Now this, is a tragic-comic story! Also, it is an ode to Lord Murphy! :P
So I had to schedule this oral glucose test to check for possible gestational diabetes. I went to the lab, drank a yucky orange glucose solution, and sat there for an hour. They then drew my blood to test my blood glucose level.
The maximum value for a negative result is 140. Guess what my result was : 139! And then the doctor suddenly realized that their facility uses 135 as the maximum value and not 140. Thus, I was sent off to do a 3-hour Glucose Tolerance Test.
I had to fast for 10-12 hours (at a time when i had morning sickness), and then get my blood drawn to test for fasting sugar. Then I had to drink an even more concentrated glucose solution (this time clear), and get my blood drawn every hour, 3 times! Now if 2 out of these 4 blood tests came above normal, I would be diagnosed as a gestational diabetic.
:-)
Yeah, I did not get 2 values above normal. I also did not get all values normal. That's right, ambiguity rules! I got 1 value slightly above normal. Ugghhh..what is it with borderline results and me????
Anyway, so technically, I wasn't diabetic. Still, my 'over-careful' doctor asked me to attend diabetic counselling. The class was totally useless, and didn't tell me anything I did not know before. And we had to shell out 300 bucks for it! The worst part was that it paved way for the prick-athon sessions. I was given a blood glucose monitor, made to buy the testing supplies (needles and testing strips), and then, made to prick my finger and check my blood glucose twice everyday. Every single day! Boohoohoo :'(
To add to the confusion, there was some major health insurance hullabaloo. Why? Because the insurance wouldn't pay for my diabetic supplies and counselling sessions unless I was officially diabetic, which I was not.
The processes did not end there. I was asked to do a complete anatomical ultrasound at the hospital, because of questionable gestational diabetes (?) and the fact that we refused to do the genetic screening. Thankfully, the results if the ultrasound came back normal. And oh, we found out that we were having a girl! Yayyy! :-)
Several more weeks of blood glucose checking continued, with most of the results being well within normal limits, of course. But continue, they did!
Thankfully, by the end of the 4th month, my nausea had almost gone away, and by the end of the 5th month, I was feeling quite energetic, too. Thus we had started doing some exciting stuff, like thinking of baby names, and shopping for the baby! :-)
Also, as it eventually turned out, the diabetes scare did some good - it helped me keep my weight under control. By the time I delivered, I had gained just 14 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight. Yayy to that! :)
So I had to schedule this oral glucose test to check for possible gestational diabetes. I went to the lab, drank a yucky orange glucose solution, and sat there for an hour. They then drew my blood to test my blood glucose level.
The maximum value for a negative result is 140. Guess what my result was : 139! And then the doctor suddenly realized that their facility uses 135 as the maximum value and not 140. Thus, I was sent off to do a 3-hour Glucose Tolerance Test.
I had to fast for 10-12 hours (at a time when i had morning sickness), and then get my blood drawn to test for fasting sugar. Then I had to drink an even more concentrated glucose solution (this time clear), and get my blood drawn every hour, 3 times! Now if 2 out of these 4 blood tests came above normal, I would be diagnosed as a gestational diabetic.
:-)
Yeah, I did not get 2 values above normal. I also did not get all values normal. That's right, ambiguity rules! I got 1 value slightly above normal. Ugghhh..what is it with borderline results and me????
Anyway, so technically, I wasn't diabetic. Still, my 'over-careful' doctor asked me to attend diabetic counselling. The class was totally useless, and didn't tell me anything I did not know before. And we had to shell out 300 bucks for it! The worst part was that it paved way for the prick-athon sessions. I was given a blood glucose monitor, made to buy the testing supplies (needles and testing strips), and then, made to prick my finger and check my blood glucose twice everyday. Every single day! Boohoohoo :'(
To add to the confusion, there was some major health insurance hullabaloo. Why? Because the insurance wouldn't pay for my diabetic supplies and counselling sessions unless I was officially diabetic, which I was not.
The processes did not end there. I was asked to do a complete anatomical ultrasound at the hospital, because of questionable gestational diabetes (?) and the fact that we refused to do the genetic screening. Thankfully, the results if the ultrasound came back normal. And oh, we found out that we were having a girl! Yayyy! :-)
Several more weeks of blood glucose checking continued, with most of the results being well within normal limits, of course. But continue, they did!
Thankfully, by the end of the 4th month, my nausea had almost gone away, and by the end of the 5th month, I was feeling quite energetic, too. Thus we had started doing some exciting stuff, like thinking of baby names, and shopping for the baby! :-)
Also, as it eventually turned out, the diabetes scare did some good - it helped me keep my weight under control. By the time I delivered, I had gained just 14 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight. Yayy to that! :)
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