Hi all!
I’m 32 weeks pregnant, and I’ve been diagnosed with gestational diabetes for about a month. I was referred to a 2 hour glucose test on account of family members with type 2 diabetes. My 2 hour result was well within the normal range (5.8), but my fasting sugar was just over the limit in my area (5.6)
Before my test I would often give in to pregnancy cravings and binge on 'bad' carbs. I’ve since eliminated all sweets, white bread, pasta and rice, and my diet is based on veggies, meat, fish, eggs and cheese, with olive oil and nuts. I eat 1-2 slices of high protein bread a day, and I can have 2-3 new potatoes per meal without going over the limit. I’ve been able to control my levels with diet alone, except for the morning/fasting sugar which fluctuates between 5.1 and 6.2. I’m supposed to keep it under 5.5. I tried different night time snack strategies, but without much luck. As the levels have been slowly creeping up the doc now decided to put me on metformin over night.
It’s exhausting having to be so obsessed with food and carb counting every single day, as well as testing 6 times a day, but knowing it’s a temporary situation makes it easier.
So finally, here’s my question: is there any way of knowing, short of waiting for post-birth testing, if my diabetes is gestational or a previously undiagnosed type 2? I understand that my test results and the levels I’ve been getting since I started monitoring would be considered normal/non-diabetic if I weren’t pregnant. Is there any logic in thinking that if I had type 2, my levels would have spiked more with the onslaught of pregnancy hormones?
There are reasons for my concern. Several years ago a random blood test showed my fasting level at 7.1. My GP at the time decided to repeat the test a couple of days later and this time the fasting level was at 4.7. He concluded I may have pre-diabetes and advised lifestyle changes. I had been eating a high sugar diet until then and promptly went on a six week no-sugar detox. Since then I've been on a Mediterranean based diet, mostly based on veg and fruit, lean meat, nuts and olive oil, but I also didn't deny myself sugary treats when I craved them. My weight fluctuated somewhat but it's always been in the normal BMI range. But stupidly - I guess I was in denial - I convinced myself that was enough and didn't pursue further tests or monitor my BGL, instead relying on occasional random blood and urine lab tests to "confirm" I was not diabetic. I now feel really bad about that and worry I may have caused the pre-diabetes to develop into type 2.
I fully intend to stick to a balanced low-GI diet after birth to ward off any complications, but the prospect of having to calculate my every meal for the rest of my life, and not being able to have an occasional ice cream or pizza, or even just watermelon without worrying about what it’ll do to me is just too depressing at the moment. I guess I'm looking for some sort of reassurance if there is any.
Thanks for reading all of this
I’m 32 weeks pregnant, and I’ve been diagnosed with gestational diabetes for about a month. I was referred to a 2 hour glucose test on account of family members with type 2 diabetes. My 2 hour result was well within the normal range (5.8), but my fasting sugar was just over the limit in my area (5.6)
Before my test I would often give in to pregnancy cravings and binge on 'bad' carbs. I’ve since eliminated all sweets, white bread, pasta and rice, and my diet is based on veggies, meat, fish, eggs and cheese, with olive oil and nuts. I eat 1-2 slices of high protein bread a day, and I can have 2-3 new potatoes per meal without going over the limit. I’ve been able to control my levels with diet alone, except for the morning/fasting sugar which fluctuates between 5.1 and 6.2. I’m supposed to keep it under 5.5. I tried different night time snack strategies, but without much luck. As the levels have been slowly creeping up the doc now decided to put me on metformin over night.
It’s exhausting having to be so obsessed with food and carb counting every single day, as well as testing 6 times a day, but knowing it’s a temporary situation makes it easier.
So finally, here’s my question: is there any way of knowing, short of waiting for post-birth testing, if my diabetes is gestational or a previously undiagnosed type 2? I understand that my test results and the levels I’ve been getting since I started monitoring would be considered normal/non-diabetic if I weren’t pregnant. Is there any logic in thinking that if I had type 2, my levels would have spiked more with the onslaught of pregnancy hormones?
There are reasons for my concern. Several years ago a random blood test showed my fasting level at 7.1. My GP at the time decided to repeat the test a couple of days later and this time the fasting level was at 4.7. He concluded I may have pre-diabetes and advised lifestyle changes. I had been eating a high sugar diet until then and promptly went on a six week no-sugar detox. Since then I've been on a Mediterranean based diet, mostly based on veg and fruit, lean meat, nuts and olive oil, but I also didn't deny myself sugary treats when I craved them. My weight fluctuated somewhat but it's always been in the normal BMI range. But stupidly - I guess I was in denial - I convinced myself that was enough and didn't pursue further tests or monitor my BGL, instead relying on occasional random blood and urine lab tests to "confirm" I was not diabetic. I now feel really bad about that and worry I may have caused the pre-diabetes to develop into type 2.
I fully intend to stick to a balanced low-GI diet after birth to ward off any complications, but the prospect of having to calculate my every meal for the rest of my life, and not being able to have an occasional ice cream or pizza, or even just watermelon without worrying about what it’ll do to me is just too depressing at the moment. I guess I'm looking for some sort of reassurance if there is any.
Thanks for reading all of this