Week 10 – What I Eat When I’m Behaving

Yes, I’m one of “those” people.  Those people who take and post pictures of their food.  I’m a foodie.  I love to cook, eat, and talk food.  I also find that taking pictures of what I eat is useful when I’m describing my diet to the host of healthcare providers that I see for diabetes and other things.  They are a lot more likely to believe me when I can show them proof.

That being said…  I’m kinda a poser.  I’m guilty of not taking pictures of the major diet failures.  Thus, I do not have pictures of the bean burritos, nachos, or chili cheese dogs that I ate last week.  Even so, I do think I’m eating very well most of the time.  I’ve decided to post a small collection of the meals from weeks 1-10.  So I’m not gung-ho Paleo all the time, but the majority of my meals are 100% real food cooked at home.  THIS is how I got my A1c to a 5.7%.

Against All Grain’s recipe for paleo bread using 1/2 cashew butter and 1/2 almond butter.

Primal Spaghetti Squash Primavera with Fried Eggplant – The eggplant didn’t turn out well (breaded in coconut flour). I much prefer to bread in coarse almond meal.

Paleo crab cakes with red cabbage slaw, and avocado mango salsa. Probably my favorite meal so far in the past 10 weeks!

Scrambled eggs with spinach and leftover wild boar sausages with sauteed red cabbage and onions. I will be buying those wild boar sausages again!

Sardines smashed with avocado oil and whole grain mustard served on green bell pepper boats, and a disc of sweet potato.

Flank steak salad with mixed greens, jicama, cucumber, shredded carrot, dried tart cherries, feta cheese, and a homemade vinaigrette.

Wild Planet canned salmon salad with a little mayo, green onion over mixed greens, dried tart cherries, feta cheese, shredded carrot, cucumber, and walnuts. Typical work day lunch for me.

Ground turkey stuffed bell peppers with a homemade primavera sauce (canned tomato sauce, garlic, black olives, shredded carrot, basil, oregano, olive oil) with small green salad.

This is not Paleo/Primal, but it’s one of my favorite things – homemade posole with some cheese. The hominy is not super high carb, and I handle it well blood sugar-wise.

Homemade crab bisque made with leftover Alaskan King crab legs.

Alaskan King crab legs with roasted asparagus.

Week 9 – Paleo Fails and Food Cravings

This week was pretty uneventful.  I’m feeling good!  The fatigue has gotten a bit better, which has allowed for some fun activities even during the week after work.

I was elated to see that my A1c was 5.7%  My insulin intake is about where it was pre-pregnancy, but with a lot fewer ups.  Honestly, it’s been easy to control my blood sugar this week.  Thank goodness because I’ve been having some ridiculous food cravings.  Most of the time, all I’m wanting is fruit and cheese.  I cannot seem to get enough of either.  Ok, not so bad.  However, I also can’t seem to get my mind off of burritos, nachos, and other carby Mexican dishes (and don’t forget the cheese!).  Chips, nacho cheese, beans, tortillas.  Yes, please!  I will never laugh again at the seriousness in which pregnant women crave a specific food item.

So, yes…  I’ve had a burrito, tacos, chips and cheese, and even a chili cheese dog.  I can’t believe I’m even typing these words.  Epic Paleo fail for me.  I’ve eaten more gluten in the past two weeks than I have in the past two years.  I thought I was tolerating it ok at first, but in the past few days, my geographic tongue (autoimmune disorder of tongue in which you lose your papillae in patchy spatial pattern, most sources say it’s benign, but it’s a sign of diet-induced gut issues for me) has come back.  I also woke up this morning with my swollen “gluten face” and gastrointestinal weirdness.  Yuck.  I need to get it together!

Thank goodness for my new Vitamix blender and for my prenatal vitamin.  Although, I haven’t had any traditional morning sickness, I have not been particularly fond of my normal greens and other vegetables.  I’ve been sneaking kale into my morning smoothies.  Smoothies have been perfect for me.  1) It’s been so freaking hot out, all I want is cold food, especially if it’s fruity, and 2) I’ve never really liked putting solid food on my stomach before 9am, so smoothie is a perfect way to get something nutritious in my stomach.

I have managed to get down some salads and other veggies each day, but it’s not as much as I would normally eat.  The smoothies and prenatal vitamins are like insurance.  It is harder than I ever thought to get in certain foods while pregnant.

