DAY 1119... Gestational Diabetes

So.... this is the story of my life right now. I have been busy with doctor's appointments and seeing specialists and adjusting to this new lifestyle of having Gestational Diabetes. I am actually surprised at how many people this affects during pregnancy. It was never even a thought in my mind or something that I thought that I would ever have to deal with, but neither was hyperemesis with my first pregnancy. Once again, it's an opportunity for me to learn a lot and in this case, make changes in my diet and exercise habits that will hopefully be able to continue after I give birth and will allow me to live a healthier lifestyle and to become, physically, the person that I want to see when I look in the mirror. I want to like the way I look and to be happy. Having gestational diabetes may give me that insight and knowledge into making that happen or at least giving me a head start after baby boy arrives.

When I first learned that I had failed that lovely glucose test, my first thought was that the reason that I got gestational diabetes was because I was too fat or ate too much junk food. This idea, which a lot of people actually assume to be true is false. Gestational diabetes can affect even the most healthy of expectant mothers. It doesn't necessarily depend on what you eat or how you eat, even though those things can factor into GD, it's just the simple fact that your body is having a hard time breaking down your sugars. It just happens. I'm lucky to have a doctor who took the time to explain that to me so that I didn't feel like such a cow.

So now that I have gestational diabetes, what does that mean? It means that I have been put on a strict diet and exercise plan. According to my plan I need, or can only have 45 grams of carbs for breakfast, 45 grams for lunch and 45 grams for dinner. I am also allowed 3 15 gram carb snacks a day. The carb thing hasn't been awful. It's tough eating that much for breakfast especially since I have never been a breakfast person. And when it comes to dinner, I feel like 45 grams of carbs just isn't enough. Snacks can also be tricky, but luckily I have found a few snacks that I absolutely love like cashews, Greek yogurt, pepperoni, and of course lots and lots of veggies with cottage cheese. Pricking my finger 3 times a day hasn't been super pleasant. Ani enjoys watching, and I will admit seeing my blood sugar numbers in the perfect range do bring me slight gratification. It's kind of like a game. Sure it sucks to not eat whatever you want to eat and be lazy like a lot of pregnant women, but this is my life, and that's okay.

The first couple of days I had some crazy headaches due to the diet changes and restrictions, but it really isn't the worse thing ever. My specialist gave me a book of all the fast food companies in town and what I can and can't eat from them. I can have 3 nacho cheese Doritos locos tacos and be under 45 grams of carbs! Good news, but quite a change from a burrito or a big box meal with my baja. It's just not as fun eating Taco Bell without Baja. But it's all about being smart. I can do that.

I have been living this lifestyle for the past 2 weeks and my doctor was not so thrilled when it turned out that I had lost weight. But really? I mean what did you expect? You changed the way I eat completely and have told me to exercise or else... what was suppose to happen? But they said that my blood sugar levels look great and the baby looks good. So I will just keep on keeping on for the next 70 days maximum and make sure that this little boy is as healthy as can be.

It's nice to know that there's an end in sight, even though this does make me more susceptible to Type 2 Diabetes in the future, I know what needs to be done in order to live a healthy lifestyle and to avoid that destination. It has been a good change for my family. Instead of eating some sugary cereal in the morning for breakfast Aniston wants what mommy is having and is loving her turkey bacon and peanut butter on toast. We have enjoyed spending time together as a family hiking and being a little more active. There's a lot of good that I am finding in this garbage dump of a situation and that's not something that I have always been able to do in the past. This shows me that my attitude, my mind and my life is different now then it has been in the past. It's better. And it's better because I am surrounded by people who love me and care for me and are willing to help me in ways that I had never imagined they could. I am blessed and now I see that. Plus I have this little girl who has the most darling smile to brighten my day!

My doctor said she will not let the baby get over 8 pounds, so we will be checking in on baby boy starting in two weeks, twice a week so monitor his weight closely. I'm thankful for a doctor who understands my fears and is willing to help me have a healthy baby who will born without complications. His actually due date is November 28th, but I am thinking he will be here more like the 14th. Aniston was 2 weeks early and weighed in at 7lbs 11oz without these complications, so I'm thinking our little man will be here before we know it. Until then I will just keep being as healthy as I can, watching those blood sugars and soaking up every last day I have with just my Spencer and my Ani Kate!