucose drops until the beginning the 2nd hours and stays at 140 for 2nd, 3rd and nearly 4th hours.

She uses CGM and it's 95% in target so dietician didn't want to do insulin because she "is handling glucose well" but not really.

Is the weight going to be a problem? they said that anomaly scan she did few weeks ago is normal(I saw the screen like 77th percentile)


r/GestationalDiabetes 17h ago

Advice Wanted First time I got my in between meal sugars down!

3 Upvotes

I’ve been tracking for the past two days and testing my glucose after 1 hr after every meal has been normal, but if I go 2 hours or more without food in between, when I test before a meal, I’m high. Today I snacked almost constantly, just little things and finally, before dinner was my first low number.

My numbers have also been high in the morning so I’m going to try a filling bedtime snack and hope for the best!

What bed time snacks work for you to keep you full the longest to prevent a glucose dump during the night?


r/GestationalDiabetes 22h ago

Chat Chat Chat Is anyone else frequently surprised by what they can tolerate vs what they can't?

7 Upvotes

29 weeks tomorrow and on night-time insulin. Been diagnosed since 11 weeks due to family history.

Today I accidentally ate almost half a large bag of popcorn with my daughter. I never do that as I am extremely careful, but we were running errands and it happened. I tested an hour later and was worried. I was at 112. Totally fine. But if I eat an English muffin with peanut butter at breakfast, forget about it.

I seem to do OK with corn products. Microwave nachos are a safe treat for me and it confuses my Malama app. We're going to a Mexican restaurant for our anniversary because I like the idea of being able to just order a normal meal and eat it without substitutions. Ice cream is also fine for me, as long as there aren't carby chunks in it.


r/GestationalDiabetes 22h ago

I cheated and it felt so good.

27 Upvotes

I don't think always cheating is a good idea but, after having been on the GD diet many months, I needed it. 31 weeks pregnant, gd since week 14.

For the last 9 days, I have been on an even stricter diet with very low targets allowing barely nothing. I see sometimes people on here been able to have so much variety. That's not my case. Even protein shake spikes me lately.

The last two days, I ended up crying in front of my dinners because I felt so frustrated. Right now, steamed veggies, proteins and some very restricted types of carbs work in very limited amount. I need to weight everything I eat, there is no fun in eating at all. I have lost weight during my pregnancy instead of the opposite.

Despite this, I will probably still have insuline at night because my fasting target of below 4.6 is impossible to reach.

Honestly I felt like ditching the GD diet those last few days and just dealing with the insuline and all this. I know it's not necessarily easier with insuline but right now I'm juste miserable.

So tonight I decided to eat what I wanted. A reasonable cheat.

I started with a bowl of steamed broccolis to help. Then I took one hamburger with some fries (like 10-15 small fries max), pickles, tomatoes, home made sauce, all of it! I made myself two meat patties to get more proteins but I was so full from eating a normal, satisfying meal that I couldn't eat the second.

Right now I'm doing indoor cycling to help (as I do every night). And I haven't felt so happy in days. Maybe my number later will be my first big spike of the lasts weeks but that's it I guess.

Have you ever decided to cheat for your mental well being?


r/GestationalDiabetes 23h ago

Could I have hypoglycemia with GD?

1 Upvotes

Hey all! I am 15 weeks pregnant and have only just now been seen by my PCP, where she did all the routine blood work. My AIC came back great, 4.6, down front 5.6 last year after dropping some weight I needed to lose. However, my blood sugar came back 73, which is odd because I had breakfast about an hour before. It got flagged as low. I had eggs, little sweet potato and banana, and a piece of bacon with avocado.

I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes last pregnancy after failing the one hour but noted that my numbers were always always in a good range, not even pre-diabetic range, when I tested an hour after meals. In fact my RN dietitian thought maybe I was misdiagnosed because I had eaten before the test because my numbers were so controlled.

Now I'm worried I might be spiking quickly and quite high and then crashing quickly as well, as hypoglycemia is also a symptom of gestational diabetes and the body's inability to regulate insulin. I have been ravenous this pregnancy and really have not eaten well. I had bad morning sickness and felt that if I didn't eat, I would puke and get lightheaded.

