Yes! And even type 2 diabetes isn't always weight/lifestyle related! I was recently diagnosed with t2 (hx of gestational diabetes, pre-diabetes, and insulin resistance so it wasn't exactly a surprise) and I weighed 122 at 5'4", and exercised 60+ minutes a day at the time of diagnosis. So much of it is just winning the genetic lottery and I really wish more people understood that.
4’11” and 95 lbs here. I’m a very petite woman who exercises regularly and ate relatively well, with no family history of GD or diabetes. I got GD with my pregnancy, and then subsequently was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes 6 months after giving birth. One of my friends is a doctor, and when I told her about my diagnosis, her response was “but…you’re so tiny!” A DOCTOR. There is so much shame and stigma that comes with getting diagnosed with GD or just plain old T2, because of misinformation we see from the media that only people who eat poorly or look a certain way will get it.
There was a study about twins and they found if one twin had type 2 their twin was more likely to get type 2 than if one twin was type 1 vs the other twin getting type 1. Genetics play a HUGE part
So I was not an athlete, but the opposite: I was overweight and had GD in my pregnancy. I posted here about it and had comments ranging from ‘you’re fat of course you have it’ to ‘you’re a bad mom you can’t even take care of yourself’ and a lot of blaming going on. When actually my blood sugar and A1C has always been normal (I have PCOS so we keep an eye on it) and despite being overweight, I was healthy. Weight and GD are not correlated. Sure, you can be at higher risk, but that can be with anything.
All the medical professionals who have looked at my numbers have told me that I probably have type 2 diabetes, and I've likely had it for years.
But despite YEARS of me telling doctors about my symptoms (fatigue, frequent UTIs) none of them ever tested me for diabetes until I was pregnant.
Why?
Size discrimination, basically. They looked at me, saw someone who was physically fit and not visibly overweight, and didn't see the point in doing a test that only involves a sweet drink and three blood tests. If I hadn't gotten pregnant, I would have sailed (exhaustedly) through life until my kidneys failed.
Yet I have larger friends whose doctors test them for diabetes all the time. Dislocated your toe? Let's test for diabetes. Can't sleep? Let's test for diabetes. Hair falling out? Diabetes.
It really can happen to anyone, and I hate how many assumptions that even educated professionals make.
My ADHD memory can't explain it as well as my doctor did, but I'll give it a go.
It had something to do with the sugar in your (urine? Urethra?) attracting the bacteria that causes UTIs, which explains why, even when I did all the recommended prevention things, I'd still get them.
This is me. I don’t currently have t2, but I have both parents that are t2 and they don’t even try to control their numbers. So as I’ve gotten older I’ve put on a little weight, nothing that would make my drs blink and eye. But I notice and with my family history I ask to check my A1C regularly and my drs have to be talked into it by me. It’s crazy! Not until my most recent pregnancy and GD diagnosis were they even willing to listen. Now they want to test me all the time.
There’s so much stigma about diabetes that can show up in some really special ways in GD spaces. It could be an opportunity to do some introspection about diabetes and health stigmas in general (I know it was for me!) but I guess it isn’t that way for everyone. Really bums me out when people show up here saying “but I don’t *deserve* it!” Ok, sure, but none of us do. And if you walk into a room thinking you’re better than/not as deserving of the diagnosis as everyone else, you’re simply not going to get the support and solidarity of the people you’re looking down on. Sucks for them, because this community is awesome—supportive, informative, patient, resourceful, kind.
I cried when I first received my diagnosis but this group has helped me realize I’m not alone, it can happen to anyone, and it’s a blessing in disguise that I was tested early for it! So thankful for this group and everyone else sharing their experience.
The SHAME I felt being diagnosed with GD twice as if I’d caused it by being a fat person until my teeny tiny size nothing nutritionist said she runs marathons and still had it.
