I know this isn't as interesting as it sounds. But believe me, to us pregnant women, high sugar levels in the blood or gestational diabetes is a big deal.
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| Photo from http://www.health-sourcing.com/. |
Before I tell you my 'sweet story', let me give you an overview of some technical terms that I used to not understand, too. Hehe.
OGTT - The oral glucose tolerance test measures the body's ability to use a type of sugar, called glucose, that is the body's main source of energy. An OGTT can be used to diagnose prediabetes and diabetes. An OGTT is most commonly done to check for diabetes that occurs with pregnancy (gestational diabetes). - source: WebMD
So when doing the OGTT, the OB will either order 100g or 75g of glucose that you will take. During the first two tests, I was ordered to take 100g, and 75g on the last two. The glucose comes in a very vomit-inducing orange drink which you have to drink after going on an 8-hour fasting. It was very hard to keep it inside your mouth and stomach. It was really one of the worst things I've ever tasted. Nurses would always say that if you throw up, you need to drink another bottle of it. Yikes! For the 100g glucose, you will be drawn blood four times in three hours. That means you have to stay in the clinic for three hours and be foodless for 11 hours. For the 75g, there will only be three blood collections and two hours of waiting.
HbA1c - The term HbA1c refers to glycated hemoglobin. It develops when hemoglobin, a protein within red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your body, joins with glucose in the blood, becoming 'glycated'. By measuring glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), clinicians are able to get an overall picture of what our average blood sugar levels have been over a period of weeks/months. (My OB and endocrinologist said it measures sugar levels in the blood for the past three months.) - source: http://www.diabetes.co.uk/
Now here's a timeline of my ups and downs.
12 Jan 2013 - My first OB in Asian Hospital ordered an OGTT because we were starting my PCOS work up. It was discovered that my sugar levels were so high that I had to take Metformin. That medicine made me sick. It made my stomach hurt a lot and I threw up almost everyday. Worst days of my life.
24 Jan 2014 - Four days after we learned that I was pregnant, my new OB, Dr. Barrameda, who knew about the past results of my OGTT ordered my first OGTT for the year. She was very vigilant about my condition because we have a history of diabetes in the family. My sugar levels were a little elevated, but tolerable according to the results. I went to see an endocrinologist upon her advice, who later told me about the elevation, but said it's manageable. Dr. Golangco said I don't need to go on a strict diet, but I need to monitor my sugar for a month using the glucometer. Because I was lazy and his schedule was erratic, I didn't see him for three months. I went to another endocrinologist (I don't even remember her name) in Healthway ATC in May. I showed her my January OGTT results and she told me point-blank that I have gestational diabetes. She told me to again, monitor my sugar levels four times a day for a week and come back to her. I religiously checked my blood sugar levels for a week, but I never came back to her. I told Jeff I don't like how she slapped me with her medical terms and her insensitivity.
22 February 2014 - Dr. Barrameda ordered another round of tests, this time she included HbA1c. I have no idea that test was, but she told me she needs to know my sugar levels for the past three months. The results were normal, so she got confused because of the elevated results I got from the previous month. I got 4.70 and the abnormal level would be above 5.70.
12 May 2014 - I called AsianLife in MakatiMed and asked if there's any available endocrinologist covered by my card. They suggested Dr. Ang. I went to see her instead of that doctor in Healthway ATC. I gave her my January results, my blood sugar monitoring results done 4x a day for that entire week, and told her what Dr. Golangco told me back in January. Apparently, Dr. Golangco was her classmate back in UST. She agreed with everything that he said and told me my one week monitoring results were really good, but advised that I should just repeat my OGTT to give us peace of mind. I went on an insane no-sugar diet that entire week before the test. I sometimes felt like I was going hypoglycemic. Instead of going to Hi-Precision (which is my favorite laboratory), I tried MakatiMed laboratory this time. I was so surprised that my normal P1000 tests were priced at P2700 in MakatiMed. When the results came in, I was delighted. My sugar levels were NORMAL. Dr. Ang was pleased to see the results, but she still told me to repeat the test after 6 weeks, when I turn 26 weeks. My HbA1c (not in the picture) was 4.40.
22 June 2014 - My final OGTT was done in June 22. Unlike the previous one, I didn't go on a 'sugar strike'. I just ate normal, had a few glasses of sodas, and ate ice cream whenever I wanted to. Maybe I was feeling a little positive about the previous result. Or maybe, I was just being the normal, lazy me. Because of my very expensive lesson learned in MakatiMed, we again opted Hi-Precision this time. We went to their branch in Rockwell, which I totally loved. By the end of the day, my results were already uploaded to their database and was ready for download. Yep, they have online results! I was elated to see the results. It again turned out NORMAL! No diet, no nothing! I just believed that God will finally put an end to this whole OGTT testing, which I did THREE TIMES since January.
Due to the repetitive tests, I already know how to read the results, but I still went to Dr. Ang today. I need her to clear me of gestational diabetes so both Dr. Barrameda and she would stop ordering expensive and painful tests, hehe. I waited for two hours before I got to see her. My hips were starting to hurt when I finally got called at 4PM. I handed her the results and with just one look, she knew my results were perfect. She told me we don't need to repeat the test anymore. I was smiling from ear to ear. I AM FINALLY CLEAR OF GESTATIONAL DIABETES!
She wrote my OB a letter telling her that no further tests should be done, unless I gain a lot of weight in the next few weeks. She was surprised when I told her I only gained 5 kilograms since I got pregnant. She said maybe it's all baby and water and expanded uterus.
It was a long, painful, and expensive road to normal sugar levels, but all the needle poking and blood drawing were worth it. My son and I are getting healthier by the day and that really makes me happy.
Goodbye, yucky orange juice! Hello, chocolates! :D
She wrote my OB a letter telling her that no further tests should be done, unless I gain a lot of weight in the next few weeks. She was surprised when I told her I only gained 5 kilograms since I got pregnant. She said maybe it's all baby and water and expanded uterus.
It was a long, painful, and expensive road to normal sugar levels, but all the needle poking and blood drawing were worth it. My son and I are getting healthier by the day and that really makes me happy.
Goodbye, yucky orange juice! Hello, chocolates! :D
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