This past week, I got in a few hikes and some walking in the park with my sister-in-law.  Marshall and I managed to get the boat out on the lake twice and I swam in the lovely cool water.  I would like to get back to the yoga studio and to the gym for a little strength training, but it’s just been too nice outside not to play.

Speaking of which…time to go play outside!

Week 8 – First Prenatal Visit: The Good and The Bad

On June 20, 2013, Marshall and I drove down to Denver for my first prenatal visit.

At 9am, I saw the MFM FNP.  I didn’t like her.  She was cold and it felt like she was just going through the motions . I don’t question whether she knows her stuff; it was just her personality.  She took a medical history.  She questioned me several times about whether or not I am actually a type 1 diabetic…  Yes, I was 28yo at diagnosis and yes I am overweight now, but I wasn’t overweight at diagnosis, I’m positive for GAD65 antibodies, I see an endo at a clinic that specializes in Type 1 (which she knows), I’m on an insulin pump and Dexcom CGMS – hello??  She also did a pelvic exam, a breast exam, and ultrasounds (abdominal and transvaginal).

My blood pressure was high.  140/90 ish?  I never have high blood pressure.  In fact, it’s typically in the low range.  I had just walked several staircases and had rushed to get to the appointment on time.  I was not concerned.  They seemed overly concerned, so I told them to measure it again later in the appointment.  (My blood pressure was also likely rising because she was a bitch).

On the abdominal ultrasound, the FNP found the baby’s heart beat right away.  Yay!  She also found that I have a large cyst on my left ovary – about the size of a golf ball.  She explained that this was likely due to the corpus luteum which was formed from an ovarian follicle as I released the egg.  She said that it was likely why I’ve been feeling a lot of cramping the whole time.  Luckily, it will go away on it’s own.  I have to say that besides the cramping, I hadn’t noticed it before she pointed it out.  But now that I know where it is at, I’m acutely aware of it.

I didn’t get to see much of the transvaginal ultrasound.  The bitchy FNP wouldn’t turn the screen so I could see it.  Marshall said he could see the baby’s heart beating.  The heart rate was 168 bpm, which is normal for fetal heart rate.  She pointed out leg and arm stumps.  Marshall swears he saw a large 5th appendage (eye rolling).  The baby looked great.  By my calculations, I was 8 weeks 6 days, but I was measuring 8 weeks 3 days.  Close enough.  FNP did note that my uterus is either bicornuate or septated (either way heart-shaped) with the baby growing in the smaller lobe.  She said that this can cause the following problems a) uterine bleeding from the un-used side of the uterus, b) can cause me to prematurely deliver due to baby running out of room if septum is in the way, and c) can cause problems with baby’s positioning and can prevent him/her from turning appropriately (therefore increasing my risk of c-section).  This is concerning to me, given my already increased risk of preterm delivery due to type 1.  The bitchy FNP also never printed out a copy of the ultrasound for us to take home.  😦

After the FNP, I had an appointment with the OB certified diabetes educator (CDE).  They wanted me to see the OB endo, but she does not see patients in the clinics on Thursdays and she was busy.  She did pop her head in for a minute to talk to me.  She is very nice, as is the CDE.  Both were helpful.  Endo had a lot of specific opinions about delivery and stuff.  She definitely has her thoughts about the way she wants things to be.  The problem with that, is that it leaves very little room for the patient’s desires.

The CDE reviewed two days of BG and pump history with me.  I was surprised that she only reviewed two days.  She did say that my hormones and needs are likely changing so frequently it wasn’t worth going back farther.  I talked to her about the insulin resistance that I seemed to have in weeks 5-7.  She said that she hears that a lot from pregnant type 1 patients, but that there is not a lot of literature or research about why that occurs in some women.  She noted what I already knew – my insulin sensitivity came back in week 8.  I was having more frequently lows.  So she adjusted my basal rates slightly.  Surprisingly, she didn’t ask me about what I’m eating or how many grams of carbs or any of that.  Endo said that I needed to be seen in the clinic every 3 weeks.  Hmmmm.

