Here
I sit at Kaiser during the first of 3 one-hour sessions this morning. I failed my 1-hour glucose test by 7 points,
which means I now have to do the 3-hour test.
For those of you who don’t know, some people develop diabetes during
pregnancy, so doctors test all pregnant women for gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes can cause babies to grow
too much in the womb and have a high birth weight, it can also lead to risk factors
for childhood obesity and breathing problems.
The
initial test is only an hour and relatively easy. You drink a super sugary drink and then they draw
blood an hour later to see how well the body handles the sugar. You can go down to the lab after a regular
check up, the drink tastes a bit like orange Gatorade, wait an hour and get
your blood drawn. The three-hour test is
a lot more involved and a lot more annoying.
It requires fasting prior to taking the test (so I have not had anything
to eat since 9pm last night), then you have to drink a drink that is twice as
sweet as the Gatorade flavored one and it’s fruit punch flavored. I HATE fruit punch. Then they draw your blood every hour for 3
hours to see if your body can handle it.
So by the time this test is done, I will have not eaten anything except
that ridiculously sweet beverage from 9pm last night until noon today. I don’t know about you, but I consider that
cruel and unusual punishment to make a pregnant lady not eat for that
long! And to top it all off, I’m here on
a Saturday. Pro: I don’t have to take
half a day off work to get this test done.
Con: I have waste a quarter of my weekend on it. (Which is especially
annoying since I am hosting a bridal shower for one of my dear friends tomorrow
and would much rather be spending this time shopping, cleaning the house and prepping
food for tomorrow.)
I
really hope I don’t actually have gestational diabetes and that this failed 1-hour
test was just a fluke. I’m certainly not
in a high-risk category: I’m still active, I eat mostly healthy, my starting
weight was healthy and I haven’t gained an inordinate amount of weight. I guess it’s not the end of the world if I do
– they’ll just give me a modified diet and tell me to get more exercise . . .
right? Avoiding refined sugars would be
easy for me (though I would miss the occasional cookie or ice cream). It’s watching for natural sugars that would be
a pain. Having to be careful about
eating apples or bananas would be super annoying.
I’ll
check in between each blood draw and let you know how I’m feeling and how that
sickly sweet drink is affecting me.
First
Hour:
I’m
hungry & nauseous. That drink is
waaay too sweet. If only I could have a
sandwich . . . ah well, better not fantasize about food too much since I have 3
hours left of this thing. Ugh. Good thing I brought both my laptop and a
book.
Second
Hour:
Still
hungry, but almost feel like I’m at that “beyond the point of hunger”
point. That is, until I start thinking
about food. Bonus: Kaiser has wi-fi so I
can surf the internet during this ordeal.
Glad I brought my laptop. Honestly, as annoying as this is, I guess I
can look on the bright side: I have 3 hours to myself to read or write or do
whatever . . . except eat, that is.
3rd
Hour:
I
will not puke, I will no puke, I will not puke . . .
If
you puke, they make you do the whole thing all over again. I will not be that person. So glad I packed a sandwich that is waiting for me in the car. Not
sure it would be safe for me to drive without putting something in my belly
first. This is mean and cruel . . . but
there’s only an hour left and then I can eat and get on with my day.
I
will update with my results when & if I’m ready to share them.
On the plus side, Aaron sent me this adorable video of Guinevere. I must have watched it at least 15 times during my 3 hour wait at Kaiser.