Three Years. Two Pregnancies. One Missed Diagnosis.

She’d always been lean, active, and healthy. There were no prior health concerns. But now she was monitoring her blood sugar constantly, reporting her numbers over email to the maternal-fetal medicine (MFM) team during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“They said I had diabetes, and I just kept thinking, how is this happening to me?”

She was surprised — and overwhelmed. “I was doing everything they told me to do,” Elisha explained. “Watching what I ate, exercising after every meal... but my blood sugar still spiked sometimes.”

Any number over 140 mg/dL caused panic from her OB, even though the MFM team told her she was doing great. Elisha kept pushing through — restricting carbs, doing short workouts after meals, and feeling stressed the entire time. She was told it would all go away once the baby was born.

After a traumatic delivery that included seven hours of pushing and an unexpected episiotomy, her health was pushed aside. Her provider mentioned a postpartum glucose test at six weeks, but it never happened. And without any symptoms, she didn’t press it.

“At one year postpartum, my A1C came back at 5.7 percent. I was shocked. Prediabetes? I ate clean, I exercised — how could this be happening?”

Still, she let it go. She was breastfeeding and exhausted from life with a newborn. Then she got pregnant again.

Second Pregnancy and Familiar Challenges

During her second pregnancy, Elisha requested a new care team. She couldn’t handle another round of judgment and fear around every blood sugar spike. She failed the OGTT again, this time at just 16 weeks.

“I knew this time I couldn’t manage it without help,” she said. “I told them I was open to medication.”

She started taking glyburide, a medication that boosts insulin production, but she had a gut feeling it wasn’t working. Even meals like eggs and broccoli would cause her blood sugar to rise to 160 mg/dL. And while she tried to explain this to her care team, she was met with lectures about pizza and cake.

“I was so frustrated. I wasn’t eating junk — I was doing everything right.”

Eventually, one supportive doctor on her MFM team agreed to start her on mealtime insulin. It made a huge difference. For the final two months of pregnancy, Elisha was finally able to keep her blood sugar in range with less stress.

But just like before, she was told it would all go away after the baby came.

Unexpected Fatigue and Missed Clues

Elisha’s second son was born a month early after her water broke unexpectedly. In the weeks that followed, she felt drained, more than just typical new-mom tired.

“I noticed I felt tired after meals. I didn’t know that could be a symptom of high blood sugar.”

She began checking her levels again. Readings after meals climbed above 200 mg/dL.

“I knew something wasn’t right.”

By then, she’d started following type 1 diabetes (T1D) accounts on Instagram and connected with @CarbFilledDiabetic, who told her to ask for a C-peptide test and an autoantibody panel.

At four months postpartum, her A1C was 6.7 percent. Her doctor diagnosed her with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and referred her to an endocrinologist. However, the waitlist was long.

“I felt awful. My blood sugars were high, and I wasn’t getting the help I needed.”

Her OB wrote a letter urging the endocrinologist to see her sooner. While she waited, she resumed taking leftover insulin from her pregnancy. It was the only thing that helped bring her blood sugars down.

“I kept thinking, if this is really type 2, why isn’t anything else working?”

The Diagnosis That Made It All Make Sense

When she finally saw the endocrinologist, he suspected type 1 and ordered the labs.

Her C-peptide was low. Her autoantibodies were positive. Her A1C had jumped to 7.9 percent.

After more than three years of being told she had gestational or T2D, Elisha finally had the correct diagnosis: type one diabetes.

“As much as I didn’t want this diagnosis, I was relieved. It explained everything.”

Now 30, Elisha is raising two young boys while adjusting to life with T1D. And while she’s nervous about managing a third pregnancy in the future, she’s no longer in the dark.

“I know how to advocate for myself now. I’ve already been through so much — I know I can handle it.”

Getting a C-Peptide Test to Confirm Your Diabetes Type

If your diagnosis doesn’t seem to fit, testing can help you get clarity. A C-peptide test measures how much insulin your body makes. When paired with an autoantibody panel (GAD, IA-2, ZnT8), it can help determine whether you may actually have T1D or latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA).

Speak Up, Get Answers

• Start the conversation: Let your doctor know that you’d like additional testing, including a C-peptide test and autoantibody panel.
• Mention your health history: If you have a family history of autoimmune diseases or T1D, bring it up.
• Track your results: Share consistent blood sugar patterns, especially if they don’t respond to typical medications.
• Find supportive care: Ask to see an endocrinologist or diabetes specialist if your concerns are being dismissed.
• Trust your instincts: If something doesn’t feel right, it’s okay to speak up. You deserve answers that make sense.

As Elisha says, “As soon as I got the right diagnosis, everything started to make sense. I had the right tools. I finally felt supported.”