Giving birth to my son and daughter will always be one of my favorite memories. I was able to experience “love at first sight,” and the feeling is incredible! But leading up to that exact moment was a bit of an obstacle. I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes during both of my pregnancies and a change in my daily routine was necessary.
“Your sugar levels are really high. We believe you have gestational diabetes and you’ll have to come in and take a managing diabetes course.”
I was completely taken by surprise when the doctor gave me this news during my first pregnancy. I did what any millennial would do and googled the term gestational diabetes. Google is a great resource for information but wasn’t the best place for a first-time, hormonal, soon-to-be mom to look up information. I was in tears within ten minutes and thought I did something wrong to cause the diabetes. For any future or current pregnant woman, IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT! Gestational diabetes is something that just happens to some people and it’s completely manageable. For me, living with diabetes came down to living by four simple rules.
1. Meal Plan
Meal prepping is the best form of diet control in my opinion. I can plan out everything I’m planning to eat and make sure that I’m falling within the allotted amount of carbs and sugars. Meal prepping also helped me when I woke up a bit late and had to run out the door. Overnight oats for the win!
2. Stay Active
When you’re nine months pregnant being active can be a bit tough, but you can be active with something as simple as walking. Luckily for me, I was able to stay active through dance and cheer. Try and strive for thirty minutes of some sort of activity a day.
3. Hydrate!
Wash the reusable water bottle you have in the back of your cupboard, or go to the store and buy yourself an efficient water bottle. I personally love my Hydroflask that was given to me as a gift from my sorority sister. Make an effort to take a sip every 30 minutes. Trust me, you’ll feel amazing and not as hungry!
4. Get Creative
The hardest thing about living with diabetes was giving up the desserts. I have a HUGE sweet tooth. The strict diet obviously didn’t give me the flexibility to eat a delicious piece of Costco cake (my favorite dessert), but I was able to find new innovative ways to satisfy the sweet tooth. I became a lover of banana milkshakes made with no ice cream. I would freeze bananas to get that ice cream consistency when I blended them with milk. To balance out the sugars in banana, I would add peanut butter for protein.
Every girl has to find her own way of managing what life throws her way. I’m happy to say I conquered diabetes and am no longer diabetic! But I plan to continue living by my four strategies to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Katrina Arroyos is a lover of all things social media. She earned her degree in broadcast journalism from Arizona State. Katrina works as a marketing videographer. When Katrina is not at work, she’s enjoying life with her husband, Edward, and two kids, Elliot and Kiera. Her hobbies include photography, videography, and journaling.
