Seriously, there is nothing sweet about diabetes.
Even our most complicated diabetics, which give me palpitations, pale in comparison to those cared for by my internal medicine colleagues.
Also, sugar will be the greatest teratogen of our time.
Teratogen is a fancy word that means it messes the baby up. Ok, fine, a more formal definition is “something that cause malformation of the embryo/fetus.” Birth defects. That bad stuff.
I tried to decrease the amount of sugar I ate starting around April or so (bedsides fruit, because I mean…apples are my favorite food). I watched “Fed Up,” a documentary by Katie Couric, and had a little push from a friend (thanks Jaws) and quit the nightly chocolate/dessert habit.
Saturday, it was one of our attending’s last days (for those of you in NYU OB/GYN world, Dr. Morrow’s last L&D stand), and the nurses threw a party. I ate cake. And about two hours later I felt tired, lethargic, and cranky.
Somewhere in “Fed Up” they talk about how sugar and insulin changes your brain chemistry and blah blah blah…I’m too tired to look it up and tell you…but literally I could not believe how much worse I felt eating sugar that I don’t normally eat.
So, yeah, sugar ain’t so sweet, yo. There’s nothing cool about a finger stick over 200.
Moving on…
A thank you note to 5 o’clock.
Dear 5 O’Clock,
Thank you for bringing either a triage “bus,” complicated new patients, or both. You know, a seemingly smooth day can be thwarted just at the stroke of 5. The witching hour of OB triage.
Its so nice of you to bring these challenges just one hour before sign out. You really challenge me to work quickly and efficiently so I don’t look like an idiot at sign out, which you inevitably do, since you always bring something really complicated, naturally.
Your 4 am counterpart – send them a thank you, too.
With Love,
OB Residents Everywhere
I am tired.
It is time for bed.
To bed I said!
Night night.
Until next time…
Daily Coffee Tally: 2
The Thinks I Can Think 
Lately, (after a Netflix binge week) while reading your daily reports, I picture you at your computer typing these out, backspacing occasionally with a sly smirk ala Doogie Howser M.D. Please tell us this is true.
I wish. Usually no backspacing! I write quickly and little editing and push publish as I’m too tired to do anything else! But, I’ll try to emulate this next time 🙂
Hi Meggie, as a medical professional, and a pregnant gal, I think your blog is so interesting!
Can you clarify a bit about sugar being a teratogen? No sign of gestational diabetes here, but I do enjoy a cookie on an almost-daily basis :-0
Thanks!
Certainly! Yes, should’ve clarified or, rather, been more specific. In uncontrolled or un-diagnosed diabetics who get pregnant, sugar will be a “teratogen” as organogenesis will take place while blood sugars may be out of control. Diabetics are at risk for certain anomalies – for instance, cardiac should blood sugars be uncontrolled. Given the rise in diabetics, I would hypothesize a concomitant increase in such anomalies. However, hopefully people are getting care and blood sugars until control to avoid such. Hope that clarifies? If not, let me know. Good luck with your pregnancy and ,certainly, keep enjoying your cookies! I mean, even though I “gave up” some sugar, I still eat ice cream, etc from time to time. And who knows how long this phase will last…I used to eat dessert every night!!
Meggie, I somehow just now (a year later!) saw that you answered my question. A belated thank you! Your posts are really interesting. And thanks for the go-ahead on the cookie 🙂