Failed?!

Well, my results from my blood-draw Wednesday came back a lot sooner than I had anticipated! By the end of the day yesterday I was called by a midwife in my clinic (one from the opposite team, she's the one who pushed suuuuper hard on my belly after delivering Elijah to make sure all the placenta and clots were out. It hurt, but I still like her. ;)

Anyway, first, she told me that my iron (hemoglobin) levels are low, at 104. I seem to remember with Elijah that anything below 111 is considered anemic, and I was 109 with him. I was expecting this, because it just seems to be how my body handles things, and I've been feeling the same tiredness and extreme breathlessness that I felt with Elijah. So I go on iron pills 3 times a day until delivery, and probably for a few months after, because you lose blood when you deliver.

As an aside apparently a side-effect of needing pitocin or oxytocin, whatever, is that your blood is thinner and there's a higher chance of post-partum hemmorhage. Good to know, because that's what I had! It's scary in hindsight, it could have been so much worse, but the midwives handled it really well and didn't freak me out. Still, though, I don't want it to happen again, and it's another motivation for me to avoid getting an epidural or an induction.

Anyway, I then said, "so my other levels for gestational diabetes are fine?" and she said, "no, they were borderline..." So I asked what she meant by borderline. Apparently the numbers that prompt them to do the 3-hour test and investigate this whole GD thing further fall in the range of 7.8 to 10 (whatever that means) and I was 7.9.

Soooo...it's up in the air. I could take the 3-hour test and do just fine, which I think is likely, given how low my number actually is, but really I have no idea. I do have some of the risk factors, like the fact that my mom has diabetes, and Elijah was born 9lb7oz, so a big boy, but I almost don't count that, because he was also 2 weeks late, so of course he's going to be big...he would have weighed closer to 8lbs at 40 weeks, but whatever.

This might sound funny, but I'm actually glad about the failed test, because it prompted an enlightening conversation with one of the midwives in my practice, and I've learned things I never knew. For instance, I had no idea how important protein was for keeping your blood sugar levels stable, and I have since invested in some tasty trail mix and cheese strings to up the protein I eat for snacks. Also, where beforehand I refused to eat eggs for breakfast, I now force them down with my nose plugged, just to get the protein (okay, so maybe it's not as bad as that, but I can still only manage one egg before the aversion kicks in again.) I also opt for snacks like celery and peanut butter, or cucumber rather than blackberries. And I now have a very good reason to not eat 1/8 to 1/4 of a watermelon over the course of one day. They are so delicious, and before I would say, "It's fruit! It's good for you, and made up of water, practically!" but now I'm abstaining because it's also sugary too.

So, the conversation was good. I also don't feel remotely guilty about the 3 spoonfuls of Haagen Daz I ate last night, because it was all I'd had all day, and it's a far cry better than how much I'd have eaten of it before I knew of all of this.

Oh, but here's the crummy thing. I juuuust started craving milk again, and now I find out that it increases your blood sugar levels too (lactose? My MW said pretty much anything ending in "-ose" will up your levels.) And what's more is that I can drink it when I'm on my iron anyway, or rather, it's hard to because I need to either drink it 1 hour before I take my pill, or 2 hours after, and I take these pills 3X a day. Sooo, there isn't much time for milk drinking.

Anyway, I need to go do the 3-hour test, probably on Tuesday morning. Then it's a couple more weeks until my next appointment, but I'm sure they'll call with the results before then. If I fail the 3-hour test too, then I'll be referred to a dietician.

 

On a slightly different (though perhaps not unrelated) note, I feel funny this morning. I feel tired, slightly light-headed, I feel this pressure in my chest, and I feel like my heart is racing, when it's actually not. I'm wondering if it has to do with the low iron or possible GD, or if it's something else entirely. I just googled hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia, but it doesn't sound like what I'm experiencing. My only worry is that I have to drive to church in a few minutes, and I'm feeling a little light-headed. Fortunately it's a short drive, but I really wish either of Matt's parents were going to be in our ward today, because I feel entirely incapable of chasing Elijah around, let alone filling in for someone for music time for the Primary kids during the 3rd block. Yeah...going to have to figure that one out.

Anyway, speaking of church, we need to leave in 2 minutes or we'll be late, so I'm going to have to wrap this up now.