All of the people I saw yesterday were adamant that I need to be seen by their team only.  I got the feeling that they really like doing things their way, which includes delivering at the same facility.  They want me to see several providers in the clinic – including the MFM doc, the MFM FNP, the endo, and the CDE.  The problem, which I mentioned earlier, is that none of them seem to be in the clinic on the same day, and I’m driving 4 hours each way.  I can’t make multiple trips in one week.  Sorry.  The schedulers were completely unwilling to work with me and the providers were not flexible on their clinic days.  Between all of the appointments that they want me to do, I will need to rent an apartment in Denver.  ha!  The FNP was also adamant that I do NOT see my regular endo during this timeframe.  I felt some turf issues.

After considering what the endo FNP said at my regular endo’s office – about switching to the private MFM for her second baby.  After the visits yesterday, I am understanding her decisions.

Overall, the visits were a success.  I found out that the baby is still viable and is growing on schedule.  Marshall got to see it for the first time in real-time and saw the heart beat.  I also found out that my A1c was 5.7%.  Hurray!!  (Clearly, I’m doing ok without the excessive OB endo appointments!).

I’m feeling good.  I’ve had some transient nausea, but nothing major.  No morning sickness or vomiting.  No uterine bleeding (I think I would freak out if it happened).    I have had some major fatigue, but it’s been kind of nice being in bed early.  It’s a different pace from my normal night owl tendencies.

It was nice that Marshall could come with me to those visits yesterday.  I wanted him to get a feel for the providers, too, before I made any final decisions about my prenatal team.  We are on the same page.  The MFM clinic that we saw yesterday was too controlling, the FNP was not nice, the endo and CDE were nice, but wanted to see me too often.  We feel like we will be better off finding a private MFM in Fort Collins (will ask new OB for a referral) and sticking with my regular endo for prenatal diabetes control.  He said that I’m in great control and do not need intensive endocrinology management and only needs to see me every other month.  I have my appointment with new OB on July 9th, and I’m excited to finally have a prenatal plan in place.

 

Week 7 – Endo, OB, CDE, FNP, MFM, WTF?

I’ve MIA from the blogosphere for the past two weeks.  Work has been crazy.  Last week, I was traveling and worked about 70 hours.  This week has been similar.

So my big dilemma during week 7 was choosing all of the providers to the prenatal team.  My original OB here in Casper did not want to get me in before week 13.  Frustrating, considering that there are tests that should be done before then.  I’ve been doing a lot of research for a new OB here in Casper, surveying friends, asking everyone I know who has had a baby.  I do think the original OB is a good doc, but we’re just not communicating well about my needs as a Type 1 diabetic with hypothyroidism and with a bicornuate uterus.  His office staff were not super nice either.  I figure I’m paying them money, they should be nice.

I was anxious to get my first official prenatal visit under my belt.  The reproductive specialist had told me that she would write a referral for me to the MFM clinic.  Last week, I was having a lot of back and forth with the MFM nurse trying to get scheduled for the two to three visits that she recommended.  She explained to me that I would be seeing this endocrinologist who specializes in type 1 diabetic pregnancies and who is part of the their MFM clinic.  Ok, sounds good?  She also explained that they also wanted me to see an MFM who is different from the OB endocrinologist.  The problem is that these two providers don’t see patients in the clinic on the same days of the week, and this clinic is 4 hours away from me.  So the nurse was able to get me scheduled with the certified diabetes educator (CDE) who works with the OB endocrinologist and with a nurse practitioner (FNP) who works with the MFM docs.  Errrr…ok.

I’ve been pretty confused about the referral.  The referral was supposed to be for a MFM, not an endo.  I already have an endo that I have a great relationship with.  I’m also confused about the services that the OB endo provides versus the MFM.  And what does a MFM do that a regular OB cannot do?  Honestly, I don’t get it.  Sometimes I feel like these facilities are trying to maximize their billing potential by having me see multiple providers.

I ended up booking the recommended appointments – I figured that I could see how it goes, see what is necessary, and cancel later if needed.  I just want to get my first prenatal appointment under my belt and get some questions answered.

After setting up the appointment with the Denver MFM clinic and OB endo, I happened to talk to an endocrinology FNP at  my regular endo’s office.  I’ve seen her before for my diabetes care, and I like and respect her so much.  She is also type 1 diabetic, highly educated, and has recently had two children.  She is exactly who I want to talk to!  She indicated to me that she didn’t think that I need to see the OB endo – that the OB endo’s program is for people who may not be as motivated with their diabetes management as me, who may not be as educated as me and who have previously had poor control.  She explained that their program is likely more intense than what I need.  For her first baby, she actually went through that MFM office – and saw the same OB endo.  She said that the OB endo is great, but that the program is just more intense and would require me to come to Denver for more clinic visits than I likely needed to.  She also explained to me that she saw a private MFM during her 2nd pregnancy and was much happier.

