Perspective on insulin use in gestational diabetes: A phenomenological study

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is characterized by carbohydrate metabolism intolerance during pregnancy in individuals with normal blood glucose levels before pregnancy. The first-line treatment for GDM is nutrition and exercise, and insulin therapy is initiated when these are insufficient. Pregnant women who are started on insulin often think that they use drugs that may be harmful to the baby. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the perspectives of women diagnosed with gestational diabetes on insulin use using a phenomenological approach. Qualitative research was conducted using phenomenological patterns. The interviews were recorded on an online/face-to-face voice recorder in a semi-structured form, and thematic content analysis was performed using MAXQDA22. Based on the inclusion criteria of the 2 hospitals specific to the study, 15 patients were included, and the study reached saturation. Three main themes and 2 subthemes were obtained from the coding. The main themes were derived from, "fear," "baby protector," and "last remedy" coding. Pregnant women diagnosed with GDM can define gestational diabetes because of the training provided. Because the pregnancy period is sensitive, pregnant women delay control and insulin application for the health of their babies. Moreover, they sometimes experience pain during the injection, and believe that it may harm their babies.