10 posts tagged “pregnancy”

Today I went to the Kapiolani Medical Center for the Sweeter Choice program, designed for expectant mothers diagnosed with gestational diabetes (GD).  We met in a small conference room adjacent to the hospital cafeteria where we learned the basics about gestational diabetes (what causes it, potential risks to the baby if left unchecked, and how to manage it), how to monitor our blood sugar levels, and a dietitian explained all about portion sizes and healthy eating.

They gave us each a blood glucose monitoring system (OneTouch Ultra) and showed us how to use it.  They also had us each take turns doing a test with the nurse observing closely to ensure that we could perform it properly to get accurate results.  A few women were very hesitant to do the needle poke, but ever since going through IVF and being poked everyday for months on end with much bigger needles than that, it didn't phase me at all.  My blood glucose measured at 78 -- but that was about four hours after my last meal, so it wasn't a good indication of my levels.

They also fed us a hearty lunch to end the class: meatloaf with mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli, salad with French dressing, assorted fruits, sugar-free jell-o, and a small carton of milk.  It was more food than I could eat, but the instructor said that it was a good example of a healthy meal within our GD guidelines.

Two hours later, I took my first reading and it was a bit high at 134.  It's supposed to be less than 120.  Tonight, two hours after dinner, I took my evening reading: 123.  Better, but still higher than it should be.  I have a feeling that this isn't going to be easy.  I just hope I can manage the GD with diet and exercise and that I won't have to go on medication.

Recommencing my food and exercise diary and also including my blood sugar levels:

Breakfast:  Special K with Strawberries cereal with milk
Lunch:  Meatloaf with mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli, salad with French dressing, assorted fruits, sugar-free jell-o
Snack:  Glucerna mini snack bar
Dinner:  2 pieces of shoyu chicken, brown rice, salad, a small serving of salsa and tortilla chips
Dessert: Sugar-free jell-o
Late night snack:  Glucerna mini snack bar

Exercise: 2 mile walk, 5:30 - 6:15 pm

Blood Sugar Tests:
(Guideline is less than 90 fasting and 120 after meals)
Fasting: none
Breakfast: 78 (not accurate, taken 4 hours after eating)
Lunch: 134 (high)
Dinner: 123 (high)

I know, I know... it's all starting to look the same.  I can't wait to attend that class next week. Hopefully they'll provide me with some sample meal plans and recipes.

Breakfast:  Glucerna Crunchy Flakes n' Strawberries cereal with milk
Snack:  Glucerna oatmeal raisin mini snack bar
Lunch:  Chicken donburi from Sushi Man with just a few bites of white rice
Snack:  Healthy Choice sugar-free fudge bar
Dinner:  The last 2 pieces of leftover shoyu chicken, brown rice, salad, diet cherry coke
Dessert:  Carb Watchers ice cream bar
Late night snack:  Sugar-free jell-o

Breakfast:  Glucerna Crunchy Flakes n' Strawberries cereal with milk
Snack:  Glucerna oatmeal raisin mini snack bar
Lunch:  1 pc. shoyu chicken, brown rice, salad, beets
Snack:  Healthy Choice sugar-free fudge bar
Dinner:  Whole wheat pizza with spinach and garlic, diet cherry coke
Dessert:  2 pieces of sugar-free chocolates
Late night snack:  Sugar-free jell-o

Exercise:  1.5-mile walk

All these months (during my in vitro treatments as well as the first 2/3 of my pregnancy) I have been intentionally steering clear of artificial sweeteners.  Now that I have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, it may be what gets me through the last two months of my pregnancy.  I asked my doctor and did some research on the Internet and found that artificial sweeteners are not harmful to the baby.  With that assurance, I started to introduce artificially-sweetened foods into my diet.

Breakfast:  Glucerna Crunchy Flakes n' Strawberries cereal with milk
Snack:  Glucerna oatmeal raisin mini snack bar
Lunch:  Grilled cheese sandwich on whole wheat bread
Snack:  Carb Watchers ice cream stick
Dinner:  2 pcs. of shoyu chicken, brown rice, beets, string beans, salad
Dessert:  Glucerna chocolate peanut mini snack bar, Coke Zero  

I went shopping today and bought snacks designed specifically for carb-watchers and diabetics.  Until I go to the gestational diabetes class on August 6, I'm groping around in the dark.  Hopefully they'll tell me that that this stuff is acceptable (sugar-free pudding, jell-o, ice cream, glucerna bars and cereal)...

