Hi I am new to this site as of this week. I am really enjoying being on here and all the information/support that is given. I am 26 years old and as diagnosed when I was 10 years old. I am married and live in Maryland as well. I want to have children within the next few years. I am so scared both with the diabetes portion and the overall process of getting pregnant. I am scared of gaining an immense amount of weight and that it will NEVER come off. I bought a book that was released last year called "Balancing Pregnancy with Pre-Diabetes:Health Mom, Healthy Baby," which great to know that things can be fine when you're pregnant with diabetes. I just wanted to get some feedback and do some research from real women with diabetes. Thanks
Jenna M...Sorry this is not much of a reply, but I just joined this website, and was happy to find this Group and actually your post. I have the same fear, when I read your post I literally could have been reading my own post. I am 28, and would like to think about having kids sometime next year, but struggling with getting my A1C to the perfect range and concerned about the same things, healthy pregnancy, weight gain, etc. Hopefully someone with a positive pregnancy experience can share some pointers with us!
No it is great to know that other diabetic women have the same fear. Thanks for responding to my post. I get scared also since I have seen Steel Magnolias...granted it is a movie and it was made in the 80s. I completely can relate to trying to get your A1C to where you want it. I was told by my endocrinologist that they want you to be around a 6.5 or below at least 6 months prior to conceiving! It is good info to know though. Have you read the book that I listed in the first post by chance?
No problem, it is definitely comforting to know that there are others out there wondering the same thing and having the same questions and concerns! No, I haven't read that book, but I may actually try to order it online tonight! Thanks so much for the suggestion!
I understand your worries all to well.I have had diabetes since I was 15. i'm 28 now and several years ago I was so scared of getting pregnant for so many reasons (all of the ones that you metioned and more) so much so that I wrote off ever getting pregnant i just decided it would be better for me not to concieve. I was religious about taking my birth control. Let me back up a second and tell you that i was not in a good place as a diabetic either i didn't test very often and usually would skip going to my endo for fear of the bad #s. So anyway long story short I ended up pregnant. complete surprise somehow my birth control didn't work. but. i'm telling you now that hearing that news was the best thing that ever happened to me. i completely changed my way of life started testing 10 times a day i was able to get my a1c in the 6's within a month.
well here i am almost 5 years later with the healthiest, most active 4 year old little boy in world. My pregnancy was pretty uneventful, they never considered me high risk and I delivered naturaly 2 days past my due date. I feel very blessed to have such a great story considering how hard people work before getting pregnant and still have problems but I wanted to share my story with you. good luck and don't be scared.
oh yeah one more thing from chasing toddler around I weigh less now then i did before i got pregnant:)
Thanks for replying back and even more so, with an uplifting and reassuring story. I am extremely terrified about getting pregnant which is why it is gratifying to hear successful pregnancy stories from women like you. I have thought about the choice of should I not have children or not and would it be fair for the both of us. I also have a fluctuation in my overall control with my A1C and daily numbers. I wasn't testing all the time either but I am trying my best to begin to get things under control. The way that you say that you were religious about taking your birth control and were surprised by your pregnancy sounds like something that would happen to me!
I wasn't quite sure if I would be able to get my A1C under 7 in a few months or not. My endocrinologist says slowly but surely. My endocrinologist is a Type 1 on an insulin pump as well which is great since he can relate. Are you on the insulin pump? I am hoping I can have a success story like you! Also, that is great to know about the chasing around. Never thought about that. I guess becoming a mother is just an overall scary situation for me. But thank you again, for sharing your story with me.
I typed something earlier and I guess it got erased. I just wanted to tell you that you cannot live your life in fear and it should not prevent you from doing the things you want. If you never take a chance, you will never know what you can achieve. I am 26 and have had diabetes since I was 8 and have developed a lot of complications. I was afraid for many years but I realized the potential joy of motherhood will far outweigh some of the possible dangers that could come down the road. I am 4 months pregnant now and have never been happier. Once you see that little baby waving to you on the ultrasound, its hard to go back to a time where I did not want children. My heart melted. I got my a1c under 6 and am seeing about 5 specialists so I am doing all that I can, and whatever happens from that, happens. I have also struggled with my weight (I have not gained any pregnancy weight yet) but after really analyzing the situation, it is worth it to gain a few more pounds than to never experience the love for my child with my husband. Pregnancy is scary for everyone, even non diabetics. If you let fear hold you back in life, you will not be live through all of the joy either.
Hi Kelly. Thanks for responding and giving me courage. You are very right about tking risks especially when it comes to children. I guess I really need to get over the fact that being diabetic and becoming pregnant ultimately means that complications will arise. I need to stop watching and thinking about Steel Magnolias! And yes, just because you gain weight does not mean that that is a reason NOT to get pregnant either. It is just another worry and excuse. I really do want to become a mother and experience the feeling of my heart melting.
Well I hope you and your baby are doing well! Isn't the weather in Maryland great?! ;) I am tired of snow and ready for Spring!
yes I am now on the Omnipod and loving it. but when I was pregnant I was on shots. if I knew how much easier it would have been to be pumping I would have gotten n one sooner.
I am glad I could help! The baby and I are doing fine, hopefully on Friday I will find out if it is a boy or a girl, the suspense is killing me! I guess this is a good time to be pregnant, because I am so tired and just hanging around the house, so the weather isn't affecting me too much. I agree though, a little warm sunshine sure wouldn't hurt things!
