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8 weeks pregnant and worried about high blood sugar

R

rads41

Active Member
Messages
39
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi guys,
It's been a long time since I posted on this site - the last time was when I was trying to reduce my HBA1c enough to start trying to conceive. Well..... I managed to get it down to 7.2 last year and we started trying. Life isn't as simple as that though- we struggled to conceive and because of my age ( I'm now 43), we were advised to start looking at fertility treatment. IVF wasn't going to work ( success rate v low for women my age), so we opted for egg donation. Anyway - as we were about to embark on the egg donation journey I found out I was pregnant! They did a scan at the egg donation place and we heard a heartbeat! I'm 8 weeks and delighted but scared - I had given up a little and my blood sugar wasn't quite so well controlled inthe last couple of months. I haven't had a new HBA1c done yet ( scan on Tuesday so they'll prob do it then) but based in my sugar meter I reckon it'll be around the 8 or a little higher mark. I've had periods of crazy highs ( 9-13) especially first thing in the morning and it settles down during the day. Basically I'd say I have been 70 % good and about 30% bad. I'm petrified Ive caused untold damage, does anyone have any advice/experience. Since I found out I've been super good, and sugar is completely under control. Also I've been taking 5mg folic acid since before my pregnancy

Thank you all in advance, I'm really worried
 
A couple of other vital pieces of information -
I'm not a silly girl for not knowing I wasn't pregnant ( I don't think anyway!) , my periods had been v irregular for a few months - I figured I was pre menopausal. We had sort of given up trying and I was quite down about it all so baby making sex wasn't really on the cards much. The chances of spontaneous pregnancy were so small I didn't even think about it. I was completely wrong. I'm type 2 diabetic on insulin. My worst period of highs in the morning was 4-5 days on the trot due to steroids the GP gave me for an allergy. Turns out the allergy was prob more likely related to the pregnancy. I definitely played a bit fast and loose with my diet at other times though so am still to blame. My estimate of 8ish for my new HBA1c is based on the average readings for the last 30 days on my meter which is 7.9. The last 90 days shows 7.2.
 
Hi @rads41

First of all, congratulations! :) Great news :)

Don't panic about the high sugars. I had some 11s and 13s early on. The important thing is to concentrate on now. Keep tight control and test lots. You can then correct any highs (if you are confident doing so) You're taking the folic acid so that's good :)

I know your pregnancy caught you by surprise, but it's still early and ladies have got pregnant with higher sugars than you've had and their babies have been ok. Think positive and concentrate on now.

And I don't think you're stupid at all. I think it's a lovely surprise for you and shows the wonder of life :)
 
Hi @azure
Thank you for your lovely reply. I'm trying really hard to concentrate on now and moving forward its so hard not to worry though! Driving myself crazy with statistics and am a bit of an emotional wreck ( hormones probably ☺️). It's an amazing surprise, my husband and I couldn't believe it! Can't wait for the 20 week scan when things are clearer - fingers crossed!
 
Congratulations and best wishes @rads41, I am so happy for you. I was an older mum to be (42 1/2 years) and BS can fluctulate quite a bit at first, but try not to get too worried or stressed out, as this can push them up more.
I hope your BS will settle down soon and you can have a healthy and a happy pregnancy. Try to keep positive and good luck :)
 
Congratulations @rads41 so pleased for u! How exciting! I fell pregnant under different circumstances but I had been told I wouldn't be able to fall pregnant naturally so had been a little lax with my pill taking! I also didn't find out till later on (15 weeks) when I went back to see the consultant who told me I was unlikely to conceive he said he would have put money on it that had I gone away and started trying I wouldn't have been pregnant it's only because I wasn't trying if u get me! Same happened to a friend of mine... She became pregnant just before ivf attempt! Congrats X X x
 
Hi @rads41 congratulations!

Try not to panic as that won't be doing you any good although I know that's far easier said than done! :)

I had awful highs right around when I found out I was pregnant I had a fasting reading of 20 one morning which I just could not understand, had some crazy lows & more highs since then, that's what hormones do to us but if you just try to correct & carry on n not dwell you will be fine :)

Sorry if you have put this in an earlier post but have you informed your diabetes team?