Hmmmmm, good to know.

I’m still feeling fairly overwhelmed with options.  Ideally, I’d have an awesome OB, MFM and whole prenatal team here in Casper.  But…it is Casper, Wyoming.  There are no MFMs in the entire state, no endocrinologists within 2.5 hours of me, no endocrinologists who specialize in type 1 diabetes, and the OBs here are overly busy to the point where I feel like it will compromise my care.  Sigh.  I need to seriously weigh my options.

In the meantime, my husband and I were having a lot of discussion about the OB who will deliver me and see me for the routine stuff.  I did get a lot of good feedback from my friends in Casper.  The OB’s name that kept coming up happens to be another OB in the same practice as my original OB.  I hear she is good, but I think I will continue running into the same problems that I’ve had with the front desk staff.  I also talked to a friend of mine who is an OB in Cheyenne.  I had a lot of questions, and picked her brain a bit.  After having the conversation with her, I realized how sharp she is!   (Not that I doubted it – just the first time I felt it was applicable to me).  Marshall and I discussed this at length and decided to go ahead with an OB in Cheyenne, which is 2.5 hours away from me.

The good things that go along with that are 1) days when I have to go to appointments, I can work from my employer’s Cheyenne office – not something I could do if I were going to Denver.  It’s a happy medium between Casper and Denver, 2) if something does go wrong with my delivery or with the baby – Cheyenne is much closer to Denver than Casper and it would be faster to get critical care in Denver if needed, 3) There are more providers in this one clinic than in all of Casper, it seems and these providers have been more responsive already, and 4) my father and sister both live in Cheyenne.  I have a place to stay if needed during prenatal visits or even if I have to come to Cheyenne early as I wait for delivery – it will be January and there is a good chance that I will have to be in the town of delivery early, I’m guessing.  Ok, decision made!  Feels good to move forward.  Sounds like I also need to talk to Cheyenne OB about a private MFM referral – maybe to one that is closer like in Fort Collins, CO (would save me 1 hour drive each direction as compared to Denver).

So, I planned to see the Denver MFM FNP and the OB endo CDE on Thursday, June 20th – see how that goes and make some decisions regarding MFM and diabetes management after that.

Choosing a Prenatal Provider

I live in Casper, WY.  The city is about 50,000 people.  Not a lot of healthcare options.

When I saw the advanced reproductive specialist in Denver, she indicated to me that she wanted me to see a maternal and fetal medicine (MFM) specialist for prenatal care – either for all of my prenatal care with a plan for the MFM to deliver my baby OR for me to see my regular OB in Casper and be co-managed by the MFM.

When I made the initial call to my regular OB, they didn’t see super keen on the idea of me needing a MFM.  From the initial phone call to the regular OB, I’ve been pretty frustrated with their office.  I have indicated to the nurse 3x now that I have some questions that I would like answered sooner rather than later.  I feel like I keep getting blown off.  I indicated to them that the reproductive doc wanted me to have a 6 week ultrasound.  So regular OB did order it – not sure if they would have if I hadn’t mentioned the advanced repro med doc.  The OB was not present during the ultrasound.  OB’s nurse called today to let me know that I do have a bicornuate uterus and transferred me to the front desk to get scheduled for my first prenatal visit.  Front desk clerk indicated that they couldn’t get me in until July 15th – week 13!!  I asked, “I’m a Type 1 diabetic with hypothyroidism and a bicornuate uterus.  Are you sure they don’t want to see me sooner?!”.  Nope…  week 13 is ok with them!  I’m shocked.