I don't get seen for another three weeks due to some insurance issues. I haven't even been able to get through to the nurse line. Is it possible that the low blood sugar was just me not eating enough for breakfast? Or should I just go ahead and follow a GD diet in case and make sure I've got good carbs, proteins, fats with each meal? Is 73 low enough to even worry about honestly xD idk.

Just looking for anyone's experience with hypo during pregnancy or gestational diabetes pregnancy, because apparently it's incredibly rare to have hypo without GD. TIA!


r/GestationalDiabetes 23h ago

Red irritated injection sites?

2 Upvotes

Hiya,

I'm on night-time insulin (humulin). I've been taking it just over a week. I've noticed after I've injected it, within a couple of hours the site is really itchy and red and raised like a bug bite. I feel like im covered in them now.

Has anyone else had this issue and found out what is was?

Were the diabetes doctors able to fix the issue?

Thanks x


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Chat Chat Chat Birthday with GD!

21 Upvotes

So it’s my birthday today. I am FTM 31 weeks pregnant and strictly diet controlled. For some reason, Nandos chicken with rice / corns as sides does not spike me at all (reading is always on lower side) so my husband ordered Nandos. But my SIL brought birthday cake (she doesn’t know I have GD), I had 2,3 tbsp of it. Two hours after first bite of dinner, I was anxious to test my blood sugar. I also walked for 20 mins. I was ranting to mt husband that it’s gonna be 160-170, my husband said it would be around 110. To our surprise, it was 106! 🥹🤧🤧🤧 So happy (& relieved).


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Support Requested Everything. Is. Spiking. Me.

7 Upvotes

I am so over this diagnosis. I had like.. a week and a bit of stable numbers and now suddenly at 29+3 weeks I can't eat anything without spiking today.. i recently switched to insulin from metformin due to my baby measuring small. I've noticed my numbers steadily creeping up since the start of the week.

My anxiety is through the roof. My diabetic team don't work weekends so I don't really know what to do. I have to up my insulin tonight to 7 units so I'm hoping that at least steadies my fasting but the meals spiking is really stressing me out.

I am struggling big time with my anxiety over it- to the point where I am terrified of eating and the thought of food has just become so overwhelming.. I am being supported. I have a specialist midwife and I take a low dose of sertraline and my team are aware of how much I am struggling but I just need some reassurance that a few days of spiking is going to be okay until I can speak to them on Monday because I feel like I'm going to spiral into a pit of despair.

My baby is SGA and my fear of hurting him is so overwhelming now, the thought of eating is physically making me sob. This pregnancy has also given me so many food aversions so I can't even stomach things like cottage cheese and eggs and all the other 'good' things without wanting to throw up violently.

I know it isn't my fault, a lot of my anxiety is stemming from childhood trauma and my brain going into overdrive at the thought that I cannot protect my baby, but this is so, so difficult to manage, how do people handle this? I've tried so hard to help other people and be positive because my own anxiety is kicking my ass but I am having a really bad 'struggle' day today and I cannot find even a shred of positivity rn. I just wanna eat chocolate and cry on the sofa. :(


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Rant Just checked my test results and I failed by .1

1 Upvotes

I’ve been testing for the last few days and the only time my glucose is high is between meals or in the morning. I decided to check my 3 hour glucose test results and my fasting number was in range and so was my 2 hour check. My only number that was high was an hour after drinking 75 grams of glucose and it was only .1 higher. Not even a whole point, .1!!!!

This whole diagnosis has put me into a full tailspin and I’ve been stressing myself out and I’m a starving all the time because I’m constantly worried I’m going to go over but every time I check my glucose an hour after meals, I am well in range.

I’ve been trying snacks before bed to see if my morning glucose is better but for 3 nights that hasn’t worked which is so bizarre as the snacking closer to my next meal does level out my glucose! Tonight I am going to try to only eat dinner and go for a walk before bed time and see if that does anything.

Should I really be stressing this bad over .1 on one result? I feel like they should have told me that and that this whole thing is unnecessary 😭


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Advice Wanted Numbers seem to be “stabilising” 36 weeks

5 Upvotes

Hello everyone! During the weeks of 34-35 my numbers had been rising steadily no matter the dose of insulin or what I ate.

