Diabetes challenges and pregnancy

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Worried123

Active Member
Messages
28
My local hospital was terrible and then had staff shortages, so all my preconception appointments were cancelled. I asked my GP to move me to a different hospital. The consultant there introduced a new system for diabetic women planning to become pregnant or who were already pregnant. They provide you with a blood glucose meter that allows you to upload your readings from the meter directly to a database. The results also get sent to you by email. The consultant's team then reviews the results and emails you. I upload twice a week and hear back from the consultant by email twice a week. NICE guidelines recommend that diabetic women should have regular contact with their doctor/specialist if pregnant, and recommend once a week to keep a check on hb1ac. Mine was 8.3 a few weeks before conception, 8 at 4 weeks and 5.5 at 8 weeks. The system the hospital has pioneered is amazing and extremely helpful and its nice to know someone is there checking your readings twice a week and advising you regularly.
 
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emmie

Active Member
Messages
33
Wow that's amazing worried123! That's such a good idea and like you say it's reassuring that you having that input on a weekly basis! I had a my first preconception appointment last Friday. I've worked really hard to get my a1c down and in 3 months got it from 8.8 to 7.1 but they won't it closer to 6.1 as per NICE guidelines. I will also start doing monthly HaB1c's too.

Such a shame your first hospital want any good!

X


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Worried123

Active Member
Messages
28
Hi emmie good luck with ur blood glucose readings one thing for sure the lower u try to get your hb1ac the more hypos and lows you will experience so whichever end of the hb1ac scale you are it's hard work and requires ongoing continuous testing. My fingers are bruised from testing so much
The Target levels NICE recommend are not too far off those of healthy people ( non diabetics) so essentially they recommend you should have nearly normal readings and hb1ac before and during pregnancy which in theory sounds good but in practice is very difficult to achieve and maintain
Good luck xx


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ash1973

Newbie
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1
I'm confused! Why are you testing your A1c every month, let alone every week? HbA1cs are not similar to glucose where the levels change every day. HbA1cs are related to your red blood cells which recycle every 120days (3months) so testing it less than that will not give an accuarate picture of your long-term glucose status.
 
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emmie

Active Member
Messages
33
I was advised by my diabetes nurse who deals with preconception to do monthly A1c's and like you say it's not completely accurate because of the renewal but because things have to be so closely monitored you can see improvements monthly and they can support more intensively if needed. X


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samroboli

Member
Messages
18
Hi

Regarding the Hba1c's, I never had them taken monthly but I was told by one nurse at the hospital that most of the result comes from the latter part of the 3 months, so I guess monthly does make sense. I used to dread getting my result, but they were always good - 5.8 and that was with occasional sugars of 10 and over, thats why I used to dread them!!

I also had reservations about becoming pregnant and for years said that I wouldn't try because of my diabetes, then at 33 i had that maternal instinct and feeling you just can't deny : ) but it wasn't until I was 37 that I got pregnant, due to a change of relationship (my last partner did not want children at all). If I can do it at 37 (get pregnant and cope with the pregnancy) I think you will be absolutely fine. I just struggled with not having puddings, I have such a sweet tooth (i have been type 1 for 19 years and have always been this way) and missed eating curries (because of the cream in them making my sugars high overnight). I am not on a pump or do not carb count. I also don't have much hypo awareness so I was so paranoid when it came to upping my insulin doses for each meal but I was absolutely fine, no scary hypos to deal with, hypos of course but no scary ones. I am still the same now, worried about having too much insulin with my evening meal - which is always late - so worried about going low overnight, I could just imagine being woken up by a gorgeous dog like yours though : ) I am on steriods now, for something which they say pregnancy brought on but its so rare so I won't worry you or go into it, so I am having to almost treble my insulin doses of an evening, but it is different now because I don't have a little person growing inside me to be responsible for when I get high sugars.

Anyway sorry for the waffle Emmie, like everyone on here says you will have such good care, lots of scans, and lots more opportunities to hear the heartbeat than other mums, lots of appointments towards the end unfortunately (alot of time in the waiting room) and lots of opportunity to ask questions, which I found I had to do as my consultants weren't very forthcoming with information but when i asked they were fine : )

Regarding your pre pregnancy care and advice, can you get it from the diabetes nurse at your GP's practice, mine was really good.

Oh I had a ceaesarean (spelling!!!!) at 37 + 5 days and all was fine, recovery and everything about it, any questions feel free to ask x again sorry for the waffle and if it doesn't make sense, I am tired and hoping for a good nights sleep but whats the betting my little girl will start to wake up as soon as I step into bed as usual the little monkey.
 