Everything I’m reading indicates that I should have my first prenatal visit by week 8.  So I asked a few friends.  Friends who are not diabetic, but who have been pregnant – all were seen by 8 weeks.  Talk to a friend of mine who is a diabetologist and also a T1 and a mom of two boys – she was shocked that OB didn’t want to see me until week 13.  She strongly encouraged me to go to the MFM for all of the prenatal stuff and to stick with my regular endo at Barbara Davis clinic to help co-manage the diabetes part.  Her first son was born at 37w4d via C-section.  She had problems with premature aging of the placenta.  Baby was born with hypoglycemia and hyperbilirubinemia.  He was treated in the NICU.  Overall, her pregnancy went really well, but they found out the placenta problem later in the pregnancy after extra tests done by the MFM.  Her story is convincing me…

Problem is…Denver is a 4 hour drive.  I’m due in January.  What if I go into labor and there is a snowstorm or the roads are bad?  I need a Plan B.  Do I see a regular OB here as back up?  If yes, I might need to find another OB here.  I’m not sure the current one is a match.  I’m not looking forward to having to establish with a new doc, but I’m pretty offended that my regular OB can’t get me in despite me being an established patient with a somewhat complex medical history.

I wrote my repro doc tonight asking her for a referral to the MFM.  Endo said he needs to see me this month anyway, so I’d like to coordinate those two appointments if possible.  Maybe I need to find a new regular OB in Casper AFTER my first visit with MFM and make it clear to OB that I want MFM to be co-managing.  I do have a recommendation from a friend to another OB in town, who is very flexible.

I will say that in terms of prenatal care, nothing is happening as I expected.  I still feel like I know nothing at this point.

 

Six week ultrasound aka drinking a 40

 

 

 

 

I went in for my 6 week ultrasound today.  I’ve been super nervous and this scan helped put my mind at ease (a little).  So before the scan at 2pm, I was instructed to empty my bladder at noon and then start drinking 32oz of water and to not go pee until after the scan.  Okay, I drink a LOT of water every day.  32oz in 90-120 min is no joke!  I did as instructed.  I got myself a large bottle of SmartWater at noon – 33.8 oz to be exact.  And I had drank the whole thing by the time I was brought back into the exam room at the radiology clinic.  The radiology tech gel-ed me up and said my bladder wasn’t nearly full enough.  Are you kidding me?!  So I had to drink more water and wait, and more water and wait.  I drank at least 40 oz of water and after waiting an hour, my bladder was still not where it should have been.  The tech decided we would proceed anyway.  In college, 40 oz of fluid would have had a whole other meaning!

She told me that we probably wouldn’t see or hear much since I’m not far along.  She took some measurements for the external/abdominal ultrasound.  Finally, I got to pee!  And then she proceeded with the transvaginal ultrasound.  Several time she said that I would hear my own heartbeat and to not get too excited.  She was up there for quite some time.  I was starting to get a bit uncomfortable and was thinking to myself, “ok lady, what in the world?  is this over yet?”.   Then, all of a sudden, I heard a strong “whoosh whoosh whoosh” – different from the whooshes I had heard earlier that were clearly mine.  She said, “Oh my gosh!  That’s it!  That’s the baby heartbeat!”.    I said, “Wow!  Amazing!”.  I was not expecting to hear it at all, let alone so loudly!  It was clear and strong.  Wow.  The tech said this was a good sign.

So part of the reason for the early ultrasound was that they are still trying to figure out if I have a mishapen or bicornuate uterus.  The tech did mention that my uterus is tilted back, but that this was common.  She said nothing about the overall uterine shape, so I guess I will be waiting to hear from my doctor on his interpretation.

The baby is 6 weeks, 4 days along today and 4mm long.  I’m right on track.

In the ultrasound pic above, you can see the “plus” symbols at the baby’s rump and head.  The bubble next to the baby is the yolk sac that will eventually turn into the placenta.  The black circle surrounding all of it is the gestational sac, which will continue to grow and push the uterus out.

I kinda think baby looks like a hairless rat!  Or a puppy.  Either way, itty bitty and not quite human-like yet.

I have been fretting over my blood sugar, especially after this last weekend.  In my head, I’ve been playing out these scenarios that the baby’s brain or heart are not developing correctly due to the spikes.  Hearing the baby’s heartbeat loud and clear – I’m feeling some sense of relief, at least for the time being.  Still, I’m very ready to get back on my strict low carb diet.  I truly believe that a diet that allows me to maintain near-normal blood sugar is the right diet for the baby.

