Possible gestational diabetes! Help please

[Nevergiveup21]

I am wondering if you kind people can please help? Currently 35+2 and since last Saturday have been using a blood sugar monitor from the hospital at home. Back story is, the baby has always from the beginning been measuring big. This is an ivf pregnancy and I have been on sertraline for horrendous anxiety since 16 weeks and under the care of the perinatal mental health team which has worked wonders. I have been having private regular scans with a fetal medicine doctor all along just to manage this anxiety. Everything great with scans, baby just always been following his own wee growth chart and like i say measuring big. Then at 34 week scan baby tummy has really grown quickly and his weight estimated 7.2lb at 34 weeks so my fetal medicine consultant at hospital emailed my consultant requesting another gtt. My fundal height also measured 40 weeks at 34. The hospital agreed to let me monitor my sugars at home. I passed the GTT at 26 weeks with no problems which I had because my dad is type 2 diabetic. Now to the results of my monitoring. Since last Saturday, I have had 3 slightly over the limit fasting readings and 3 under. My highest being 5:6, the other 2 have been 5.3 or 5.4. The other 3 fasting readings were under. My post 1 hour meal readings all under. The diabetes nurse doesn’t think I have it but it doesn’t sit right with me. It doesn’t sound conclusive enough for me. I am not sure what’s going on as I’m not doing anything different each night to get some fasting higher and some fasting readings lower. There must be a reason. My husbands side had babies all over 9.5 or 10 pounds as did my grandmother and aunties so I knew in my heart I would always carry a big baby. Doppler and blood flow are all fine, fluids around the baby all normal. Waiting on a growth scan with nhs to see what they think as haven’t had one since 31weeks which was requested by midwife for growth and my fundal height l and at that he was measuring big but no concerns as just following his line. I am getting scans weekly with fetal medicine doctor too. I have a c section booked for exactly 39 weeks due to his size and my anxiety. So my question is what do I do? Do I persist with the diabetic nurse and hope they give me something like metaformin to help with the fasting levels or do I carry on with what I’m doing. I’m terrified this goes undiagnosed and we have problems with him after birth. I would rather get it under control now. They r very happy with diet from what I have logged. I’m on thyroxine for under active thyroid (under control) sertraline and starting fragmin injections too. What would your advice be on how to proceed? Does anyone with experience of gestational diabetes think I have it? I just want to do everything I can to bring a healthy baby home. I know I have just over 3 weeks left until section so it’s not long but just want it be on my notes and birth plan if I do have it so the baby and I can be monitored accordingly. Any ideas how to get fasting levels down? Thank you for letting me off load and any help would be so gratefully received.

[Dansolo92]

Hi there,I suffer with GD in my pregnancies. My first baby it went undiagnosed and I too had a big growth spurt towards the end of my pregnancy. The diabetes test done at 34 weeks came back negative but I was told to expect that because it can only be picked up during a certain time frame. She was born 4 days early via c section and she weighted 9lb 13oz. She was healthy from the get go and had medical problems.

My next 2 babies I got tested at the right time as my Dad has type 2 diabetes also (we didn't know this when I was pregnant with my first) and I was closely monitored but no matter what I ate my blood sugars were 4 plus after fasting and 9 plus after eating. I needed the metformin to reduce these levels for me.

I know it's easier said than done but there's no need to panic. You're due for a c section and you're being monitored closely. You'll soon have your little baby in your arms and you'll forget all this anxiety ever happened. Even if you have GD your baby will be absolutely fine. Hope this helps and I'm here if you ever want to talk xx

[Nevergiveup21 in reply to Dansolo92]

Thank you so so much for your response. It really helps to hear from other mums who get it. This journey has been so tough, I just want him to be as healthy as possible and do all I can my side. Thanks again for your reassuring words and being so kind xxx

[MrsOrangejuice]