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samroboli

Member
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18
Sorry the bit about the caesarean is totally irrelevant to you, I was so tired i was getting confused with a post on a facebook page I go on, so so sorry x :oops:
 
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emmie

Active Member
Messages
33
Thank you samroboli,

Your post was really interesting to read and so glad you've got your little girl :)
Yes certainly the increases of insulin will be fun lol! I think ill try and see the dietician about foods during pregnancy as I'm on a low carb diet/ life style I know ill have to eat the whole grain carbs but would be good to know what amount of carbs are needed each day.

Lol I don't mind hearing about the cesarean, I'm sure that is what ill be having. My mum is really nervous about be becoming pregnant and has already said she doesn't want me to have a natural birth because of the various things I have going on lol plus Toby wouldn't be allowed there so mum would be pricking my finger every 5 mins so I think c section would be less stressful all round lol. How was your recovery? Did you have long in hospital after? I know Toby is going to really struggle me being in hospital as we're not apart for as longer than an hour! Bless him

Thank you all for your comments it's a real help xx


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toastlover

Active Member
Messages
33
I too have been ttc for the last 12 months during which time I've had two early miscarriages.

My consultant advises an HBA1C of less than 7 when trying for a baby which mine has been (6.1) so she's pretty confident my two losses are simply bad luck and not related to control.

My advice is to get your levels stable, take high dose folic acid for at least 3 months before you start to try and relax about it. All that will put you in the best position to conceive.

Good luck x
 
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samroboli

Member
Messages
18
Hi,

My mum was also nervous about me becoming pregnant but when I was actually pregnant she was okay, or at least told me that she was possibly so as not to stress me out too. My mum came to see me after I had been induced as it can be a long process, she was in the delivery room with my boyfriend for a few hours and it was so good to have her there. Has anyone explained to you about a sliding scale which is something they insist on putting all diabetics on when in labour? (although I may be wrong about diabetics on a pump?) Its very good and controls your diabetes for you and they test you every hour so the insulin in the machine can be altered. I liked being on it and having it taken out of my hands for awhile, I was nervous about it prior to going on it.

Poor Toby, he will not understand why you are missing, hopefully you will only have to stay in for a two nights, I missed my dog and was very concerned about her, my boyfriend stayed with me one whole night so the poor thing must of thought she'd been abandoned, I was in for 4 nights due to being monitored before being induced, and bless her poor thing when I did come home I came home with a baby lol so she was confused again but took to the change so well : )

I love how your dog can tell you are going low, today I had four hypos almost one after the other from forgetting to take my steriods (the steriods make my sugars go high 5 - 6 hours after taking them) but because i didn't realise until 3pm that I hadn't taken them I took my usual double dose of insulin after my lunch!!! Hypo Hypo Hypo and I felt awful and all tingly hands and lips for ages after, then a bit after I tested again and thought they'd be up from over correcting but they were 3.9 and i didn't know!! Of course the more you go low the more you lose your symptoms? why do you think you lost your symptoms because you have not been diabetic very long have you?

My recovery for the C section was totally fine, initially I thought OMG I hate this, I'm never going to feel better, but just as the nurses said you feel better each day (I totally didn't believe them and thought i'd be walking around ever so slow for ages lol). Honestly by the 5th day I was feeling more myself and hardly had to have painkillers at all once I was home. After the C Section I stayed in hospital for the night she was born - which was at 11.09pm anyway so I had to and the night after, mostly if you are starting to show you can get around ok etc they let you go home on the 2nd day. The day I got home I could not even step in the bath to get in the shower myself, my boyfriend had to lift me in, I couldn't lower myself well to sit on the sofa or get up easy, but honestly it got better everyday : )

Sorry I am talking as if you are pregnant already, which of course you could be for all you know or could be very soon, fingers crossed. Anyway another long post from me, I'm more awake today lol after my hours sleep after all those hypos! xx
 
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emmie

Active Member
Messages
33
hi samroboli,

That was good your Mum was with you, I live with my Mum now as we couldnt afford to stay on at our flat so there will be no escaping the 'how are your blood sugars today' lol. No they havent said anything about a sliding scale but maybe that is because it is similar to the pump.

I have been diabetic for 25 years and i lost my awareness 4 years ago after I had a bad infection and I had 2 fits during the night and from then i couldnt feel any hypos. that is why they put me on the pump to try and get it back but with no success! Having to give up driving was the biggest knock for sure! Toby is amazing and i didnt appreciate how much stress not having awareness had until he started relieving it. the charity are going to help us bring Toby's hyper alert down so he alerts me at 10 mmols, ideally they'd want 8 but i think Toby might struggle there. It is so easy to get things wrong like you say with forgetting medication can knock you for the day.

Im glad to hear your recovery went well after your c section.

I get married in less than 6 weeks now and hope we will be in a position to start trying after then, fingers crossed!

Hope you have a good day

xx
 
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