 

 

Weekend with Dad and Karen

My dad and his girlfriend, Karen, came up to visit us this weekend.  We had a great time.  Marshall and I also shared our news with them on Saturday morning.  Although, my blood sugar control was not the greatest due to eating restaurant food and an ice cream bar (gasp!).  On Saturday, we showed my dad and Karen all around town – we went to all of the fun plant nurseries and home decor shops.  For lunch, we went to a local Thai restaurant and I ordered my standby – panang curry.  It was a seafood panang curry with salmon, mussels, shrimp, and scallops.  Therefore, it should be really low carb.  We also had chicken satay for an appetizer (also low carb).  For some reason this meal did not work out for me.  My blood sugar spiked to 250 mg/dl for a few hours afterward.  Yikes!  What in the heck??  I’ve been pretty stressed out any time my blood sugar is above 150 mg/dl.  In my head, I am imagining the baby getting “fried” by the excess sugar and not developing correctly.  I think every pregnant woman worries about the fetal development, but as a Type 1 diabetic, I think we have extra worried thoughts.  My control has not been as good over the past month as it would normally be.  I am having both more highs and lows.  I blame hormones.

You’d think I would have learned my lesson after the Thai food spike, but later that evening I caved in and had a Haagen Das ice cream bar.  I typically do just fine covering ice cream with insulin and don’t often spike too high.  My blood sugar was fine most of the night, but overnight I had a very delayed spike – going as high as 289 mg/dl for about 4 hours and I rage bolused to get it down.  So stressful.  My blood sugar was 92 mg/dl by the time I woke up on Sunday morning, but I woke up feeling super stressed out and tired.  I really need to crack down on my diet again.  I can see that these few indulgences are not working out and are wreaking havoc.

Sunday, Marshall and I took my dad and Karen up Casper and Muddy Mountains on our Polaris Rzr Ranger (side by side ATV).  I’m not 100% certain that I should be riding in this thing pregnant.  It is very safe.  You sit in it like a car, it has seatbelts, headrests, roll cage, amazing shocks.  I don’t plan on riding it later in the pregnancy.  We hit a bump about twice that caused some uterine cramping.  In both cases, I asked the driver to chill out.  I’m still waiting for my first actual OB appointment so that I can ask some questions about this.

We had a great time this weekend.  My dad and Karen left on Sunday afternoon.  After they left, I immediately crashed in bed for a 4 hour nap (and I am a person who rarely takes naps).  I was also back in bed by 9:30pm that night.  This pregnancy has fixed my night owl-ishness.

 

 

 

Excited and Overwhelmed

Today, I scheduled my first ultrasound for Tuesday, June 4th at 2pm.  I was told that I have to empty my bladder completely at noon, and then start drinking 32oz of water and hold it.  That’s a lot of water to drink in a small amount of time!  I’m also wondering at what point I will actually have an appointment with the doctor?  I have lots of questions!

Feeling a little nausea coming in waves over the last few days, but overall I feel good.  I’m a bit tired.  I don’t feel like eating much, but when I do finally eat, it’s all good.

I’m trying to stick to a low carb Paleo-ish diet.  The “ish” part is because I’m eating dairy, which is controversial in the Paleo diet world.

Last week, I was craving fatty fish like salmon, tuna, and sardines.  I was making salad with them with a drizzle of avocado oil, mustard or pickles.  I’ve always liked canned fish.  I choose to eat Wild Planet brand.  I am absolutely in love with their Wild Alaska pink salmon.  

Other foods I’m eating a lot of:  organic roasted chicken, sweet potatoes, avocado, coconut oil, broccoli, kale, spaghetti squash, black olives, pickles, homemade Ranch dressing, homemade chicken broth, Larabars, eggs, and some homemade yogurt.

Some things that I did not eat often on my low carb diet, but that I am adding back in due to the pregnancy: bananas, rice, quinoa.

Non-Paleo things that I am rarely able turn down:  tortilla chips (mmmm, salsa!), ice cream, and Mexican food of any kind.  Mmmmm,  I’m majorly craving Mexican food now.

For a prenatal vitamin, I chose the Emerald Laboratories Raw Whole Food Prenatal vitamin.  They smell funky and I have to take 4 per day.  I’m taking 2 with breakfast and 2 with dinner.  I’m also supplementing Vitamin D.  I’m taking as much as 6,000iu daily.  I am also taking a tart cherry extract pill for when I feel inflamed or ache-y.  I will say that during this pregnancy, I’ve been feeling less flared up and my chronic myofascial pain is much less than normal, which is great!

