Metformin and Gestational Diabetes

[annwatkins17]

Hi all! Prior to my pregnancy I'd been taking Metformin to help my PCOS for a couple of years, but stopped when I fell pregnant as the packaging said not to use when pregnant. My Midwife didn't tell me I could use it, so I didn't and now I have gestational diabetes! I have a good diet anyway - no sugar, really low carb and only eat unprocessed whole foods and am still really active, so I'm not sure what more I can do. I've asked a few times if I can start taking my metformin again as I have loads left (in date!) but consultant just dismisses me saying I need to control diet and exercise... does anyone know why this is? It actually seems to be safe during pregnancy as they do prescribe it to some women - is it a cost thing? I'd appreciate any advice!

[roxannacar]

I think it's something you need to try and ask for information from your consultant and midwife. Be honest and ask when would they consider medication. These things are considered case to case and what may be good for one person might not be for you. Are they making you check blood sugars? Maybe they're happy with these so not considering medication? Re cost it def. will not be the reason as metformin is not an expensive medication and even if it were I doubt that would be a good enough reason

[Nina-id]

Hi there! Sorry to hear about gestational diabetes . Frankly your midwife or consultant should have explained it but I have realizsed they don't go much in details. I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes cause of my family history. And it has been a hell road for me as there was no help . I had to figure out everything myself .

What I think is that when you are diagnosed , they ask you to record your readings for 2-3 weeks and the next visit they determine if the readings are bad enough to put you on med.

In my case I was begging not to be put on metformin and help me figure out with diet and exercise . But they didn't listen at all and just put me on it. So I guess they aren't much cooperative or personalised , they just follow the system and it just makes me crazy

[FluffyPumpkin1977]

What were your fasting sugar levels? How many weeks are you?

I was put on metformin on the first day of my pregnancy due to recurrent miscarriage.

It is a cheap drug.

When I was later diagnosed with gestational diabetes, the diabetic midwives increased my dose of metformin (to 2 g per day) whilst giving me a blood sugar monitor to test 6 times a day. Eventually I was placed on a small amount of insulin although I still have to be careful of food intake and exercise/activity levels.

I am 38 weeks pregnant today and am being induced soon.

It sounds to me that your gestational diabetes must be borderline, as mine was at the beginning (it tends to get worse and then settle down towards the end).

A few people I know have been told/have preferred to control it through diet and exercise but they have always been given a monitor to see if it is getting worse. Are they giving you more scans to establish how big the baby is getting?

How often do you visit the diabetes clinic?

I wouldn't advise anyone to take medication that you haven't been expressly told to take but metformin is one of those drugs with very low risk factors- hence why they give it to pregnant women in the first place. If it was dangerous they wouldn't go there at all.