Breakfast:  Carnation Instant Breakfast with soy milk
Lunch:  Quarter pounder with cheese, a few french fries, and a diet coke (I know... not the best choice, but I was eating on the run.)
Snack:   Healthy Choice sugar-free ice cream fudge bar
Dinner:  Fried fish, brown rice, beets, string beans, and salad
Dessert:  Sugar-free dark chocolate pudding

It's only day #3 and I was already jonesing for a hot fudge sundae.  This isn't going to be easy.

Breakfast:  2 pieces of whole wheat toast with margarine, 1 hardboiled egg, 1/2 papaya with lemon juice & wheat germ
Snack: String Cheese, iced green tea
Lunch:  None
Dinner:  Garden salad, hijiki, pickled vegetables, misoyaki butterfish, a few bites of white rice, diet coke (Kyoto Ohsho)
Dessert:  Vanilla ice cream cone from McDonald's (I skipped the dessert bar at Kyoto Ohsho - with the chocolate fountain! - and opted for a more reasonable dessert.)

I went to the doctor today, but only got a very broad overview of what a diabetic diet encompasses.  

Breakfast:  Maple & Brown Sugar oatmeal
Lunch: Turkey Chili, brown rice
Snack:  String Cheese
Dinner:  Garden salad with vinaigrette dressing,  8 oz. New York Steak, 1/2 portion of mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, and a few bites of Joni's mudpie

Exercise:  Bon dancing all night :)

Went to the Jikoen bon dance tonight and managed to ignore all of the no-no foods being offered, only going to the food booths to buy water.

Today is day #1 of my food/exercise log.

Don't bash me too much, since I haven't met with a dietitian or attended the "Sweeter Choice" class yet, so I am running without any guidelines to manage my gestational diabetes.  Cut me no slack once I am educated though!

Breakfast:  Maple & Brown Sugar Oatmeal, a bowl of ripe mangoes (this was before I got the news)
Lunch:  Corned Beef & Cabbage, brown rice
Snack:  String Cheese
Dinner: Turkey Chili, boiled beets, sauteed asparagus with garlic, and garden salad, hoji-cha
 
Exercise:  2-mile walk
 

At 9:22 this morning my cell phone rang. The caller ID on the screen indicated that it was my OB/GYN's office calling.  With my appointment only a day away, it could only mean one thing: my 3-hour fasting glucose tolerance test came back positive for gestational diabetes.

I answered the phone and steeled myself for the news.

"Your results came in this morning," the nurse began.  "Your levels were elevated..."

She went on to tell me that they scheduled me for an appointment next week with the Fetal Diagnostic Center at Kapiolani Medical Center and enrolled me in the Sweeter Choice Program which includes a 4-hour class on how to manage my gestational diabetes.  One thing I am grateful for is the support and education that is available to expectant mothers these days.

From the Kapiolani Medical Center website:

What is diabetes?
Diabetes is a condition that impairs the body's ability to use sugar and as a result increases your risk for health problems, such as heart disease, kidney disease, and atherosclerosis. As a diabetic, you should be under a doctor's care and should regularly monitor your blood sugar levels.

Prenatal Care
Prenatal care is important for all pregnant women. As a woman with diabetes, it is particularly important for you because you are at increased risk for complications during pregnancy. Diabetic women tend to give birth to larger babies, and therefore are more likely to need a Caesarean section. There is also an increased chance that your baby will be born with low blood sugar levels and may need to be treated in the intensive care unit following delivery.

Can you minimize the complications associated with diabetes?
You can prevent many of the complications associated with diabetes simply by controlling your blood sugar levels during pregnancy. To control your blood sugar levels you will need to modify your diet, exercise regularly, and you may need to take insulin.

Needless to say, I'm bummed.  Truthfully, I'd rather become a vegetarian than have to adhere to a diabetic diet.  Taming my sweet tooth is going to be the toughest part of this ordeal, but perhaps this will force me to make wiser eating choices and prompt me to exercise more often (i.e., daily).  Now it's not going to be something that's just good to do, but it's now something that I MUST do.

I'll be keeping a daily food diary and exercise log here on this blog.  Perhaps this will keep me from cheating (too much) on my diet. :)

How have you changed in the past year?
Submitted by littleduckling.

Well, aside from being 10 lbs. heavier than this time last year, I'm also growing a person inside my belly.

All of this baby-making hubbub has really opened my eyes to a lot of things, most notably the health and wellness of my family.  I've become somewhat of a nut about safe cleaning products around my home and healthier food choices (i.e., buying local/organic whenever possible).

With just over three months to go, I'm preparing myself mentally, physically, financially, and domestically for the new arrival.