Worried about glucose screening tomorrow...

[Anonymous]

I'm 28 weeks and need to have the one-hour glucose screening test tomorrow. I'm very worried.
I've been incredibly sick throughout the pregnancy. The all-day morning sickness let up around 17 weeks, but I still get sick if I don't eat every 2-3 hours. I vomit every morning without fail, and often still throw up my breakfast if I eat it too fast or sleep too late. Carbs are a must - if I don't eat a bagel or an english muffin, I throw up. If I drink anything before I eat carbs, I throw up. And I continue to throw up until I get something substantial in my stomach. In light of this, I am quite certain that I won't be able to keep the liquid sugar down for an hour tomorrow. From what I understand, they simply have you come back another day if you vomit too soon. Is there an alternative screening tool I can ask about? Should I call my OB?

[Anonymous]

are you scheduled in the AM or the PM?

If I had to drink that drink on an empty stomach first thing in the morning I totally would have spewed.

I did mine in the afternoon and I ate lunch then 2 hours later (or whatever it was that they told me) I drank the drink and it was ok.

Call you OB's nurse and see what she says.

[Anonymous]

My OB said if I really didn't want to take the test (similar reasons as yours, including that I puked after the 1-hour), they could skip it and just treat me as though I did have GD (go to class and watch diet, etc.). My numbers were high enough that it seemed very likely that the 3-hr would come back positive anyway, so I decided not to put myself through it. That said, if you need carbs, you may want to go through it because they would restrict your carb intake in the GD diet and you may not want to deal with that either. You should discuss the options with your OB.

[Anonymous]

pp here - sorry, I didn't read clearly - I thought you were worried about the 3hr. I took the 1hr first thing am to get it over with. Wasn't as bad as I thought it would be though, as I said, I puked afterwards (which was unpleasant but didnt affect the test).

[Anonymous]

You should drink lots of water after drinking the glucose drink that will help you/prevent the vomiting. It's only one hour, it's not too bad. You can eat as soon as you are done so brink a snack with you.

[Anonymous]

I threw up all over my car the first try and yes, my doctor asked me to take the test again. I knew I would not have GD, and I personally think the test is overdone and part of the whole "assume every pregnancy leads to illness / is an illness" mentality. There is a lot of controversy surrounding the test, how it's done (lack of reliability, high number of false positives, and the sheer unpleasantness of it compared to the number of women who actually have GD). Then there is controversy over the treatment of GD itself. I have a friend who was diagnosed with GD and was put on a low carb diet, only to lose weight, get yelled at by her physician, and then be told the GD had "gone away" so she could go back to carbs. She tried to make up for the diet, but she ended up with a low birth weight baby (which is now a healthy thriving child today, just to reassure).

Anyway, this is all just me and many women will vehemently disagree with me. If I were you, I'd talk to your doctor about your concerns, which are very valid, about this test. My OB and I get along well and he is usually okay with me declining tests, but he pressured this one and I gave in. I was very aggravated to have to take the test, and then my numbers came back with very LOW blood sugar, almost dangerously low, from doing the test (which is exactly what I predicted would happen -- like you I need a constant source of fuel to keep my body running right). If I get pregnant again, I plan to decline the test altogether.

One thing to point out, my doctor did not tell me not to eat or drink in the morning, but others told me to avoid carbs as they tend to spike your sugar. The test is very unreliable, and one reason is because of what else you have to eat or drink. (Another reason is that the dosage is not adjusted -- at 5'4 and 120 lbs pregnant, I was given the same dosage as someone 5'11 and 210 lbs would get -- a wallop of sugar like that is a lot harder for a smaller person, who doesn't take a lot of sugar to begin with, to metabolize).

Perhaps an idea that might work for you, if you cannot come up with an alternative, is to try is to schedule the test for later in the afternoon, wake up, have a breakfast of egg whites and cheese (with no carbs or toast) and don't have any juice. Drink a lot of water, then take the glucola, and try hard not to throw it up. Have something high carb, high energy like a peanut butter or cheese sandwich with you to eat as SOON as you are finished with the blood draw.

All said, the test was better than I thought it would be, but still something I think does not belong in routine prenatal care. I hope there is something helpful in my reply and it's not all discouraging stuff. In any case, I sympathize with you! You'll get through the test, but share your concerns with your doctor in a serious way. If nothing else, he / she may have some suggestions for your particular situation.

[Anonymous]

Thank you everyone for the suggestions - especially PP - very enlightening, and makes a lot of sense. I put a call in to my OB and plan on expressing my concerns. I think it makes most sense for me to try the test in the afternoon after eating some protein, but we'll see what he says...my blood sugar tends to be very low as well, which means I need that constant source of fuel or else I get sick. Also probably means my chances of having GD are very slim...

[Anonymous]

So you're not supposed to eat before the test? My 1st attempt is on Friday at 9:50 a.m. I am an early riser, so I figured I would eat some eggs w/cheese beforehand, as I get lightheaded and shaky if I don't eat. I don't remember the docs telling me anything other than, what time to drink it.

[Anonymous]

OP here, haven't yet talked to my doctor, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to decline the test. After doing much research, it seems silly to do the test when my only risk factor is my age (over 25). False positive rate is very high, and treatment for the condition (calorie restriction??) is highly controversial. This is my second pregnancy, no GD in my first - low blood pressure, no history of diabetes in the family, never been overweight, etc., etc. Thanks again, everyone, for the input!

[Anonymous]

This may not make a difference in your case, but for my second pregnancy I drank it cold and it went down MUCH easier.