This didn't come as a total surprise to me--with the apparent hugeness of The New One documented on ultrasound and a passing knowledge of the physiologic changes of pregnancy, this was something I was on the lookout for--but I apparently didn't pass my glucose screening test. (For those not in the know, this is a 50 gram glucose challenge that they give pregnant ladies at around 24-28 weeks to check for insulin tolerance that can be induced by placental hormone production.) The cutoff for blood glucose one hour after the glucose challenge (essentially a slug of orange-flavored Fanta packaged to look all medical) for this initial screening is 140--some even more conservative practitioners make 130 the cutoff point--and I think that my blood sugar after an hour of chugging the thing was measured at over 160. So, there's that.
One one hand, it could just be that I'm a false positive. This was not a fasting blood glucose, and I did have a pretty carb-heavy breakfast that morning at work (bagel, cereal, yogurt--those on-the-go hospital delights) so it's not like I'm necessarily walking around spilling glucose out of my pores or anything that like that. But on the other hand, I could have gestational diabetes, which, while certainly one of the more common morbidities of pregnancy and usually for the most part benign-ish for mother and child (this is not to say that it is nothing, but merely said in the context of someone who has seen Many Very Bad Things happen on the Labor and Delivery ward, none of which are for the faint of heart nor will they be discussed here), is certainly something I'd rather not have to deal with. So now I have to go back in for the more rigorous glucose tolerance test, which involves an overnight fast, a 100 gram glucose challenge, and at least three hours of sequential blood draws, each an hour apart.
I do have an early day off from work next Tuesday for me to get my labwork done, but that just means that I might--might--make it to the OB's office by about noon or 1:00pm, unless the ORs are in overdrive, in which case it might be even later than that. The not-very-friendly receptionist at the clinic instructed me to be NPO past midnight on the day of my test, but clearly, if I am fasting past midnight and not getting to even start metabolizing my glucose bolus until about one in the afternoon, I will not be very happy nor necessarily even able to walk straight, never mind take care of patients that morning. But what can you do? Oh pregnancy, you are so troublesome.
As I told one of my partners at work, pregnancy--it's a beautiful thing and a gift and all that--but honestly, if I could give away the actual physical aspects of gestating this kid for even a few hours a day, I would. Because so far as I can tell, sashemi and vodka each have a fairly low glycemic index.
* * *
So we got Cal his first bike last night. I don't know what make it is, but it is red 16" two-wheeler with training wheels, and he is infatuated. He loves his bike. He also luckily loves his helmet, which he calls his "cool hat." And after many admiring comments in the park today, he told me, "Everyone likes my red bicycle," so now he's getting cocky about the whole thing.
So as you can imagine, it was KILLING me that today, during Cal's first bike ride in the park, on a beautiful fall day with the sun and leaves and whatnot, that not only my regular camera, but also my phone cam and attendant video were all coincidentally broken. What's the opposite of serendipity? It was that. Luckily, after some consideration of what features of my old phone I used the most (aside from texting and making calls, I by far used the phone most for taking pictures and video) I have ordered a new phone, the Samsung i8510, so there will be more video in the days to come. However, for now, amuse yourselves with this, and imagine that it is Cal in the grey suit and red bow tie.
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