Your situation sounds very similar to mine: IVF, anxiety, baby measuring big and a growth spurt, plus c section booked for 39 weeks. My scans had all been a little ahead and then somewhere around 32 weeks she had a massive growth spurt - at the last one (36 wks) she was technically off the chart. My fundal measurements have also been way above all the plotted lines and now have left the graph - they were joking about having to add a post-it to the top! However, I'm not actually that big it's just that I'm carrying high and have an anterior placenta which makes the whole thing stick out. Midwife said fundal measurements mean pretty much nothing except can be helpful to identify reduced growth. I've also been told the scan measurements are notoriously inaccurate, although on the latest readings baby's tummy was >98th percentile and she has very long legs, but my mum said I was the same. Checking with my family, we just all seem to have very big and/or very long babies. Was negative for diabetes (not sure how long ago I got it checked though) and none of the midwives or consultants seem remotely concerned, if anything they keep saying it's an indication of a healthy baby. If you're unhappy and anxious though, then maybe best to keep asking to put your mind at rest, and I guess you may also be able to have a private test. I hope it's all ok. The whole infertility and treatment process makes us super aware and sensitive, plus if you have clinical level anxiety it's understandable that you would be worried. But I hope this helps a little.

[Nevergiveup21 in reply to MrsOrangejuice]

You have no idea how much it helps. Thank you so so much. I also have an anterior placenta so that might explain things too. I know I’m so fortunate to be able to be so closely monitored but when you get thrown a curve ball (which we all know can happen) it just rocks my anxiety boat which has been steady for the last few months. At least we have an end date which helps so much. I really appreciate your response. Thank you xx

[MrsOrangejuice in reply to Nevergiveup21]

Glad to help in a little way and I understand entirely. I've had so many wobbles during this pregnancy and I think sometimes we get told results or someone makes an observation, without really explaining what it means, and because of the history our immediate reaction is to assume the worst. I look forward to seeing your happy announcement in a few weeks!

[Nevergiveup21 in reply to MrsOrangejuice]

So kind, Thank you so much xxx

[Seb9]

I had GD in both my pregnancies and both babies are perfect. One is nearly 3 and one 7 months old

My first in was diagnosed at 28 weeks and managed with just diet and exercise till the very end when I had metformin but my levels were much higher than yours and my levels after meals were creeping up even when low carb. I was struggling to eat any carbs and having ketones in my urine. So that's why I took it.

If you had GD, your levels an hour after food would definitely be out of range. I couldn't even eat half a portion of brown rice without spiking my blood.

2nd pregnancy I already had it at my booking in appointment. It was much worse and I had to have Metformin and Insulin. I still had meals and days I didn't get it right or ate something that spiked me and had high levels and baby was still perfect.

I definitely wouldn't recommend taking Metformin unless you really have to. It's got some quite obnoxious side effects and takes a while to kick in, so it doesn't help your levels straight away. My worse side effects were diarrhoea, feeling sick and a horrid taste in my mouth. I had to take it from 8 weeks until birth and I was very glad to stop it.

If your booked in already for a C- section, I would just keep eating healthy, too much sugar isn't good for you or baby anyways and keep monitoring babies movement. Good luck for these last few weeks xx

[Nevergiveup21]

That’s sound advice that I will definitely listen to. Thank you so much. It’s just weird how sometimes my fasting readings are higher some days and not others but I guess I have to trust the experts to keep me right. Thank you so much for replying, it’s really helps xxxxx

[Seb9 in reply to Nevergiveup21]

I found gestational diabetes UK really helpful and they've got some information on fasting rates, even if you don't have GD some of the methods of lowering your fasting levels might still help you

gestationaldiabetes.co.uk/h...

[Running79]

I had GD at 36 weeks, they kept telling me my baby was big and would be a 12lb at full term

What complete snd utter nonsense- she was 6lb 9 when she was born

Tbh I wouldn’t worry about your readings at all, I had some off of the scale that’s because I conducted experiments with some high sugar foods to see what the readings were, and they weren’t particularly high either

When your babies born your monitored yearly for diabeties for life.

I had my first one done and it was completely fine. My mum is also a type 2 diabetic.

You arnt normally given prescribed drugs like metformin unless they confirm you have it.

Baby is monitored for it in the first 24 hrs to see if they have it, our daughter didn’t

[Nevergiveup21 in reply to Running79]

Thank you so much for taking time to reply, I really appreciate you sharing your story. So good to hear from ladies who have lived it. Were you medicated in any way? I have followed your story from when I found this forum and was so over the moon to resold your little girl arrived safely.xx

[Running79 in reply to Nevergiveup21]

Thanks 🙏

No medication needed, diet controlled only

But tbh I was hardly a saint with my eating and continued to practically eat what I did before apart from not eating as much bread