Welcome to the GD Club

I am one of the 8% of pregnant women who have gestational diabetes during pregnancy. I found out last Thursday night. It usually goes away after pregnancy, and when I find out more I'll post it here, in the off chance other people really are reading this blog.

Glucose Tolerance Test

I spent Monday morning in the lab for my 3 hour Glucose tolerance test. It was not a fun experience. Here's the deal:

*This is a fasting test, so you can't eat for 8-12 before the test. You can drink water before the test, so when you get hungry, drink water.
*They actually draw your blood four times - once upon arrival, and once every hour after you drink the sugary orange drink, for three hours.
* You cannot leave the lab for the duration of the test.
* You cannot recline, sleep, talk a lot, or move for the duration of the test. All of these things retard or elevate your metabolism, which will affects the sugar level.
*The drink is double the concentration than for the Gluconse screening. You still have to drink it in 5-10 minutes, and tell the technician when you've finished the drink.
* You're not allowed to drink much water for the duration of the test.

This test is cruel. Pregnant women should not be forced to fast. I woke up at 5 am, my usual breakfast time, and I had to settle for water. I was tired, hungry, and queasy from the sweetness of the drink. I did bring stuff to read, but I couldn't concentrate. The technicians were very friendly, and it helps not to be cranky with them (especially if they're stabbing you once every hour). Linda set the timer and would give me a heads up before the next time she had to poke my arm. I mentioned I was feeling queasy, so she let me have a little water. I did close my eyes for a few minutes towards the end of the test without getting into trouble.

Should you have to take this test, make sure you schedule it for the morning- I went at 9:30 am. That drink is disgusting at double the concentration, I think, so drink it fast. Lastly, relax. You have to be there for at least three hours, so don't fight it. Bring some music, find a corner in the waiting room, and take off your shoes (if there's carpet).

Preggo Down!

One of my favorite adages is "Everything happens for a reason."
I've been bitching and moaning about not wanting to work for while now. Well, Friday I didn't go to work. I tried, but I sprained my left ankle on the way to the train station.

Women fall often during pregnancy. The center of gravity shifts, you lose your balance, it's just a part of the deal. I thought it would escape me, and technically it has. I didn't fall. My left ankle twisted about three or four times side to side. My right foot kept going like nothing was wrong, and my brain was yelling "DON'T FALL! DON'T FALL! DON'T FALL!" So no fall.

Of course I was still trying to convince myself that I'd make it there because there was an exhibit opening that day. I may be pregnant and limping, but dammit there was still work to be done. I called my boss to tell him what happened, and he said not to worry about coming to work. But as much as it hurt, I didn't have to go to work!!!

I am walking around the city on crutches with a swollen left ankle and a tiny bone chip. It's hard to balance on crutches at 29 weeks, but I'm managing. So don't beat yourself up if and when you fall, just remember to tuck and roll, and slow down when you're walking.

The New Bed/ Rage Against the Registry

So we don't have the nursery ready or a baby registry organized, but we do have a new bed. Esposo was at home for the delivery it was set up when I got home. I'm sorry I didn't give it the fanfare it deserved, or him the praise I think he was expecting. But Tuesday night I was seriously contemplating going to the emergency room because of discomfort. I ended up not going, and the pain hasn't really returned. If the baby had stopped moving or was moving less I would have gone, but neither of those were the case.

It's so wonderful to not fight gravity when I'm getting out of bed in the morning and to wake up with no back and hip pain. My husband's feet no longer hang over the edge, and I can sleep without waking up with him on my back. Now that we have a queen size bed I can't believe we slept in a full for so damned long. Of course the bed takes up mad floor space, but we don't need no stinking floor space- that's why we have a living room!

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We've been working on creating the regisrty. This is taking a while because we've decided to do an alternative registry. We're not registering at a particular store because there are items we'd like that you can't get at the chain stores (like GDiapers- do an online search, we think they're great). So it means we do lots of searching and put everything in one place for your convenience. I hope to have it ready by the end of this weekend.

I'm finding it's harder to create this registry than a wedding registry. We're first time parents- what the hell do we know? It's not like we're using this stuff. What do I care? Get the baby what the hell you want, that's my attitude. According to the traditional stores I am supposed to care so I'm the one with the problem. I'm too practical I guess. I'd rather have the child than the stuff I'm supposed to "need" for a little person who won't remember the color of the nursery or the softness of the chariot it travelled in (that's what my husband calls the stroller, which I think is hilarious. It's like Coming to America: "You are the son of king. Why should you not walk on the petals of roses?")

If I can make one suggestion- don't just look at the product descriptions, read the customer reviews- but only the reviews of people who've actually used the products. We laughed at the ones that said "I just put the Snoopy Stroller together for my baby due in July 2008, and we can't wait to use it!" That's not a review sister, that's giddy anticipation, which won't help me in making a decision.

Oh, and tell the father not to feel too bad when he reads product descriptions that render him invisible. We read a description about a baby tub that made bath time enjoyable for mom and baby. My husband said "What, I can't enjoy bath time too?" He's right, and it's too bad fathers (and mothers!) are sent the message that babies are solely a woman's domain.

More blah blah blah

Ah, work, sweet work...
It's getting more difficult to do. The year is one month old and already we've turned over the galleries about six times. Fortunately I have not had to do much in the installations and de-installations, but Friday was just as bad. My stomach hurt a lot, I didn't have much time to eat, and by the middle of the afternoon my mantra became "When these jackasses send me into pre-term labor I will own this building." There were points in the day where I had to stand still and rub my stomach because of the discomfort at the top of my stomach. It's a little better today, but not much. I contemplated going to the emergency room last night, but it eventually subsided, and the baby is still as active as ever, so I'm trying not to be paranoid. And it very well could be the Braxton-Hicks contractions but because of stress and not having much time to eat at work I feel them more.

"Don't let work stress you." When you work in a department that is understaffed and underappreciated it's very hard to follow that advice (even if you're not pregnant). My boss has suggested that I start working from home, which is extremely tempting. But he's overworked too, so when will we get a chance to sit down and talk about this possibility? I guess in addition to figuring out the baby registry (AARGH!) I have to figure out how to make working from home a reality.

The moral of this story: I dunno. It would be anti-feminist to say marry rich. It would be selfish of me to blame my parents for not being rich so that I could have some cushion of money now (but I do, and have for many years :-) So I guess the moral of the story is suck it up, cuz you just have to work with what you have.

Short Update

NP Rosenberg called this morning to say my glucose level was very high for the glucose screening and VBP will have to give me a three hour glucose tolerance test to see if I have gestational diabetes. This means I can't eat for 8-14 hours before this test, I drink another sugary drink, and they take my blood three times (once every hour).

For more information here's a link my husband sent me
http://www.babycenter.com/0_glucose-screening-and-glucose-tolerance-test_1483.bc