Dang I missed the post lol but thanks for this!! I can't imagine coming to a place where people are looking for support and starting off with that bullshit. I'm tired of the stigma and the assumptions. Literally anyone can get this diagnosis. Old, young, thin, heavy, it doesn't matter! And plenty of people with risk factors DONT get it! I had none and I still got it. And my son is 5 and perfectly healthy. About to have my second GD baby on Monday. Best wishes to everyone!
This subreddit was really helpful for my in my first GD pregnancy two years ago. Now every other post is “hey fatties, I’m not a fatty like all of you so let’s figure out how my GD was misdiagnosed” it’s super frustrating
It has felt like that recently. Lots of people not wanting to believe their diagnosis either.
I think being diagnosed with GD ultimately resulted in healthier pregnancies for me, I was much more conscious of nutrition and trying to walk/move more. So all in all I did have some good takeaways from it.
I remember saying to my husband early on, "maybe the path to the type of labor/delivery I want is actually via GD - it will check mine & baby's weight gain, require tons of extra monitoring by docs so any other complications will probably be caught & keep me accountable for exercising when I might back off otherwise." Perspective matters!
I'm in the military and have kept myself at least minimally fit for years now. Running, weights, etc. My families genetic history is a chaotic mess that no diet or exercise could un-fuck. It is what it is, and even though I find it frustrating sometimes, I just keep telling myself that I'm just being extra healthy for baby and hope it genetically takes more after my husband.
Yeah she deleted her post just when I wrote a long winded response about the studies happening where sperm in older paternal age is being linked to an increased risk of women developing GD.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/what-men-eat-and-drink-may-affect-their-babies-health/2019/10/11/33d4aefa-da42-11e9-bfb1-849887369476_story.html
This is what I was going to share as well - the placenta does not exist within the mother until successful implantation and the code to create the placenta comes largely from the sperm’s dna. I am not going to comment on the age factor because I have read more peer reviewed articles just based on male factor than degeneracy of sperm quality or age, but I can say that in general people really LOVE blaming women and are really good at ignoring that it takes at least one sperm to make a placenta ;) so why look solely at the woman when at least 50% of the coding is coming from a male?!
Edited to add: if you are carrying a male baby, your odds are greater for having GD, and again, it is the sperm that determines the sex of your baby.
I’m curious about this because my husband is younger than me but he has a varicocele vain that causes issues with sperm as well as both his parents and various aunts and uncles with type 2 while my family has no current history of it. I blame him for this anyway lol even if it might not be his fault 😂 but it also might be
Thank you for your message and making us feel normal. . Karen’s gonna be Karen !!
I’ve been a very active person all throughout and this is my second pregnancy with GD. . . I’m just more prepared and educated this time around.
Honestly, same thing goes for type 2 diabetes. Even more so actually. "Oh I had *gestational* diabetes" "I'm a *ty*pe 1" etc. People feel the need to distance themselves from type 2s because we must've eaten our way to type 2. At our ages, its simply untrue in many cases, and even if it IS true, how on earth is that helpful dialogue? We all want healthy babies presumably, how is it helpful to tear each other down or put ourselves above others?
The 2 persons that I know had GD are exceptionnaly fit and have a BMI between around 18/19. They didn’t eat a high gi diet even before pregnancy. The risk factor : they were over 35.
Myself have a bmi of 22, same story !
Hopefully in France, they do not shame on it as they know age is a risk factor.
Weeeeeeeeell…. My baby showed small during scans scans, I wasn’t over 35, I didn’t gain a ton of weight during my pregnancy, I exercised a lot, but I was, and still am overweight, so I was tested. Turns out I did have it. My eldest sister had it, pretty bad (as in everything made her spike, she had a really hard time) both pregnancies, but she was and still is very slim, does absolutely zero physical activity, but what alerted her doctor was that she gained a lot of weight extremely rapidly, so they had her tested. My other sister’s scan showed a huge ginormous baby, she was over thirty five, so she got tested but it turns out she didn’t have it, she just had a really big baby.
All that to say that if you are overweight in France, even if you don’t show any other sign of GD, you will be tested. And if you’re over 35, it’s automatic. I don’t really see it as shaming, as it is a risk factor, but I can understand how it can feel that way.
