Avoiding hypoglycaemia

Because you are aiming for very tight control, you may find you have more hypos when you are pregnant, although many women find that their pregnancy passes with few problems. It is best to avoid having a hypo; no pregnant woman wants to fall down.

Using glucagon In case you lose consciousness, your partner can learn how to inject you with glucagons to raise your blood glucose.

There are several steps you can take to avoid hypos, including:

• Eat on time - missed or late meals are the most common cause of hypos
• Monitor your blood glucose regularly - hypos may indicate that your insulin dose needs adjusting
• Do extra tests if you are worried, for example:
  • During the night
  • Before and after exercise
  • If you have any hypo symptoms such as tingling, sweating or dizziness
• Make sure you are in regular contact with people during the day
• Make sure your friends, relatives and children know how to recognise a hypo and how to help you

Avoid night-time lows

Hypos during the night can be disturbing and unpleasant. To avoid them, try:

• Eating a snack before you go to bed
• Keep your blood glucose meter, a snack such as biscuits, plus a sugary drink and glucose tablets, beside the bed, in case you are worried during the night
• Try to make sure you are not alone overnight. Stay with friends or family if necessary

Hypoglycaemic unawareness

During pregnancy, it is quite common for women to lose their ability to spot that they are going hypo. This means you will have to take extra care, especially while driving.

Driving and hypoglycaemia

• Never forget that your car can become a lethal weapon if you cannot control it properly
• Do not drive unless you have tested your blood glucose before you set off
• In particular, if you lose your ability to spot a hypo is on the way, you should stop driving voluntarily
• This may be very inconvenient but try not to resist giving up driving for now - your safety, your baby's safety and the safety of others depend upon it

If you have a car accident

If you were to have an accident in your car, you would have to prove that you had tested your blood glucose levels:

• before you set off
• and at two hourly intervals while driving

To be safe, make sure that the time and date functions on your meter are set correctly, so that you can prove that you tested before starting your journey.