My Wild Ride with Gestational Diabetes

I'll never forget the day I found out I was pregnant. It was a mix of emotions - happiness, anxiety, and a hint of fear. As I delved deeper into my pregnancy journey, I discovered I had gestational diabetes. Let me tell you, it was a wake-up call.

Before I got pregnant, I weighed 68 kg and stood 170 cm tall. I'd always been pretty healthy, but my doctor's words still sent a shockwave through my system. 'You need to start exercising and watching your diet,' she said. I was determined to do just that.

My therapist recommended I start doing physical exercises to manage my prediabetes and metabolic syndrome. I lost 10 kg, and my fasting blood sugar levels dropped from 5.8 to 4.5. My cholesterol levels went from 7 units to 6 units. It was a huge relief, but I knew I still had a long way to go.

At the time of conception, my weight was 58 kg. I was careful about my diet, but I didn't want to deprive myself of the things I loved. I started researching and learning more about gestational diabetes. It's a common condition, and many women have successfully managed it during their pregnancies.

By 9 months, my weight had gone up to 62 kg. I gave birth at 39 weeks. I gained a total of 4 kg - a miracle, considering my initial weight gain was a concern. I felt like I'd lost some muscle mass, but I was determined to get back on track.

I consulted with an endocrinologist, and I was put on diet table 9. Insulin was an option, but something clicked in my head, and I thought, 'I won't give up.' And I didn't even consider it during my pregnancy.

My fasting blood sugar level was 5.8 on the 18th week. The glucose tolerance test was supposed to be next, but it was canceled because my blood sugar was already high, and I might have gotten sick. The normal blood glucose level during pregnancy is up to 5.1.

The diagnosis of GSD is automatically made at my sugar level at this stage. I was worried, but I knew I had to take control of my health. I started reading up on the condition, and I discovered that it's a temporary condition that would pass after pregnancy.

Well, there's nothing scary about this. GSD passes after pregnancy, but you'll have to stick to a diet. I didn't want to give up, but my sugar levels would spike to 8 units even on my old portions of oatmeal. And after eating buns, pizza, and sweets, I'd get palpitations. I felt weak and unwell. But when I followed the diet, I started feeling better.

High blood sugar is also bad for the baby. I had to be careful about what I ate, but I didn't want to deprive myself of the things I loved. I started researching and learning more about gestational diabetes. I discovered that it's a common condition, and many women have successfully managed it during their pregnancies.

What I had to forget and exclude from my diet

Sweet buns and pizza - they were my biggest enemies. My sugar levels would spike more on my favorite pizza from the hypermarket than on a small piece of cake. I excluded all candies, energy bars, and chocolate, except for dark chocolate. I reduced my portion sizes of pasta, rice, and buckwheat. I reduced my bread intake. Fruits were also reduced. I could only eat non-sweet apple varieties. Store-bought juice was a no-go - it's got way too much sugar.

I got a glucometer, and I sometimes still tried sweet foods and monitored the results. It was like a little experiment to see how my body would react.

Babyhood - a super emotional time, and I found out that food really boosted my endorphins/dopamines. I'm not sure what exactly, but I got a mood boost from my favorite food and sweets. Especially since I really craved the forbidden stuff sometimes. Just during pregnancy.

But the fact that now a lot of things are off-limits really brought me down, and I almost got depressed.

How my diet changed

Only veggies made my sugar levels go up - hi cabbage, carrots, and fried potatoes. Purees and boiled food were out. Greens with chicken, baked in the oven. You have to add butter to the green pea mash. For those who are skeptical - green peas don't make you bloated, and they help with constipation, which is super relevant for pregnant women.

Greek salad and its variations. Cucumber-tomato salad. Oven-baked vegetable stew (zucchini, onion, tomatoes, carrots, pepper). Lobio (my favorite Georgian dish - I make it myself). Stuffed peppers, you can leave out the rice. It's convenient that you can prep in advance. Beet soup with pearl barley and beef or chicken. Squash puree soup. Boiled cabbage with chicken liver. Meat is allowed. I had everything from chicken to pork in different forms.