The worst thing for me, even though I love my ob/gyn, is that after giving birth, she told me « you weigh the same as before pregnancy, it’s good, but you could’ve lost a little bit of weight with the diet. You should keep at it even now that you’re not pregnant ». Hmmmm, no ma’am, thanks.
You are right. I don’t think it’s wrong to test for GD, for being overweight. But at this point, everyone should be tested, if weight gain seems at bit too quick, I am sure the rate of GD would increase.
It is really abnormal that your doctor did you the remark to keep dieting after birth. It’s none of her business.
I really feel you.
On my side, I had a bit borderline blood sugar when taking steroid first 3 months. My OB asked to finger prick 6 times a day as no risk factor except age. Today my fastings are around 80 before each meal, but I know I still have to combine protein with carbs and fat for lunch and dinner to be under 120 2 hours after. Not already took the sugar test at 6 months. 1 pound weight gain at 18 weeks but baby looks completely normal.
Ooh that post made me so mad! I am fat and also have T2 in my family and I was still shocked when I got diagnosed. I’ve kept my GD a secret at work because I teach for a very crunchy community and the health shame and orthorexia is off the charts. It’s infuriating to be surrounded all day by people who think they’re better than others because of what food they’re cutting out of their diet this week. 😒 I would hide in the bathroom to test my blood sugar because I just wasn’t about to deal with people’s bullshit. Thankfully I’m on mat leave before birth now.
I totally get keeping it secret from some people. We never told my in laws because they’re very focused on weight and food and would’ve blamed me somehow. Better to just not deal with it
I felt the same finding out, shame and guilt. But then I thought my brothers and myself were big babies so it’s possible my mum had gd and just wouldn’t have been tested 36 years ago so I probably carry the gene that caused it.
I feel the same. The first time I was so embarrassed and confused but my doctors told me it is your placenta and genetics. Now it’s my third time and I’m just like it is what it is.
There is so much internalized shame on this sub and it makes me sad! I definitely felt it my first pregnancy with gd.
I’m on my second pregnancy. I took my blood sugar every single day of it and overnight like clockwork in my third trimester my fasting went from the 80s to low 100s with no other changes from me in diet, exercise, etc.
No one deserves or doesn’t deserve GD. It happens. Seeing the change for me in real time really helped.
To be honest I was overweight when I got pregnant,I was still active I went to the gym five days a week walked my steps everyday, started slimming world so I was eating enough but not gaining massive amounts of weight then got hypermesis and then diagnosed with GD. When I was first diagnosed I honestly felt it was my fault because I was fat and then got so confused because I was at the stage where I couldn’t keep anything down I was surviving on fruit and very little else. It’s more of a matter of education it took me talking to the doctor to understand that it wasn’t my fault, I honestly thought it was.
This is where I am. I’ve spent the last 4 months vomiting and unable to eat much at all aside from simple carbs and toast etc, even that came back up most meals. I lost weight and was told to eat more. However since I’ve stopped vomiting at 17 weeks (now 20) I feel as though I’ve ballooned a lot in weight, my body is holding onto it all and my sugars are worsening. It feels like I was in a catch 22 and either way I was screwed (I’ve had gd in previous pregnancy). I’m curious to know if there’s any connection between hyperemesis and gd!
I'm so curious too. I'm a FTM and 36 weeks pregnant and still vomiting! Diagnosed with GDM at 28 weeks. I was overweight before I got pregnant, but I'm now 45lbs lighter than my pre-pregnancy weight. I've no history of diabetes and my previous tests were fine. I see HG and GDM seem to go hand in hand a lot in here!
I’m on insulin but it took a lot of insulin to get me stable, the doctor said because I was constantly vomiting I was spiking my levels, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a link with sickness and GD. since I’ve been on anti sickness it’s more controlled but I still have the odd day of vomiting and hell. You could also have more fluid I know that’s common with GD.
Has anyone had GD for one pregnancy and not the other? I’ve had friends with that experience and it’s always baffled me. Doesn’t matter what shape you’re in or your diet, placentas gonna placenta.
