The women’s zone...
Taking Care of Baby and Me - A Mother’s Story
Cathy Nyambura is in her 30s and immigrated to New Zealand from Kenya two years ago. She and her husband work on a dairy farm in Greymouth, and love the ‘warm though wet’ life on the West Coast.
Cathy was delighted to discover she was expecting her second baby last year . But along with the good news came a challenge to her own health. How to manage pregnancy and breastfeeding alongside diabetes. Here’s Cathy’s story…
In March this year we were blessed with a dear girl called Cynthia. She is our joy and has brought a lot of warmth to the house after ten years since my boy arrived.
When I was expecting my son I had no signs of diabetes, instead I had problems with hypertension leading to an emergency caesarean at 28 weeks. I was diagnosed with diabetes 2 years later.
It was an upward struggle at first since none of my family members understood the disease. With a lot of support from hospital and reading books I can confidently say I am happy now.
When my daughter arrived I chose to fully breastfeed her. As the milk supply and demand increased, my body was also demanding for more energy. Having not experienced this in my first pregnancy, it took quite a while to realise what was happening. I had about four hypoglycaemias the first week after delivery. This was very traumatising because I lost concentration when my baby needed me most.
Thanks to nurses at the hospital who helped me out I increased my energy levels by regularly having snacks and a balanced main meal. I also monitor my blood sugar before and after meals and breastfeeding.
Thanks to the Accu-Chek Performa, I can comfortably do this with much ease. My insulin dose is now regulated to cope with my current demands.
I appreciate the endless education from Accu-Chek newsletters. It is very handy when one gets stuck or when the mind goes blank during hypos. My husband always refers to the news.
I am now a happy mother with a happy family.
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