What’s Missing from your Gestational Diabetes Program?
Women diagnosed with gestational diabetes (GDM) get lots of information on how to care for themselves, but many of you will still end up with preeclampsia or C-sections?
Do you feel you need more support from your diabetes team?
Could it be improved?
Read on to see My Solution…
The Current Program
Gestational diabetes programs vary greatly. Many areas do not offer support for the confusing disease.
Do you know what to do when your blood sugar is too high?
Do you have someone to contact for emotional support?
Do you know what it means when your blood pressure starts running too high?
Are you afraid of ending up on insulin?
What’s missing?
There are lots of educational resources available. Unfortunately, many of the programs are provided when it is convenient to the provider, for example, classes you need to attend at the hospital. And many programs are missing the emotional support so many women need.
When are Gestational Diabetes women ready to learn?
Whenever someone is diagnosed with a chronic disease like diabetes, their first reaction is shock.
After the shock of the diagnoses, they will progress through the 5 stages of grieving starting with denial.
- Denial – trying to avoid the inevitable, “Do the test again”
- Anger or frustration – the coming out of pinned up emotions
- Bargaining with their provider or with God
- Depression – the realization of the inevitable
- Acceptance and finding a way forward in their life
I have heard so many women, who have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes say, “How can this test be right? I must have eaten too much the day before the test.”
Unfortunately, gestational diabetes is 100% driven by the hormones produced during pregnancy.
It is critical that you understand that your condition will get worse before delivery.
Timing is everything!
When you are in denial, it is difficult to remember details.
When I taught our gestational diabetes classes, my patients were within two weeks of being diagnosed. Many of them were frustrated and feeling betrayed by their body. Their providers wanted them to start testing their blood sugar immediately multiple times a day.
For half of one day, I provided diabetes management techniques through a program at the hospital. Only a few of the women took notes. Many were in shock’s first phase of denial.
They knew diabetes caused “big babies” which placed them at risk for C-sections. But they had tunnel vision; they were focusing on the problems and not the solutions.
The Results
They did not know how to reduce their blood sugar when it was too high. In the end, many of our patients ended up with pre-eclampsia, in the hospital on bed rest, with induced labor when their baby’s lungs were developed enough to sustain life. The result was pre-term babies being delivered to save the mother’s life.
The Solution: Emotional support
These women needed a support system. A place where you can ask questions and get workable solutions from people who have had the same experiences. An on-line support system can be a great resource for finding solutions that work. But you must carefully check the source of your information. On the web, everyone has an opinion.
Also, due to the pregnancy brain fog, women need on-going training. Many times, they are given information that they don’t need to put into practice right away. They forget important information. They need a place to store a resource of information.
Women need encouragement. In the beginning, their blood sugars are not too bad. They don’t want to test their blood five times a day because it makes their fingers hurt. Many of them stop checking because they are in denial. Unfortunately, as the pregnancy progresses, the blood sugars will get worse.
Many clients complain that they don’t know what to do if their numbers are high. They feel helpless! They need someone to answer questions.
My Solution
“Healthy Babies from Preconception to Birth and Beyond” is an online virtual program designed specifically to assist gestational diabetes patients and type 2 patients who are pregnant or want to become pregnant.
- They will receive daily emails. (currently this is 27 emails)
- They can store the emails in a file where they can refer back to them as needed.
- The course includes tips and activities they can do at their convenience.
- They will also join a private Facebook group where they can ask questions of each other, share stories, and offer support to each other. I monitor the content for accuracy and provide answers.
Join my mailing list right here and I’ll send you more details about the Healthy Baby course.
If you are curious, but not sure if this program is right for you or your loved one, schedule a free call with me and we can talk through it together.