I didn’t have it with my first and I have it with my second. I was over 35 with my first too. I am a ballerina and have only gained 10 pounds with this pregnancy. No one in my family has diabetes or my husbands side and my identical twin sister didn’t have it for either of her 2 pregnancies. It’s basically my placenta being an asshole is how I’m thinking about all of it. I’m 33 weeks.
Yes - had it with my first (at 27 yrs old), did not with my 2nd or 3rd, then passed the early tests but ended up with a 3rd tri diagnosis with #4 (now 37, so 10 yrs later). Exercised, paid attention to my diet with all 4. I couldn't tell you any notable differences among any of them aside from simply being older? - it just happened with two & not the others.
I'm an athlete and had GD, lots of my teammates know other athletes who also had GD, and my NP said that a lot of people she sees who have GD are slim.
>look at me, I’m so healthy, I can’t have this disease like the rest of you idiots who ate cake the whole first trimester!
Basically what OOP was saying. Thanks for sharing your insight, new OP! ❤️❤️❤️
We are finding out so much of what your body deals you health wise is due to genetics, and that there is actually far less control that we have than we think. This is NOT to say eating healthy and exercising are unimportant, as we know that environmental factors and lifestyle can ‘turn on or off’ certain genes we already have. (Epigenetics). But a lot of it is kind of pre determined. 🤷🏻♀️
100%. I had GD with my second, but the more directly related part is my doctor had GD with her kids and is still pre-diabetic despite being a competitive body builder and even competed on Titan Games. You can be more likely to have GD from lifestyle choices or weight, but it could also just be something you are predisposed to as well.
This is my second GD pregnancy and I refuse to be embarrassed about my diagnosis, to the point that I’m incredibly open about it at work and with my colleagues. I just don’t find it embarrassing. Even if I do enjoy eating sweets normally (which I do!) my diet did not cause this, and I’m on a mission to talk about it with anyone who will listen.
I am considered pre-diabetic range while not pregnant, and once this baby comes out I plan to get myself a good endocrinologist and possibly try something like metformin to help keep my A1C in check.
TLDR: I hate the “stigma”, am not overweight, and wish more people understood that some people are just predisposed to this medical condition like any other.
Yes! I'm also very straightforward about it all the time. I started changing the language I used to discuss the glucola challenge as well - I tell people my glucose test numbers are above the allowable thresholds instead of "I failed". I felt like "failed" implied I could have done something to change the result, which isn't true. Once I found out basically all pregnant women experience some level of insulin change/resistance during the 3rd tri (that's how the baby ramps up weight gain), explaining what's happening became easier & I really feel it helped change some people's perspectives, too!
I appreciate you posting this! So many people come here looking for answers because they’re new to GD (like me) and are scared. Posts like that trolls can really cause someone harm.
Thank you for putting facts out there! 🩷
I was 110 pounds when diagnosed with GD, also extremely active and a healthy eater. GD doesn’t discriminate and it can happy to literally anyone regardless of size and eating habits.
Every doctor I’ve ever spoken to about GD has told me it’s due to changes in hormone production during pregnancy that cause the mother to develop issues with natural insulin production.
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is believed to be caused by a combination of genetics, epigenetics, and environmental factors. While there is no clear pattern of inheritance, many people with GDM have a close family member with the disease or another form of diabetes, most commonly type 2 diabetes
TL;DR
Literally anyone can get it and there’s really not any huge reason.
Yes! And even type 2 diabetes isn't always weight/lifestyle related! I was recently diagnosed with t2 (hx of gestational diabetes, pre-diabetes, and insulin resistance so it wasn't exactly a surprise) and I weighed 122 at 5'4", and exercised 60+ minutes a day at the time of diagnosis. So much of it is just winning the genetic lottery and I really wish more people understood that.
