by Pei Aui - Melbourne maternity, newborn, family, couples and wedding photographer.
A guide from a Melbourne photographer who has been through it
Finding out you have gestational diabetes can feel like a blindside. One minute you're ticking along through your pregnancy and the next you're sitting with a diagnosis you weren't expecting, trying to work out what it actually means while trying not to spiral.
I know because I've been there.
I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes during my own pregnancy. And to make things harder, I was also dealing with hyperemesis gravidarum at the same time. If you are navigating both right now, this article is especially for you.
Gestational diabetes is common, it is manageable, and with the right support it does not have to define your pregnancy. You are not alone and you are not to blame for it.
Here is what you actually need to know.
What Is Gestational Diabetes?
Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that develops during pregnancy. It happens when your body cannot produce enough insulin to manage the blood glucose levels that naturally rise during pregnancy. It is not the same as type 1 or type 2 diabetes, and for most women it resolves completely after the baby is born.
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, almost one in five women who gave birth in Australia in 2021 to 2022 was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, and the incidence has more than doubled since 2009. You are in a very large group of women navigating exactly this.
Why Does It Happen? The Placenta Connection
This is the part my obstetrician explained to me that finally made everything click.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, gestational diabetes occurs when hormones produced by the placenta prevent the body from using insulin effectively. The placenta not only supplies the growing fetus with nutrients but also produces hormones to maintain the pregnancy. Some of these, including estrogen, cortisol and human placental lactogen, have a blocking effect on insulin.
As research published in the NCBI Bookshelf explains, as the placenta grows, more of these hormones are produced and insulin resistance increases. Normally the pancreatic beta cells produce additional insulin to compensate. When they cannot keep up with the demand those placental hormones create, gestational diabetes results.
This also explains why the condition typically resolves after birth. Once the placenta is delivered, those blocking hormones drop away rapidly and insulin response returns to normal.
It is a physiological response to pregnancy. Not a personal failing.
How Is It Diagnosed in Australia?
Screening for gestational diabetes is recommended in all pregnancies, with most women tested between 24 and 28 weeks using an oral glucose tolerance test, or OGTT. This involves fasting overnight, a baseline blood test, drinking a glucose solution and further blood tests at one and two hours.
Australia updated its clinical guidelines in June 2025. If you have certain risk factors your doctor may recommend earlier testing. Always follow the guidance of your own healthcare team.
What Happens After the Diagnosis: My Experience
When I didn't pass my glucose tolerance test, my obstetrician called to walk me through the results. From there I was connected to a diabetes nurse and registered with the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS). If you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes and eligible for Medicare, you can register with the NDSS for access to subsidised products and services to help manage the condition. Through the NDSS I was given a blood glucose monitoring machine free of charge, though it needs to be returned after the pregnancy. Blood testing strips and lancet needles are purchased separately out of pocket, so factor that into your budget.
My diabetes nurse walked me through a thorough consultation covering how to test, what the numbers mean and what to do if a reading falls outside the target range. I left feeling significantly more in control than I had walking in. Because my levels were manageable through diet alone I did not need any medication or insulin. But the monitoring was still a daily commitment. I tested four times a day: before breakfast, two hours after breakfast, two hours after lunch and two hours after dinner. Those readings went to my diabetes nurse regularly so she could track patterns and flag anything that might need further attention.
It sounds like a lot. Within a week or two it becomes routine.
Managing Blood Glucose Through Diet: What Actually Worked for Me
Diet is one of the most effective tools for managing gestational diabetes and this is where I found the most sense of agency. The biggest shift I made was switching all my rice to basmati. According to The Royal Women's Hospital Melbourne, low glycaemic index carbohydrates like basmati rice cause a slower rise in blood glucose levels and are a recommended choice for managing the condition. That one swap made a noticeable difference to my readings.
Beyond that, my approach was practical rather than restrictive. I kept carbohydrate portions small at each meal, paid close attention to sauces and seasonings which can carry hidden sugar, switched to unsweetened yoghurt and leaned into more protein, more vegetables and fruits lower in fructose. For snacks I kept it simple: vegetable sticks, cheese, a small handful of nuts.
According to Diabetes Australia, the key principle is spreading carbohydrate intake across the day rather than eating large amounts at once, using three medium meals and two to three snacks to keep blood glucose levels more stable.
One important note: pregnancy is not the time for a low or no carbohydrate diet. Carbohydrates are an important energy source for both you and your baby. Please work with your dietitian rather than making significant changes based on general advice, as individual needs vary considerably.
What If Diet Alone Is Not Enough?
