Prayers needed

Our baby girl arrived 3 days ago. She is critically ill, and is in the NICU. Please pray for her.

Almost 36 weeks...wow!

I can't believe I am almost 36 weeks! Things have been going smoothly so far and fortunately I have no major discomforts.

I do have a few of the common third trimester complaints (but I don't like to call it a complaint because I am not complaining!). Sleep is not as perfect as it used to be. I am the kind of person who can sleep sitting down if you ask me to - any time any where. I can sleep in the evenings, then again sleep through the night. My husband used to be soo jealous that I could fall asleep anywhere. Not anymore though. Falling asleep after getting up to pee can be difficult. Also, the nose congestion doesn't help either. The funniest thing is when I have to turn in bed. So I sleep on one side, and when I have to turn, I have to sit up in bed, and then turn to the other side. I can't just roll over like earlier. All this will hopefully prepare me for the many sleepless nights ahead.

Then there is the pressure "down there". When I sit in a place for too long, and then get up, I can barely walk, and I have to literally waddle because all the muscles seem tight, and there is this feeling of pressure. It usually goes away after I waddle around a bit. I have always wondered why pregnant women waddle - now I know!!

The general consensus seems to be that my bump is on the smaller side. And I think that's ok, because it doesn't come in the way much. I have friends who became huge, and they had so much difficulty just getting up from the couch. The doctor says the baby is measuring right on track, which is all that I care about. As for weight gain, I think I am on the lower end, because I had gained about 18 lbs at 35 weeks. Again, the doc said it wasn't of any concern. My appetite has not increased significantly, and thanks to my glucose levels, I can't binge on sugar either. Maybe all this will help shed the weight later?

I have so many other things to discuss, but with work, I barely have time to blog. Kindly note - I have been commenting without fail! I have three more weeks of work before maternity leave starts. I start my maternity a week before my due date. The whole "maternity leave in the US sucks" deserves a brand new post that I hope to come around to some time.

I know a few bloggers who are cycling - and have just had their transfer, or will be transferring soon. Wishing you loads of luck. Can't wait to hear about your BFPs!

Sugar woes

I went in for my one hour glucose tolerance test (GTT) around 29 weeks. The sugary drink (orange flavor for me!) was not as bad as I expected, but the results of the test were. My levels after one hour were at 150, while the doctors require a value of 130 or less. I attributed this to the croissant I ate for breakfast before the test, and decided that I would ace the 3 hour glucose tolerance test.
Next week I went in for my 3 hour test. I was very nervous about fasting for 12 hrs, but I managed to fast that long without much trouble. The 3 hour test is no fun at all. You sit there like an idiot for 3 hrs, and get poked on alternate arms every hour or so. And the drink they give is far worse because it has double the amount of glucose. Thankfully, my veins are easy to find, so the poking was not bad, and I didn't feel sick or uncomfortable like a lot of people experience.

I got a call 2 days later from the doctor's office and they said that all levels except my one hour levels were normal. So my 1 hr levels were at 192 (normal is 180 or less) while the other levels were well below normal. They said I should go meet a dietician. I tried asking them what this meant, how important it is to meet the dietician etc, but the lady had no clue. In fact, she gave me the levels only after I asked her for it.  Of course then I frantically googled, but alas, google could not give me any specific answers.

I decided I didn't want to meet the dietician. I'd try to restrict my sugar levels on my own. I confirmed with the doctor that I didn't need to be monitored. She said I would be fine on my own, if I could restrict my diet.

So here we are, off brownies and sweets and chocolates and icecreams. All the stuff I love! Wasn't pregnancy supposed to be the time when you eat what you want without worrying about weight gain? Wasn't this when I could indulge? Thankfully its only another 8 wks or less of low sugar diet, so I think I'll survive. I do still eat rice (which is our staple) but in lesser quantities. I switched from white bread to wheat bread, and keep an eye on how much I hog. I am not sure if this is helping, we'll just have to wait and see when the little one arrives. As far as weight gain goes, I think I am ok, because I gained about 15 lbs by 30 wks.

So far, the one thing I missed during this pregnancy was sex. Yes I know, you ask me why? Because my hubby is scared he'll do something to the baby. Also, I am so sore downstairs that I really don't mind either. Now I can add sweets to the list of things I miss.

Any suggestions about what I can eat and should not? Any one else had glucose intolerance as opposed to GD?

Last but not the least, I am approaching 32 wks and freaking out! More on that later. All in all, I feel great - no tiredness, just minor symptoms that are not too bothersome on and off.