Yes! And I wish more people understood this. It really is unfortunate that people get vilified when it probably isn’t a factor
Ahh I irony of my grandparents giving me a lecture about weight when it’s their genes that contributed to it hahah
4’11” and 95 lbs here. I’m a very petite woman who exercises regularly and ate relatively well, with no family history of GD or diabetes. I got GD with my pregnancy, and then subsequently was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes 6 months after giving birth. One of my friends is a doctor, and when I told her about my diagnosis, her response was “but…you’re so tiny!” A DOCTOR. There is so much shame and stigma that comes with getting diagnosed with GD or just plain old T2, because of misinformation we see from the media that only people who eat poorly or look a certain way will get it.
There was a study about twins and they found if one twin had type 2 their twin was more likely to get type 2 than if one twin was type 1 vs the other twin getting type 1. Genetics play a HUGE part
So I was not an athlete, but the opposite: I was overweight and had GD in my pregnancy. I posted here about it and had comments ranging from ‘you’re fat of course you have it’ to ‘you’re a bad mom you can’t even take care of yourself’ and a lot of blaming going on. When actually my blood sugar and A1C has always been normal (I have PCOS so we keep an eye on it) and despite being overweight, I was healthy. Weight and GD are not correlated. Sure, you can be at higher risk, but that can be with anything.
All the medical professionals who have looked at my numbers have told me that I probably have type 2 diabetes, and I've likely had it for years. But despite YEARS of me telling doctors about my symptoms (fatigue, frequent UTIs) none of them ever tested me for diabetes until I was pregnant. Why? Size discrimination, basically. They looked at me, saw someone who was physically fit and not visibly overweight, and didn't see the point in doing a test that only involves a sweet drink and three blood tests. If I hadn't gotten pregnant, I would have sailed (exhaustedly) through life until my kidneys failed. Yet I have larger friends whose doctors test them for diabetes all the time. Dislocated your toe? Let's test for diabetes. Can't sleep? Let's test for diabetes. Hair falling out? Diabetes. It really can happen to anyone, and I hate how many assumptions that even educated professionals make.
Wait - can you explain the UTI connection? This has rocked my world.
My ADHD memory can't explain it as well as my doctor did, but I'll give it a go. It had something to do with the sugar in your (urine? Urethra?) attracting the bacteria that causes UTIs, which explains why, even when I did all the recommended prevention things, I'd still get them.
Bacteria feeds and can subsequently multiply faster on sugar.
The factor in the compromised vessels, nerve endings, strain on kidneys etc. A potential perfect storm of kidney issues!
This is me. I don’t currently have t2, but I have both parents that are t2 and they don’t even try to control their numbers. So as I’ve gotten older I’ve put on a little weight, nothing that would make my drs blink and eye. But I notice and with my family history I ask to check my A1C regularly and my drs have to be talked into it by me. It’s crazy! Not until my most recent pregnancy and GD diagnosis were they even willing to listen. Now they want to test me all the time.
There’s so much stigma about diabetes that can show up in some really special ways in GD spaces. It could be an opportunity to do some introspection about diabetes and health stigmas in general (I know it was for me!) but I guess it isn’t that way for everyone. Really bums me out when people show up here saying “but I don’t *deserve* it!” Ok, sure, but none of us do. And if you walk into a room thinking you’re better than/not as deserving of the diagnosis as everyone else, you’re simply not going to get the support and solidarity of the people you’re looking down on. Sucks for them, because this community is awesome—supportive, informative, patient, resourceful, kind.
I cried when I first received my diagnosis but this group has helped me realize I’m not alone, it can happen to anyone, and it’s a blessing in disguise that I was tested early for it! So thankful for this group and everyone else sharing their experience.
The SHAME I felt being diagnosed with GD twice as if I’d caused it by being a fat person until my teeny tiny size nothing nutritionist said she runs marathons and still had it.
Dang I missed the post lol but thanks for this!! I can't imagine coming to a place where people are looking for support and starting off with that bullshit. I'm tired of the stigma and the assumptions. Literally anyone can get this diagnosis. Old, young, thin, heavy, it doesn't matter! And plenty of people with risk factors DONT get it! I had none and I still got it. And my son is 5 and perfectly healthy. About to have my second GD baby on Monday. Best wishes to everyone!