My husband and I became regulars at our favorite shawarma place on weekends. I got shawarma and Korean-style BBQ or pork neck, grilled over coals, with veggies and a couple of potato wedges, plus unsweetened tea. I made shawarma at home using a roll. Unsweetened kefir and other fermented drinks are all allowed. I loved drinking rye kefir. Unsweetened crackers a couple of pieces. Tvorog is allowed. Try eating it without sugar or jam - it's just gross. I couldn't. I added a bit of quince jam to sour cream, still. Salted cheese and sausage are allowed. Eggs are too. Dark chocolate with at least 75% cocoa content is allowed. I ordered natural coconut urbetch from a vendor on VK, and it was fine with sugar too.

Fruits are allowed, but it was winter, and I had them in small quantities frozen. There was a point when I really craved grapefruit juice. I'd drink about a small glass every now and then, and my sugar levels would be on the edge.

As you can see, it's possible to live a healthy lifestyle.

Still, I felt like I was eating nothing but veggies, meat, and cheese with some bread during my pregnancy. I needed to eat more to feel full, because without baked goods and sweets, I was always hungry.

I made a not-so-pleasant discovery: most store-bought baked goods contain a ton of sugar.

Even the one that seemed healthy, a chicken and potato pie from the local bakery, turned out to have a lot of sugar. I was counting on it to save me from hunger, but it didn't. I could taste the difference, too. I used to make my own dough, and I know what it tastes like without sugar or with just a little bit for the yeast to work with.

Cheese pancakes made with buckwheat flour. No sugar spike here!The diet for gestational diabetes isn't that different from table number 9.

For example, it's okay to have a popsicle without added sugar. Just make sure it's not too sweet. Nowadays, some ice cream brands add a ton of sugar to their products. I also attended a school for gestational diabetes at an endocrinologist's office.

Meat stew with a meatballMy doctor told me that if I really craved something sweet, I could have a small amount, but then I had to work it off. Exercise helps burn glucose, after all.Unfortunately, I wasn't able to follow this advice to the letter. I did manage to clean the floor, though. After long walks, I'd get a tonus. I blame the snowy winter with black ice and all the heavy clothing I had to wear. One time, I even ended up in the hospital with a threat of complications.

I didn't look for any complicated recipes. I just didn't have the energy to stand in the kitchen for a long time and fuss over cooking.

Mangold braised red beetrootAlthough my pregnancy was relatively easy (if you can call it that), I had a small case of morning sickness in the first trimester and was always tired. Even after the morning sickness passed, I was constantly exhausted until the end of my pregnancy.I stuck to simple foods that I loved before or that were allowed. Just plain dishes with rice, cucumber, and a piece of chicken, or cottage cheese with sour cream. I didn't bother posting all the simple salads I made, but they were a staple. I also tested these dishes on my glucometer, and they were all okay.

However, despite my best efforts to follow the diet, I realized that my baby was growing, and I was losing weight. I was literally not getting enough calories, even though I ate a lot of meat. It's hard to explain, but I just wasn't getting enough nutrients. You can't just not eat, after all.

I have to say, managing my diet with Gestational Diabetes was a whole lot harder than I thought it'd be. I struggled to keep the weight off, and I think it's because I stopped taking insulin. The glucose gates were too narrow... my pancreas just wasn't producing enough.

And here's the kicker for anyone who made it to the end of this review. I was born at 55 kg, thanks to a two-week stint in the hospital with jaundice.

But over the next six months, I managed to get up to a comfortable 62 kg.

However, by 2.5 months in, my milk supply just dried up. At first, it was just a trickle, and eventually, I had to switch to formula.

I'm linking this back to my Gestational Diabetes and my weight gain after giving birth. So, no joke here.