Xx
 
Hi @Sarahkylie88 and @Mrsass - thank you both!
My husband said exactly the same i.e had we been trying it wouldn't have happened. I've heard of many people that it's happened to so I guess the body must relax in ways beyond our ken!
Yup, one of the first things I did was phone my diabetic nurse who organised a scan and consultant appointment for me. That's on Tuesday afternoon so fingers crossed!
 
rads41 said:
Hi @Sarahkylie88 and @Mrsass - thank you both!
My husband said exactly the same i.e had we been trying it wouldn't have happened. I've heard of many people that it's happened to so I guess the body must relax in ways beyond our ken!
Yup, one of the first things I did was phone my diabetic nurse who organised a scan and consultant appointment for me. That's on Tuesday afternoon so fingers crossed!
Click to expand...

Brill hope your appointment goes well let us know :) xx
 
Hi All,
Thought I'd update you on what happened at my ante natal appointment today - it all went great! Had an ultrasound, saw the heartbeat and I'm estimated 6 weeks 6 days pregnant. In even better news my HBA1c is 6.4!!!! So it's lower than it was last September and despite my crazy highs ( and the worrying!) my overall result is great so I have to focus on that. I have a follow up appointment in 2 weeks . Still early days, but initial bullets have been well and truly dodged.
Thanks again to all of you for your kind words, support and advice - I was really struggling but you all helped so much xx
 
rads41 said:
Hi All,
Thought I'd update you on what happened at my ante natal appointment today - it all went great! Had an ultrasound, saw the heartbeat and I'm estimated 6 weeks 6 days pregnant. In even better news my HBA1c is 6.4!!!! So it's lower than it was last September and despite my crazy highs ( and the worrying!) my overall result is great so I have to focus on that. I have a follow up appointment in 2 weeks . Still early days, but initial bullets have been well and truly dodged.
Thanks again to all of you for your kind words, support and advice - I was really struggling but you all helped so much xx
Click to expand...

Yeyyy that's great news @rads41

Well done on your a1c too

Have you been given new bg targets? It is such hard work but so worth it, really pleased for you xx
 
Thanks all! Yes, they told me above 6 before bed, 2 hours after a meal below 7 and 1 hour after a meal below 8 but I think they'll aim to tighten up on that more in the next few weeks. Between 5 and 6 on waking. Of course, this morning I woke up on a 7.5 but didn't panic, corrected and am moving on! I've to write down meals and insulin doses for the next couple weeks before my next appointment.
Still can't quite believe it - in our house yesterday is now known as "6.4 and a heartbeat" day :-)
 
Hi everyone,
We had some bad news last week, unfortunately I miscarried. Trying to stay positive but it's hard at the moment. Considering going back to Spain for egg donation but we'll see.

I have another question I'm hoping someone can help me with. I had a really crazy itch ( it turns out, in retrospect, from the moment pretty much to the day, that I conceived). Slowly but surely the itch has turned into a horrid rash over pretty much all my body. Before realising I was pregnant, the doctors gave me steroid tablets, antihistamines, steroid cream etc but nothing had worked. The dermatologist said it "might" be metformin side effects but he was pretty clueless and gave me nothing more than moisturising lotions ( by this point I knew I was pregnant). The itch is driving me crazy, I'm not sleeping and I'm scarring myself all over . Continued trips to the doc are proving fruitless. They checked my LFTs and haemoglobin last week and they were fine
Has anyone else experienced this? Any advice?
Thanks
Xx
 
I'm so sorry to read that @rads41 I don't think there are any words of comfort really because it's very painful. Take time to rest and recover emotionally, and look after yourself XXX

I don't know about the itch. Could it be stress? Could it be hormonal? I once had a rash from an extremely stressful situation. I ended up using steroid cream, which helped, and also very gentle moisturisers. I also took antihistamine tablets. But it wasn't as bad as yours sounds. Sorry I can't be of much help.

It may be best to start a new thread in Ask A Question, just asking about this itch so you get more advice.
 
I'm so sorry for your loss @rads41
Please don't force yourself to be positive and put on a brave face if you really don't feel like it, I speak from experience, it won't help you in the long run, and don't allow anyone to tell you that you should just move on blah blah, like azure has said take your own time to recover mentally & emotionally *big hug*

I would also start a new thread about the itching you will possibly get an answer a lot sooner, did they not suggest possibly changing your metformin if they think it is maybe a cause? It's so frustrating when you can't get an answer to what is wrong

Thinking of you xx
 
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