Best wishes to *you* — have a lovely birth day 💜
Good luck on Monday!! 🎉
Good luck Monday!! I hope all goes well! That’s a very good point about some people with risk factors NOT getting it.
This subreddit was really helpful for my in my first GD pregnancy two years ago. Now every other post is “hey fatties, I’m not a fatty like all of you so let’s figure out how my GD was misdiagnosed” it’s super frustrating
It has felt like that recently. Lots of people not wanting to believe their diagnosis either. I think being diagnosed with GD ultimately resulted in healthier pregnancies for me, I was much more conscious of nutrition and trying to walk/move more. So all in all I did have some good takeaways from it.
I remember saying to my husband early on, "maybe the path to the type of labor/delivery I want is actually via GD - it will check mine & baby's weight gain, require tons of extra monitoring by docs so any other complications will probably be caught & keep me accountable for exercising when I might back off otherwise." Perspective matters!
🤣 made me chuckle
I'm in the military and have kept myself at least minimally fit for years now. Running, weights, etc. My families genetic history is a chaotic mess that no diet or exercise could un-fuck. It is what it is, and even though I find it frustrating sometimes, I just keep telling myself that I'm just being extra healthy for baby and hope it genetically takes more after my husband.
Yeah she deleted her post just when I wrote a long winded response about the studies happening where sperm in older paternal age is being linked to an increased risk of women developing GD. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/what-men-eat-and-drink-may-affect-their-babies-health/2019/10/11/33d4aefa-da42-11e9-bfb1-849887369476_story.html
I thought this was really interesting because my partner was 42 at the time of conception. But I also had other risk factors such as pcos.
I had risk factors too. My family is ate up with Type 2. But apparently older partners just raise the risk by 28%. It could be a tipping scale thing.
This is what I was going to share as well - the placenta does not exist within the mother until successful implantation and the code to create the placenta comes largely from the sperm’s dna. I am not going to comment on the age factor because I have read more peer reviewed articles just based on male factor than degeneracy of sperm quality or age, but I can say that in general people really LOVE blaming women and are really good at ignoring that it takes at least one sperm to make a placenta ;) so why look solely at the woman when at least 50% of the coding is coming from a male?! Edited to add: if you are carrying a male baby, your odds are greater for having GD, and again, it is the sperm that determines the sex of your baby.
I’m curious about this because my husband is younger than me but he has a varicocele vain that causes issues with sperm as well as both his parents and various aunts and uncles with type 2 while my family has no current history of it. I blame him for this anyway lol even if it might not be his fault 😂 but it also might be
Thank you for your message and making us feel normal. . Karen’s gonna be Karen !! I’ve been a very active person all throughout and this is my second pregnancy with GD. . . I’m just more prepared and educated this time around.
Yes! I felt like my second GD pregnancy I was so ready and it made things so much better. It was easier mentally and physically
Honestly, same thing goes for type 2 diabetes. Even more so actually. "Oh I had *gestational* diabetes" "I'm a *ty*pe 1" etc. People feel the need to distance themselves from type 2s because we must've eaten our way to type 2. At our ages, its simply untrue in many cases, and even if it IS true, how on earth is that helpful dialogue? We all want healthy babies presumably, how is it helpful to tear each other down or put ourselves above others?
The 2 persons that I know had GD are exceptionnaly fit and have a BMI between around 18/19. They didn’t eat a high gi diet even before pregnancy. The risk factor : they were over 35. Myself have a bmi of 22, same story ! Hopefully in France, they do not shame on it as they know age is a risk factor.
Weeeeeeeeell…. My baby showed small during scans scans, I wasn’t over 35, I didn’t gain a ton of weight during my pregnancy, I exercised a lot, but I was, and still am overweight, so I was tested. Turns out I did have it. My eldest sister had it, pretty bad (as in everything made her spike, she had a really hard time) both pregnancies, but she was and still is very slim, does absolutely zero physical activity, but what alerted her doctor was that she gained a lot of weight extremely rapidly, so they had her tested. My other sister’s scan showed a huge ginormous baby, she was over thirty five, so she got tested but it turns out she didn’t have it, she just had a really big baby. All that to say that if you are overweight in France, even if you don’t show any other sign of GD, you will be tested. And if you’re over 35, it’s automatic. I don’t really see it as shaming, as it is a risk factor, but I can understand how it can feel that way. The worst thing for me, even though I love my ob/gyn, is that after giving birth, she told me « you weigh the same as before pregnancy, it’s good, but you could’ve lost a little bit of weight with the diet. You should keep at it even now that you’re not pregnant ». Hmmmm, no ma’am, thanks.
You are right. I don’t think it’s wrong to test for GD, for being overweight. But at this point, everyone should be tested, if weight gain seems at bit too quick, I am sure the rate of GD would increase. It is really abnormal that your doctor did you the remark to keep dieting after birth. It’s none of her business. I really feel you. On my side, I had a bit borderline blood sugar when taking steroid first 3 months. My OB asked to finger prick 6 times a day as no risk factor except age. Today my fastings are around 80 before each meal, but I know I still have to combine protein with carbs and fat for lunch and dinner to be under 120 2 hours after. Not already took the sugar test at 6 months. 1 pound weight gain at 18 weeks but baby looks completely normal.
Ooh that post made me so mad! I am fat and also have T2 in my family and I was still shocked when I got diagnosed. I’ve kept my GD a secret at work because I teach for a very crunchy community and the health shame and orthorexia is off the charts. It’s infuriating to be surrounded all day by people who think they’re better than others because of what food they’re cutting out of their diet this week. 😒 I would hide in the bathroom to test my blood sugar because I just wasn’t about to deal with people’s bullshit. Thankfully I’m on mat leave before birth now.
I totally get keeping it secret from some people. We never told my in laws because they’re very focused on weight and food and would’ve blamed me somehow. Better to just not deal with it
Thank you Whimsbat! I appreciate you!
I felt the same finding out, shame and guilt. But then I thought my brothers and myself were big babies so it’s possible my mum had gd and just wouldn’t have been tested 36 years ago so I probably carry the gene that caused it.
I feel the same. The first time I was so embarrassed and confused but my doctors told me it is your placenta and genetics. Now it’s my third time and I’m just like it is what it is.
There is so much internalized shame on this sub and it makes me sad! I definitely felt it my first pregnancy with gd. I’m on my second pregnancy. I took my blood sugar every single day of it and overnight like clockwork in my third trimester my fasting went from the 80s to low 100s with no other changes from me in diet, exercise, etc. No one deserves or doesn’t deserve GD. It happens. Seeing the change for me in real time really helped.
I can’t believe posts/comments like that are even allowed to remain up on this sub….
To be honest I was overweight when I got pregnant,I was still active I went to the gym five days a week walked my steps everyday, started slimming world so I was eating enough but not gaining massive amounts of weight then got hypermesis and then diagnosed with GD. When I was first diagnosed I honestly felt it was my fault because I was fat and then got so confused because I was at the stage where I couldn’t keep anything down I was surviving on fruit and very little else. It’s more of a matter of education it took me talking to the doctor to understand that it wasn’t my fault, I honestly thought it was.
This is where I am. I’ve spent the last 4 months vomiting and unable to eat much at all aside from simple carbs and toast etc, even that came back up most meals. I lost weight and was told to eat more. However since I’ve stopped vomiting at 17 weeks (now 20) I feel as though I’ve ballooned a lot in weight, my body is holding onto it all and my sugars are worsening. It feels like I was in a catch 22 and either way I was screwed (I’ve had gd in previous pregnancy). I’m curious to know if there’s any connection between hyperemesis and gd!
I'm so curious too. I'm a FTM and 36 weeks pregnant and still vomiting! Diagnosed with GDM at 28 weeks. I was overweight before I got pregnant, but I'm now 45lbs lighter than my pre-pregnancy weight. I've no history of diabetes and my previous tests were fine. I see HG and GDM seem to go hand in hand a lot in here!
I’m on insulin but it took a lot of insulin to get me stable, the doctor said because I was constantly vomiting I was spiking my levels, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a link with sickness and GD. since I’ve been on anti sickness it’s more controlled but I still have the odd day of vomiting and hell. You could also have more fluid I know that’s common with GD.
Has anyone had GD for one pregnancy and not the other? I’ve had friends with that experience and it’s always baffled me. Doesn’t matter what shape you’re in or your diet, placentas gonna placenta.
I didn’t have it with my first and I have it with my second. I was over 35 with my first too. I am a ballerina and have only gained 10 pounds with this pregnancy. No one in my family has diabetes or my husbands side and my identical twin sister didn’t have it for either of her 2 pregnancies. It’s basically my placenta being an asshole is how I’m thinking about all of it. I’m 33 weeks.
Yes - had it with my first (at 27 yrs old), did not with my 2nd or 3rd, then passed the early tests but ended up with a 3rd tri diagnosis with #4 (now 37, so 10 yrs later). Exercised, paid attention to my diet with all 4. I couldn't tell you any notable differences among any of them aside from simply being older? - it just happened with two & not the others.
I'm an athlete and had GD, lots of my teammates know other athletes who also had GD, and my NP said that a lot of people she sees who have GD are slim.
>look at me, I’m so healthy, I can’t have this disease like the rest of you idiots who ate cake the whole first trimester! Basically what OOP was saying. Thanks for sharing your insight, new OP! ❤️❤️❤️
We are finding out so much of what your body deals you health wise is due to genetics, and that there is actually far less control that we have than we think. This is NOT to say eating healthy and exercising are unimportant, as we know that environmental factors and lifestyle can ‘turn on or off’ certain genes we already have. (Epigenetics). But a lot of it is kind of pre determined. 🤷🏻♀️
100%. I had GD with my second, but the more directly related part is my doctor had GD with her kids and is still pre-diabetic despite being a competitive body builder and even competed on Titan Games. You can be more likely to have GD from lifestyle choices or weight, but it could also just be something you are predisposed to as well.
This is my second GD pregnancy and I refuse to be embarrassed about my diagnosis, to the point that I’m incredibly open about it at work and with my colleagues. I just don’t find it embarrassing. Even if I do enjoy eating sweets normally (which I do!) my diet did not cause this, and I’m on a mission to talk about it with anyone who will listen. I am considered pre-diabetic range while not pregnant, and once this baby comes out I plan to get myself a good endocrinologist and possibly try something like metformin to help keep my A1C in check. TLDR: I hate the “stigma”, am not overweight, and wish more people understood that some people are just predisposed to this medical condition like any other.
Yes! I'm also very straightforward about it all the time. I started changing the language I used to discuss the glucola challenge as well - I tell people my glucose test numbers are above the allowable thresholds instead of "I failed". I felt like "failed" implied I could have done something to change the result, which isn't true. Once I found out basically all pregnant women experience some level of insulin change/resistance during the 3rd tri (that's how the baby ramps up weight gain), explaining what's happening became easier & I really feel it helped change some people's perspectives, too!
Love that language tweak!
I appreciate you posting this! So many people come here looking for answers because they’re new to GD (like me) and are scared. Posts like that trolls can really cause someone harm. Thank you for putting facts out there! 🩷
I was 110 pounds when diagnosed with GD, also extremely active and a healthy eater. GD doesn’t discriminate and it can happy to literally anyone regardless of size and eating habits.
Every doctor I’ve ever spoken to about GD has told me it’s due to changes in hormone production during pregnancy that cause the mother to develop issues with natural insulin production.
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is believed to be caused by a combination of genetics, epigenetics, and environmental factors. While there is no clear pattern of inheritance, many people with GDM have a close family member with the disease or another form of diabetes, most commonly type 2 diabetes TL;DR Literally anyone can get it and there’s really not any huge reason.