I have type 1 diabetes, under very very tight control (using a dexcom and an insulin pump and herbs/homeopthy) at the start of my pregnancy I informed the diabetes doctor as I’d been advised to, and almost immediately wished I had not.
I spent my entire pregnancy fighting to be seen as more than the little tick box that said ‘diabetes’.
My blood sugar was non-diabetic level- so good I was actually worried they would say the baby is growing too slowly and you need MORE blood sugar. But they only see what they expect, and kept assuming my sugar was high and the baby was too big.
The Jordmor measured my belly as very average, the doctors with a scan always found a big baby. Near the end I was disagreeing with doctors- I wouldn’t agree to induce just because I had diabetes. They said it was policy, I said that the policy is based on statistics that indicate a higher chance of problems IF my blood sugar was too high, too often. I was born at 43 weeks, so I knew I might go long.
Near the end of my 40 weeks I cancelled a scan cz I said I was already in labour (I thought I might be) and said I would go to the fodselsavdeling when I was further along. And then I just waited, checked my blood pressure and urine at home. After weeks and weeks (and my doula friend had to leave so it was only me and my sambo, no family around, and my sambo was not prepared for any of the home birth things) I went for a check because I was feeling like it would never happen. Obviously the hospital then freaked out that I was still pregnant at 43+ weeks and cz I had diabetes that my baby was about to die any second.
The Jordmor was happy everything was fine, I refused induction and went away. I went into labour the next day, spontaneously (even with stress of a doctor calling me up just to pressure me into an induction) I was hiking round a lake with the dogs, still active and healthy. I freaked out a bit early on, as my partner just went to bed and left me alone all night, in labour. The baby stopped moving after I got a bit of sleep, and I called the hospital. They said drink a cold drink and wait, then called me back and said no you have to come in. He baby was already moving but they insisted so I went for a check (in 12 hours of labour by then) and the Jordmor said all is good- the doctor was pressuring me to have an induction, when I was already in labour.
I went away but agree if go back in next day if nothing was happening. By next morning my labour was way slowed up and the baby had turned. I got a danish Jordmor who said we were the talk of the birth dept, and some of the jordmors didn’t want to have to deal with me. I agreed to a sweep, and wanted to try some positioning. Straight after the sweep (babies head was already there, 3cm dilated so they poked his head) I got weird twinges and the scan showed his heart rate dropping. At which point all hell broke loose. Babies heart rate went back to completely fine within 5 mins but there was one doctor who was unbelievably aggressive, and kept coming with more doctors, and the head of the hospital, and housing me so much I could barely speak. The Jordmor said there was nothing she could do to stop them. I knew already that child protection law in Norway meant they could do it against my will at this point, so I stopped fighting. I DID NOT CONSENT. I just stopped fighting so that child services wouldn’t try to take my baby.
A PERFECTLY HEALTHY and perfectly average sized baby boy, with a perfectly healthy placenta was violently pulled out of my body, and taken from me. The Jordmor injected him with vitamin K, without consent, and brought him back to me. He went onto my breast, which they call a success, but they took him away again so soon. I asked them to leave the cord for me to cut, but they did not. He got 10-10-10 apgar.
There was NO reason to cut me open, and afterwards they all kept coming in, more doctors. To try and get me to agree that they did the right thing. The Jordmor I spoke to all said sorry, but not a single doctor. One doctor told me they are not used to not being obeyed, or questioned. They kept trying to take my baby away to do ‘checks’ that they could have done next to me. We left 50 hours or so after they cut me open, I was desperate to get away from that place and those people.