Some women find that dietary changes do not bring blood glucose levels into range consistently. If this happens, medication including insulin may be recommended. Insulin remains the mainstay of pharmacological therapy for gestational diabetes in Australia. Needing insulin does not mean you have failed. It means your body needs extra support during this pregnancy. Talk honestly with your care team about any concerns. They have heard them all before.
Staying Active
Moderate physical activity such as walking helps the body use insulin more effectively during pregnancy. Always check with your healthcare team before starting or changing your exercise routine, especially if your pregnancy has other complications.
The Emotional Side: What Nobody Really Talks About
This is the part I want to be genuinely honest about, because I think the generic version of this conversation does not help anyone. My worry after the diagnosis was not really about the baby. Somewhere in me I knew my baby would be fine. What got to me was something more daily and more personal.
As mentioned before, I also had hyperemesis gravidarum. Hyperemesis gravidarum is severe nausea and vomiting in pregnancy that goes well beyond typical morning sickness, making it genuinely difficult to eat or drink enough throughout the pregnancy. It is relentless and exhausting in a way that is hard to describe unless you have lived it. So there I was. Already struggling to eat. Already navigating a very short list of foods my body would tolerate. And then on top of that, a gestational diabetes diagnosis with a whole new set of dietary restrictions.
The mental toll of not being able to eat what you want, when you genuinely just need to eat something, is a very specific kind of difficult. It was not fear about outcomes. It was the daily grind of trying to manage blood glucose levels while managing severe nausea. It was opening the fridge and knowing almost nothing in it was both something my body could stomach and something my readings would approve of.
And then there was the finger pricking. Four times a day, every single day, for the rest of my trimester. I am not going to pretend those weeks were easy. They were not.
But here is what I want to say to anyone in the middle of it right now. Those twelve weeks will pass. I know it does not feel that way when you are in them. But they go faster than you think and there is absolutely light at the end of this tunnel. The monitoring ends. The restrictions lift. Your body comes back to you.
If you are struggling emotionally, please tell someone. Your partner, your midwife, your GP, a counsellor or another woman who has been through it. You do not have to carry any of this alone.
After the Baby: What Comes Next
Blood glucose levels should return to normal after birth for most women with gestational diabetes. Your healthcare team will check your levels before discharge and recommend follow-up testing in the weeks after birth to confirm everything has resolved. It is also worth knowing that around one in two people diagnosed with gestational diabetes will develop type 2 diabetes in the future. This is not something to fear right now. It is simply a reason to maintain healthy habits after your pregnancy and have regular check-ups with your GP going forward.
Your Pregnancy Is Still Beautiful. Even This One.
I never got professional maternity photos taken during my pregnancy. I was unwell. I was exhausted. The last thing I felt like doing was getting dressed up and standing in front of a camera trying to look radiant when I felt anything but. My husband did pull me out one day and took some casual photos just so I have some photos with the bump. I wasn't in the mood. I wasn't dressed up. I wasn't wearing makeup. I wasn't really present for it at all.
Now, looking back, I deeply regret it.
Not because the photos were bad. But because I wish I had allowed myself just two hours. Two hours to be celebrated. Two hours to have something I could look at for the rest of my life that showed me, in that season, carrying that baby through everything it took to get there. My experience with hyperemesis gravidarum has made me too afraid to go through pregnancy again. This may have been my only one. And when I think about that, the absence of proper maternity photos feels even more significant.
Here is the truth about difficult pregnancies. They are not a reason to skip the photos. They are the reason the photos matter more.
The strength it takes to get through gestational diabetes and hyperemesis gravidarum at the same time, to prick your fingers four times a day while barely keeping food down, to show up for your baby every single day even when your body is fighting you, that is not something to hide from. That is something worth preserving. You do not need to feel your best to deserve beautiful photos. You do not need to look perfect or feel perfect or have had a perfect pregnancy. You just need two hours and someone who understands that what they are photographing is not just a bump. It is a whole story.
If you are a Melbourne mum in the middle of a difficult pregnancy and you have been putting this off because you don't feel like yourself right now, please reach out. I will bring everything you need to make it feel easy. And I promise you will not regret it.
Important note: This article is written for general informational and personal experience purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Every pregnancy is different. Please speak with your doctor, midwife or diabetes care team for advice specific to your situation.
Useful Australian resources:
- National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS): ndss.com.au
- Diabetes Australia: diabetesaustralia.com.au
- Healthdirect Australia: healthdirect.gov.au
- Pregnancy Birth and Baby helpline: 1800 882 436
- PANDA: panda.org.au
- Gidget Foundation: gidgetfoundation.org.au
- Hyperemesis Australia: hyperemesisaustralia.org.au