May update on Baby Bean

Check out the below, for the latest on Baby Bean....

Let's start with the good news.....after a few weeks now on bed rest, we are now safely past the 26week mark, which although not yet 90% viability, is a whole lot better than where we were :-). Yippee!

More good news....Baby Bean is growing really well, and pretty much sitting at around 50% on her measurements which is awesome! Here she is below.....

Bean's growth tracking

But unfortunately it hasn't been all good news on the pregnancy front.......since our last update, Mummy failed the glucose test in W26, and has now been diagnosed with gestational diabetes!!! My score on the two hour test (for those familiar with it) was 11, so it was a pretty solid fail.

• How's my luck you ask?! Well some stats I have heard suggest it's 5-8% of pregnancies, although I have also heard it is up to around 15%. To have that on top of the past SCH bleed and cerclage issue seems a bit bad luck, who knows what the odds of that are?!
• Gestational diabetes apparently results from the placenta and all the increased hormones, which impacts the pancreas ability to keep up with natural insulin production for mum and baby. Women who have a family history (both my grandmothers had this, albeit much later in life), a miscarriage history (tick), and are over 25y (ah yes, by just a few years), have a higher predisposition. Plus those who are overweight prior to pregnancy, which I'm hoping wasn't me! Contrary to what most people think, it doesn't come about because one ate too much sugar, and isn't as simple as just cutting out sugar. It's about carbs, made up of both starches and sugars, both of which result as glucose in the blood. And what is particularly scary though, is that 50% of women who have gestational diabetes (which only lasts while you are pregnant), will go on to develop type 2 diabetes at some stage later in life. Eeeekkk!
• So it's been a bit of a wake up call at our house in the last week. I am now testing my glucose levels four times a day (a fasting measure on waking up, and then again two hours post each main meal), while also trying out gestational diabetes diets to see what can work for me and what keeps me in the target blood sugars range. The fasting range I have been told to aim for is 3.5-5.0, and the two hour post meal range is 3.5-6.0. While I am only a week into this so far, I have already discovered that carbs are a real challenge for me. Goodbye Vogel toast with marmite for breakfast! Or bread at breakfast at all for that matter. And welcome to three main meals a day, along with three snacks morning, afternoon, and evening. And a new world of carb counting.
• I've yet to be seen by the diabetics clinic, so not sure if I will be on meds as yet or not. However I'm certainly finding it pretty tough to stay in the target range - I can now sneak into the range on the fasting measure most days at 4.8ish, but post meals my range is anywhere from 5.1 (rare) through to 7.5. Pretty easy to get into range if you eat less or cut carbs right out....but to adequately feed baby you actually can't do that. If anything I'm not eating enough at this point as have already lost a kg this week, so it's a hard balance to strike. Plus from what I hear, the challenge with gestational diabetes is the changing pregnancy hormones means that what you find can work for you one week (in terms of being within the blood sugar range), can be very different the next week, as your hormones increase. So basically my OB thinks I will be on meds at some stage, even if I can manage to control it with diet right now. We will see, whatever is best for Baby Bean, works for me.
• Got a be a silver lining to this latest challenge right? Yep there is. I am SO much more aware of what I am eating now, and haven't touched anything remotely sugary in over a week now.

So continuing with the good news.....with this latest discovery, I've been eating and subsequently feeling a whole lot better. I think I must have had gestational diabetes for the last few weeks, and with the strict change in diet, I already feel like I have more energy and am generally just feeling more positive. So much so that I felt well enough to go back to work this week too :-). Obviously I am still taking it easy in light of the incompetent cervix and cerclage, and will also continue to be closely watched by my OB (still at least once or twice a week), and now also by the MFM team at the hospital (who will monitor the diabetes and impact on baby and me). I also won't be doing any long walks or over doing things physically. But it's good to feel like I'm up to being up and around though :-)

26w5d

26w5d

26w6d

26w6d

Having just crossed over the 27w mark, we are of course now starting to get excited about Baby Bean's arrival :-). I'm starting to move past just the 'hopeful' stage, and genuinely feel this might actually happen for us! Our little man is still largely unaware as yet, although we have read a few books on the subject and we talk about a baby in Mummy's tummy. Conceptually not sure he's able to fathom it though. Anyway, I'll finish with a shot of him languishing on Baby Bean's gorgeous new quilt (lovingly made by her Granny).

Baby Bean's new quilt!

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy