Can I get that with 4 sides of needle sticks? Thanks so much. One concern in pregnancy is gestational diabetes, which is when pregnant women who have never had diabetes before have high blood sugar (glucose) levels during pregnancy. There is more info about it at the American Diabetes Association's website here.
It can be harmful to the baby, but if it is caught and treated, the doctor and mother can take action to keep blood sugar low and help the pregnancy and baby to be healthy. So I think it is pretty standard for doctors to order all expecting women to take a 1 hour glucose tolerance test just to screen for this disorder. A few weeks ago I did my duty and went to the hospital lab to ingest a glucose drink so my body's reaction to the increase in blood sugar could be measured. Glucose=sugar, right? Thankfully the drink is cold, which helps somewhat to mask the flavor and make it easier to chug. The first drink I had was cola-flavored. This is a generous description. It's like flat cola, with too much sugar. I'm sure Coca-Cola wouldn't want to share their patented formula with medical supply houses. I recommend chugging, because it's not going to get any better and you only have 5 minutes to finish the bottle. So you do that, and then wait an hour so you can give a blood sample. At my last Dr. appt this week, he informed me that the numbers in the first test were not really bad and didn't immediately indicate diabetes, but he wanted to do the more thorough 3 hour test to be sure.
Again on Friday, I trudged to the hospital lab to allow the technicians to practice their phlebotomy skills. Let me break here to offer this explanation and ask for forgiveness for being a big whiner.
Everything about the pregnancy has been going pretty well so far. As I mentioned previously, the ultrasound was a remarkable experience. I feel an intense responsibility to do things right and protect my baby. Even though I hadn't made the decision consciously that I was ready for motherhood, I don't consider this responsibility to be a burden, as it is just amazing to think of what is happening right now; a new person will come into the world and I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of that. So, I'm not going to jump up and cheer for needles, but let the health care workers do what they must. Just let me complain about it a little bit.
For the 3 hour test you have to be fasting for 8 hours beforehand. I'm not a doctor, so I'm sure there's more to it, but it seems to me that after someone hasn't eaten for at least 8 hours and then drinks a bottle of sugar water, that of course their blood sugar levels will be crazy. But I digress. Let's just say I was a little cranky Friday morning as I had to get up early to make sure I was in line at the lab before they opened at 7, and I hadn't eaten breakfast. Since the test takes 3 hours, I had to make sure to get started early to minimize the time I'm missing from work. Needle stick #1, then drink the stuff. They were out of cola-flavored drink, so it was orange. OK, I'll just pretend this is orange juice, it's breakfast time.....blech. The lab tech said I should inform them if I vomited, which is probably good advice, since I felt the distinct possibility of it happening once I consumed the bottle. The best advice I can offer is to just keep swallowing.
No offense to drug addicts, but doing these things really makes you wonder how someone could choose to do heroin or whatever other drugs involve CHOOSING to stick yourself with a needle. Um, no thank you. I have found the best way to deal with giving blood is to not watch the needle go in. But to do that stuff to yourself, I guess you would have to watch. Ew. I'm not squeamish about seeing blood, I'm just not a fan of pain. It gives me another level of respect for people who manage with diabetes their whole lives. They have to stick themselves on a regular basis to live and they didn't ask for that. With all that said, I can't say I enjoyed having both my arms bruised as the 3 hour test involves giving 1 blood sample each hour for 3 hours.
Now we just have to wait for the results and hope for the best. In the meantime, I think little Amelia is enjoying all this extra sugar, because she's been moving around a lot. The fluttery movements have evolved into more distinctive feeling thumps and kicks. It's a weird but awesome feeling.
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4 comments:
Ahh I see you have chosen a name. Woot. I found out today I have another friend who is pregnant ... it's like you ladies are falling out of the sky! She's now 17 weeks and should know the sex by the first week of July. Goodness gracious. :0)
Your baby is SO going to be a sugar addict b/c of these tests. Bring on the pixie sticks!
One good thing about all the needle sticks during pregnancy (this may be the only good thing, but I'm a perpetual optimist, so I had to find at least one good thing) - it gets you over your fear of needles. I used to be terrified of them. I do deal with them the same way you do - don't look.
I hope all tests come out good and well! So excited for you Karen! :)
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