Editing Pregnancy (section)

=== Dealing With Gestational Diabetes ===

Annoyed by the wait for the confirmation test, I thought I'd do it myself. The test kit I constructed from Amazon was:

# A blood glucose monitor: I picked a cheap one, a [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08LYC288R/ Metene TD-4116 BG03]
# The smallest container of Glucose for both of us to test: [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079NQ8F98/ two ''pounds'' of dextrose]

This whole exercise ended up being a farce, however, when Julie refused to use my meter or my test and insisted on waiting to be tested by the lab. I enjoyed measuring myself and plugging the data into Apple Health so it wasn't a complete loss in the end. The dextrose remains unused.

Dealing with the actual condition is pretty much like dealing with Type II Diabetes: you manage your diet and exercise and prick yourself after every meal and in the morning to see how your blood glucose fares. This matters because gestational diabetes can lead to extra-large babies which has all sorts of problems. Since our test was done so early, it could be that Julie had Type II diabetes which is sometimes associated with low birth weight if unmanaged. Anyway, all said: you're gonna be pricking yourself every day and measuring.

==== Devices ====

The ob/gyn provider set us up with a counselor who set us up with a similar device: the [https://shop.onetouch.com/verio-flex-meter/product/OTSUS05_0004 Verio Flex OneTouch]. Both these devices are inexpensive, but Julie has the Verio Flex device reporting to her phone.

I just tested both devices simultaneously to compare accuracy and received the following from the same finger: (mg/dL of glucose in blood)<ref>I did all on the ring finger of my left hand at slightly different spots (which has left it rather sore). For the 1st prick, I first touched to the Metene strip then to the VF strip. For the 2nd the other way around. For the 3rd only the Metene.</ref>

# First prick: 88 on Metene, 80 on Verio Flex
# Second prick: 101 on Metene (but I dropped the test strip on the floor first accidentally), 88 on Verio Flex
# Third prick: 89 on Metene

So these are roughly in the same range for diagnostic reasons when you aren't rubbing them on the floor. After all, if you're close enough to go over all the time, that's just as bad. The Metene comes in a nice bag that's handy to carry around and I find the spring-activated lancet launcher (that pricks your finger) easier to use.

Julie prefers to prick herself manually with the lancet, and prefers using the Verio Flex tools.