By The Pricking of My Thumbs...

...or fingers anyway. This is about gestational diabetes, which I may or may not have. Opinions and blood glucose measuring devices differ.

Seems my GP forgot to test my blood glucose index or whatever at 28 weeks, an oversight which the King Eddy midwives harrumphed over when they checked my records at 37 weeks. It was too late to do the test, so they did a random blood glucose reading and I clocked in with a whopping 9. Something between 4 and 7 would have been the norm. Gestational diabetes was the diagnosis.

After all, my race and age were factors in favour of the diagnosis, even if my weight, diet, health, blood pressure, family history and everything else was just fine.

In short, the placenta produces hormones which interfere with the insulin in my blood, with the result that my blood glucose levels escalate, I end up up with a fat baby, and somewhere down the track I have a 50% chance of developing Type 2 diabetes.

They booked me in to see a dietitican and a doctor.

The dietitican went over my diet with me. She said it was fine. The doctor checked me over. Normal blood pressure. Bub was a good size, nothing out of the ordinary there. I had another friendly encounter with the blood glucose measuring device (another needle, more blood) and I had a perfectly normal reading in the mid 4s. The midwife took another reading, just to double check. Again in the mid 4s.

But just to be absolutely certain, they lent me one of the little blood-hungry devices so I could monitor my blood glucose levels at home, four times a day, over three days of my choice, before they see me again Friday.

And so far, my readings have been well within the normal range.

I'm having dark suspicions about that first, anomalous reading of 9. A normal reading they double check. A way-out reading they don't? My fingers are itching with tiny scab marks and I don't know how people who genuinely have to monitor their blood glucose levels every day of their lives manage. I know I couldn't do this alone. Just as well it amuses skribe to watch me jump and swear everytime the needle slams home.