For exercise, I plan on doing a lot of yoga.  I love yin yoga the best.  I also plan on walking, hiking, and doing some spin classes.  I’ve been toying around with the idea of taking a CrossFit On Ramp class here in June, but I’m worried about fatigue.  I’ve been wanting to try CrossFit for a long time now!

Today, I started adding things to my Amazon baby registry.  Mostly, I’m just trying to keep track of products that I think (or know) I will need or that I have been recommended to me.  I’ve been using Pinterest to pin stuff for baby (on secret boards for now).  Wow, I am getting an education!  I’ve stumbled upon some really great online blogs/resources.  So far my favorites are: http://www.babykerf.com and http://www.kellymom.com.  I’m probably a bit ahead of myself, BUT I really like to be organized and plan things well in advance so I know all of my possible options.

In terms of informing our families/friends of my pregnancy, we are choosing to wait to tell most people until I’m farther along.  I will probably wait to tell my employer and non-immediate family and friends until the end of the first trimester.  I was sooo excited about the home pregnancy test result, I had to tell my younger sister, Kristi, right away.  Marshall has also told his eldest brother, Mike.  I’ve told a few very close friends.  And one family member has found out because she works at the imaging center where I am scheduled for the ultrasound (she literally scheduled my appt).  I plan to tell my dad and the rest of Marshall’s immediate family this weekend.  It is VERY hard keeping this a secret.  I want to talk about it with everyone, share stories, ask questions, etc!  Soon enough soon enough!

My blood glucose control has been great for the most part.  In the past 24 hours, I have not been above 140mg/dl once.  I have mostly been running 10-20mg/dl higher than normal over the past week, but I kept reading about Type 1 diabetics having problems with low blood sugar during their first trimester.  I had not experienced that really until last night.  I woke up at about 1:30am last night with a low BG of about 53mg/dl.  I had some OJ, adjusted my pump’s basal setting (turned it down), and went back to bed.  I was woken up again at about 7am with a low BG of about 48mg/dl.  What the heck?!  I basically had breakfast this morning with no bolus.  I’ve been trending low all day.  My average has been about 78 all day.  I’ll monitor this for another day and see if my basal rate needs to be turned down again.

One other weird symptom I’ve been having is that I feel chilled all the time.  I already had poor circulation with cold feet and hands before, but now I feel cold head to toe all the time.  I had a hard time sleeping last night because I felt so cold.  I literally turned on the fireplace at home today.  I just cannot stay warm.  How weird is that?  Looking forward to some warmer summer weather.

 

I’m Pregnant!

On Thursday, May 23, 2013, Marshall and I found out that we are expecting!  Holy cow!

So the bump up in my Levothyroxine was enough to bump up my fertility this month.  I was on Day 4 of my cycle on 4/22/13 when I saw the repro doc.  She encouraged me to track my ovulation and have sex every other day while ovulating.

On 4/28 or 4/29, I actually felt the mittleschmerz (middle pain) associated with ovulation for the first time ever!  My next period should have started somewhere around 5/16.  I was noticing a lot of menstrual-type cramping, so I assumed that my period was coming.  I kept taking Advil for it (whoops)!  I traveled to North Carolina May 10-13th for my doctoral graduation ceremony.  I was feeling great during that trip, but my BG was running a bit higher than normal due to the restaurant food and indulgences.  I also had some wine and mojitos (whoops again!).

On the weekend of May 17th and 18th, I was oblivious and we went camping, hiking, and trail biking.  I was feeling great but was sure my period was coming because of the cramping.  On the 18th, I wrecked my bike hard (whoops x3!) and had some nice road rash on my knee and legs.  Luckily, I didn’t hit my abdomen or back at any point that I can recall.

On May 23rd, I realized that my period was a week late.  I was having cramping, but no bleeding, and my uterine MRI was scheduled for the next day in Denver.  I decided that I probably needed to figure out if I was pregnant or not before getting this MRI (with contrast) done.  So, Marshall and I skipped over to Walgreens for a home pregnancy test.  When I got home, I took the test and it was positive!!  We are both elated.

It’s positive!

My repro doc is awesome, and responded to an email I sent shortly after I found out the news.  She called me at 9:30pm to let me know to cancel the MRI and to get a series of two quantitative beta HCG blood tests ordered to confirm the pregnancy!

I guess it’s time to get anal retentive about my BG control and eating clean!

Kelly and Marshall

My husband and I were married in September 2007