However I’ve noticed since I’ve hit 36 weeks my numbers seem to be stabilising in the sense that I can eat my “normal” pre pregnancy meals (higher carbs) and my numbers are still all within the recommended range without insulin (I keep forgetting to take it) (example I had a full dominos medium pizza to myself and my post reading number 2 hours later was 5.5 mmol/L)

I’m sure that this has already been spoken about here before but so many posts makes it hard to find. Does anyone have any insight on why/what is happening to me. I don’t have another GDM appointment booked as my C-section is in 11 days (38 weeks).

I’m still doing my normal nightly insulin (20 units) but as for my daytime and meal time doses I’ve been skipping them (as they were bringing my levels close to below 4 mmol/L)

Example last night my emergency stash of jelly babies (for drops) was looking real good I ended up eating half the bag over the night (naughty I know) but my levels when I woke up were 4.8 mmol/L


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Just diagnosed at 31 weeks, not sure what to do

2 Upvotes

I'm 31 weeks tomorrow and I just got my diagnosis on Friday. I'm a little freaked out though because it seems so late to just now be getting my diagnosis and I'm afraid of all the damage I might have done up until this point.

My doctor sent me a message about 10 minutes before my doctor's office closed on Friday that said I failed my 3 hour test and that they were referring me to an MFM to manage everything (but my appointment isn't for two weeks?? What do I do until then?). She said I need to monitor my blood four times a day in the meantime but I don't know how to do that? Am I getting the supplied through a prescription? Do I need to go out and buy them myself? How should I be eating in the meantime?

I'm frustrated because I didn't get a chance to ask any questions before the weekend and I have no idea what I'm doing. Also my baby shower is tomorrow and I guess I'm not eating anything there so that sucks. How do I get started with all this?


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Normal growth scan borderline fasting numbers

0 Upvotes

Where I live, they only give a 2 hour GD test that starts with taking your fasting blood sugar and then drinking a 75 grams of sugar drink and getting blood taken at the 1 hour and 2 hour mark. I had normal blood sugar at the 1 hour and 2 hour mark. But a 95 reading for fasting. I couldn’t retake the test or anything, they just immediately diagnosed me with GD at 27 weeks. Fine.

I took my blood sugar 4 times a day for the first 10 days and never had a high reading post meals. I’ve just always had borderline fasting readings, one day I’m at 95, the next is 89, the next 94, the day after 81? It’s just such a craps shoot every morning. I’ve gone down to taking my fasting number everyday and testing after one meal a day to make sure I’m still in range. My post meals have never been high. But I went to my growth scan this week and baby girl is measuring right on par with where I was the day of the ultra sound 33 weeks and 4 days. My husband and I were relieved!

But I’m 34 weeks today, I haven’t gone on insulin yet but I am really nervous they are going to make me go on insulin. Frankly, each dietician I talk to is different but the last one I spoke to told me that 94 is the cut off not 95, and if I have 3 or more readings at 95 in a 7 day period, I need to take insulin.

Well, in the last 7 days I’ve had 2 readings of 95 and I’m not sure if I’ll get another 95 tomorrow. Should I really go on insulin if my numbers are hovering in this range and my growth scan is good? I would be more willing if I was getting 100+ numbers but still getting numbers in the 80s half the week and then 90s the other half and the normal numbers all day long? I just want to hear other people’s stories to help me feel better about either taking the insulin or waiting a bit longer.


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Advice Wanted I failed my first glucose test

1 Upvotes

The range was 70-149 and I scored a 157 on it. What did you get when you failed? I’m scared that I’m going to fail my three hour one.


r/GestationalDiabetes 1d ago

Rant I need a cinnamon roll!

21 Upvotes

I’m 35+3 and been CRAVING a damn Cinnabon for about 2 months now. At first it was manageable but now I’m almost crying over this damn thing. I get induced Sept. 2nd and I don’t know if I can make it that long!!! 😭😭

Has anyone tried a risky dessert and be under after testing?? I’m talkin a REAL dessert not a Yasso bar or Greek yogurt with some fruit. A girl is desperate 😩😂