We should be twins lol :) I am also 26, was diagnosed when I was 10. I have been married about a year and my husband and I are just starting the process of trying to conceive. I too come from the Steel Magnolis era. And was terrified to think that I could never be a mom. I have been told by doctors in the past, "diabetics cant have children." Well bull crap! So much has changed over the years, and if your sugars are under control you have no more risks than a non diabetic woman. My last A1C was 6. It took alot of work but I did it! So now comes the hard part, actually getting pregnant. I have also read the book you mentioned, and yes it is a good book! I have also started meeting with the diabetes/pregnancy educators at our hospital, which had been very helpful. You may want to talk to your endo about referring you to one of these types of programs. So I feel that I am now as ready as I'll ever be :) If you ever want to talk don't hesitate to message me!
That is coincidence! Do you live in the Maryland/DC area too? That would definitely be ironic. You are right about always hearing the "diabetics can't have children" comment. I am definitely realizing that that is bill crap. I am working on get my numbers in control for both myself and possibly a baby in the future. My endocrinologist told me recently that I am heading in the "right" direction in getting my numbers around 6 or lower. I haven't finished the book yet but am excited to read the rest. My husband bought it for a Christmas gift for me and he is planning on reading it later as well. I am glad that he is interested in learning about diabetes during pregnancy because I believe that he has the "Steel Magnolias" movie in his mind too! :( Hopefully this book will help to change those thoughts! I will look into that type of program around my area. Thanks for the recommendation. Also, feel free to message me if you'd like to talk.
I think that Steel Magnolias affected most young women with diabetes when it came out (right around the time of my own diagnosis).
Diabetes does predispose us to multiple adverse outcomes. Fortunately, with the medical advances and close scrutiny of "at risk" pregnancies, this risk has been minimized. However, it takes A LOT of work and dedication throughout pregnancy and can be so frustrating at times too!
I have two healthy children and am hoping to conceive next month. PM if you have any questions.
I'm new to this site as well (just joined today!) and am in a very similar situation as you are. I am 28 years old and was diagnosed when I was 4. I've been married for 2 years and my husband and I are to the point where we'd like to start trying to have kids. I was really nervous about it for the longest time, worried about complications for both the baby and myself. Now that I'm ready, I just found out my A1C rose to 7.1, the highest it has been in years. Normnally it has been around 6.0. I think the Holidays really messed me up.
I guess it will be another 3 months or so before I find out if my A1C has gotten any better and if we can start trying. It was very frustrating to finally get over all my fears and be ready, just to have this set back. But, Im really trying to get my sugars back under control so I have better results the next time I see my doctor.
Also, I LOVE the book by Cheryl Alkon. I have read it front to back and plan to do it again before we start trying. My husband is reading it now too. It has so much information in it, and is really easy to read and understand. I only wish she had more books out there to read. I found it difficult to find any newer books on the subject. So much has changed over the past few years, that I wanted to find the newest book possible.
I think reading this book really helped me to understand more about the subject and helped to calm my fears. I definitely suggest buying and reading it, if you havent already.
Hayley you are right about putting a lot of work and dedication into managing your diabetes. I need to get Steel Magnolias out of my head, although it is a great movie. I also think that since my mom and husband have seen the movie they get scared about me getting pregnant now. I am now in the process of attempting to reversing their views on that. I got my mom to sign up on this site as well since my brother is a Type 1 too.
Thanks for the reassuring message and I wish you luck on conceiving!
I hope you are enjoying the website. I am loving the support and information that it provides me. It is great to be able to relate to other diabetics either locally or in other states. I am trying very hard to get my numbers under control. My A1C right now is high enough that I am too embarrassed to even say. But the most important thing now is that I am working my hardest on lowering it and that I have a great endocrinologist to support me.
Yeah I have only read it once also but it was extremely informative. My husband actually bought it as a stocking stuffer for Christmas and I love the idea. He is planning on reading also in a little bit. It will be at least another year before we are evening considering trying for kids. You are so right that there aren't any other books or resources out about diabetes and pregnancy so Cheryl Alkon's book is awesome.
I am 30 years old, and I've had type 1 for 23 years. I am currently 27 weeks pregnant...with twins! The twinning was spontaneous, but very exciting! I have to say that I have been disciplined and regimented with my care for years, with my three main goals being to one day get pregnant, to take care of my eyes, and to take care of my kidneys. So far, so good. For years prior to conception, my A1C was between 6.0 and 6.5. My conception A1C was 5.8, and my A1Cs during pregnancy have been 5.8 and 5.7. Remember, you are your own best advocate! Don't wait for the doctors to make changes for you; do it yourself. Study your trends and make educated decisions on how to react to them to stabilize problems. I have a great perinatal team here in Madison. My doctors will let me go to 39 weeks of pregnancy (my goal with twins is 37 weeks), so it's getting close! That Cheryl Alkon book is like gold; keep it and reread the parts that you need. I've probably read it 3-4 times. My babies are healthy (they've passed some key milestones and gotten, as Cheryl says, "great test results with boring, 'no new developments', appointments"). They are measuring in the 60th percentile for their age, which is great! I think that pregnancy is like marriage and buying a house: don't do it until you're ready. Then, when you're ready, enjoy it! You never knows what tomorrow holds. Best of luck to you!
Hi--thanks, as always, for the nice words about my book. "That Cheryl Alkon book is like gold" just made my morning. Hope the rest of your pregnancy went great, emmcgrath!
My mother and grandmother saw that movie and as a result made me promise at age 7 I would never try to have my own children. My mother passed when I was fifteen and I always planned on adopting. I had endometriosis and was operated on when I was 14 and the doctors said I may not be able to conceive anyway. I am now 24, 18 weeks pregnant, and it was unplanned. As scared as I am I feel that it is a miracle. I was so scared to ever even try and it just happened even though I was on BC at the time and everything is going really well so far, so don't let the horror stories or movies or well-meaning people scare you out of trying :)