We started at 8am and they drew my blood first, then had me drink the WHOLE bottle of the nasty stuff. Oh man, those first few gulps aren't so bad, but then I held the bottle up and realized I had a LOT more to drink.
The timer started for the first hour, and I was doing great. I went to the comfy room that they set John and I up in; I had a huge leather recliner to rest in, John sat in a chair next to me, studying for class on his laptop. I read a little bit in my "What to Expect" book about gestational diabetes, and part of it helped, part of it was hard to read. It confirmed that it's not the worst thing to happen, but then it said that having it could increase the mother's and baby's risk of developing diabetes later on in life. That's exactly what I fear! But, we don't know if I have it yet, so we'll see. (I know, I'm probably being way too dramatic and everything will be fine.)
When the timer had a few minutes left, I went back to the nurse to get poked again, this time in the other arm. Not so bad, set the clock for another hour. Rinse and repeat, right? By the third blood draw (which hurt, cause that arm was already poked once and was very sensitive), my tummy was growling!! I can't remember the last time I went this long without eating--even before I was pregnant!
After the third blood draw, John was thinking about heading into work. But for some reason (partly because I was just enjoying some quiet relaxing time with my hubby), I asked him to stay. And when the timer had 20 minutes left on it, we found out why he was still there. Without much warning (just enough for me to pull my hair into a ponytail, actually) I got sick. Well, not really sick, it was really just dry heaving because there was NOTHING in my stomach!! But I grabbed the trash can and between heaves asked him to get the nurse. He's amazing at taking care of me; he's really stepped up through all this. Two very sweet nurses came in and put cold washcloths on my neck and head (ruining my hair thankyouverymuch!) and laid me back. I didn't really even feel dizzy or nauseous, just weak. Hello!? I haven't eaten since 8:00 the night before, and you're taking blood! Are we done yet?
John helped walk me back to an exam room, where the nuse laid me back for the last draw. It's amazing he came with, the man hates needles!! I usually do great with needles, I just can't watch them go in, but it doesn't bother me too much. But I think she used the same spot as the last one in that arm! I used to give blood regularly and am actually bummed I can't right now, but for good reason. :) Anyway, she gave me apple juice and crackers afterwards which helped, but wasn't enough. I stopped and got lunch on my way into work and pretty much inhaled it.
When I got in the car after saying goodbye to John, I cried. He felt horrible learning this later; he asked, "what could I have done differently? I was there to support you so that it wasn't too terrible to endure, but you were crying?" Well, yes, but the funny thing was, I didn't know why I was crying. I was frustrated that I had gotten sick right at the end, but my body was just reacting. I guess it was reacting too when my hormones took over and I couldn't help but cry. I couldn't help it and I didn't know why!!
It made for a very exhausting day, and I anticipate tomorrow being the same. When the doctor's office calls, it will either be good news or bad news. I mean, I honestly feel that the diagnosis of gestational diabetes is bad news. I know it's not the end of the world, I know some women who have had it and survived and have some amazing kiddos... it's just something I didn't anticipate dealing with, and I hope I don't have to.
So tomorrow is D-day and I'll update once we know the outcome.
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