Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I had my 32 week appointment last night. I have measured large from the time my dr started measuring. She has always said let's not worry about it just yet. I see the dr bi-weekly now. At my 30 I measured 32, and last night at my 32 I measured 35. Also, I gained 4 lbs in 2 weeks. This surprises me because I am ALL belly and really have not gained in other places. I asked her where the weight is going and she was honest and said that she wasn't quite sure. I do notice that I am retaining fluid like every pregnant woman, but 2 extra pounds worth? Now, here's my concern: my husband was 10-2 when he was born and I was 8-6. I was hoping that my genes would take over and I would be more in the 8 range, but it doesn't look like that's the case. I have my growth sono next week (can't wait to see the baby again!) so we'll have a better idea after that (even though I have never met anyone who's growth sono was accurate). After we have the growth sono and see what we're dealing with, my dr said that we'll discuss options. Since I am petite she's concerned that it might be difficult for me to pass a "big" baby, so we can schedule a c-section or let things unfold. This upsets me because I would love to be able to experience labor and deliver vaginally. Of course, whatever is best for our baby is what we're going to do. I asked my dr about inducing early and she said that logically it makes sense, but scientifically it doesn't - woman who were induced early for this reason did not necessarily have vaginal births - in other words, the chance of having a c-section did not decrease in number. I'll know more after my next appt with my dr in 2 weeks where we'll go over the growth sono and discuss options.

My husband and I are leaning towards letting things unfold naturally and take it from there. I just want to make sure that I do what's best for my little

Has anyone had this type of history, but went on to deliver a "normal" sized baby vaginally?

TIA!!


This is me at 30 weeks:

Image Attachment(s):

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I was induced 6 days past my due date, so a if fervent situation then yours, but the day before I delivered they told me I was having a 9+ pound baby. He was 7'11 and I delivered vaginally.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Let nature take its course. You never know how big the baby will be exactly. My DS was very large (over 11 pounds) and they took him out at 38 weeks for reasons not really known to us. We knew how big he was and everyone kept asking why the doctors didn't take him out early. Well, at 38 weeks he still wasn't ready and had fluid on the lungs and spent time in the NICU. Babies come when they're ready. That is what nature intends.

I have known numerous moms that gave birth to 10 pound+ babies naturally and some were petite. It can be done. Heck, my dad was 11+ pounds and was born naturally 70 years ago. The way I look at it, giving birth hurts. What's the difference of a few pounds? It's still going to hurt.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

They were concerned my sister in law would have a ten plus pound baby based on how she was measuring but my niece was just a bit over eight and that was with my sister in law being a few days late. I would honestly let things unfold ad see what happens unless the doctors feel it would be dangerous. I think they can be wrong on that a lot. It would stink to go through labor only to end up with a c-section but it would also stink to go through that needlessly to.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

At the end I was gaining 4-5lbs every week :-/ I think it was all water retention! You don't realize how swollen you are....until you lose it all! I wouldn't worry about that.

At 36 weeks my baby was estimated she'd be about 7lbs at birth. The day after my due date they estimated her to be 9lbs :-O I cried on the table.

My doctor never brought up the possibility of options. I went into labor naturally the day after...and DD was 7lbs4oz.

If I were you, I'd let things unfold unless there is a real medical need for a C-Section. Wouldn't you kick yourself if you have a C-Section and end up with a 7lb'er? Everyone is different and I don't want to start a war....but if your heart is set on a vaginal delivery....go with it. Woman used to do it all the time before doctors intervened so much.

Good luck!

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

If there are no medical issues to consider, id just let nature take its course. The drs knew ds was going to be large but he wound up being much bigger than expected. I wound up needing a csection but i have no regrets about attempting a vaginal birth. Sonos are notoriously wrong (& mine was, just in the wrong direction)and i wouldn't have wanted to jump into surgery without attempting to do it naturally.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I wasn't overly swollen and was gaining quite a bit the last 10 weeks and was always hungry too hehe. Never had a growth sono but my doctor thought it would be a bigger baby d/t my weight gain at the end. I am 5ft tall 105 pounds (prior to pregnancy) and gained 35 pounds. Baby was 7#11 ounces and we had a med-free delivery at 41 weeks. I would say go for it barring a positioning issue.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I agree with others, let nature take its course. Our bodies are made for this, and in the majority of cases, are 100% capable of it.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

1-You look fantastic! I would have never guessed 30 weeks looking at your pic

2-I think you are apprehensive about scheduling something, based on wanting to experience labor and deliver the baby vaginally-so go with your gut!

3-With both pregnancies, I gained nearly nothing the first 6 months or so, and then the last 2 were when the scale started to rise. You may not realize you are swollen, bloated, retaining water...the real positives to pregnancy..lol!

You can do it! My friend had an 11lb baby naturally last year, and they had zero intention of giving her a c just because the baby was big.

I was always measuring ahead like you were, and I was not interested in being induced. I was adamant about not wanting a csection, so I know where you are coming from. I specifically chose a dr that would not induce early, or even on my due date. His rule was you go to 42 weeks unless medically necessary. With both of my boys, they told me they were 9-10+lbs, and they probably would have been if they weren't both early.

Congrats, enjoy this exciting time, and let us all know how the next appt goes!

Message edited 6/19/2012 10:13:22 PM.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I say let nature take it's course too. Those growth sonos are not necessarily accurate. They kept telling me DS was a big baby. He was not. He was a normal sized baby (I think anyway) at 7 lbs. 4 oz.

I feel like just because you are petite doesn't mean you can't deliver a bigger baby. Actually my co-worker's wife is a little peanut and she just naturally delivered an 8 lb 10 oz baby without problems.

I know this isn't ideal but if they have to convert to a c, they will. So, as long as I knew it was not to the detriment of my child, I would roll the dice.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Posted by waterspout4

Let nature take its course. You never know how big the baby will be exactly. My DS was very large (over 11 pounds) and they took him out at 38 weeks for reasons not really known to us. We knew how big he was and everyone kept asking why the doctors didn't take him out early. Well, at 38 weeks he still wasn't ready and had fluid on the lungs and spent time in the NICU. Babies come when they're ready. That is what nature intends.

I have known numerous moms that gave birth to 10 pound+ babies naturally and some were petite. It can be done. Heck, my dad was 11+ pounds and was born naturally 70 years ago. The way I look at it, giving birth hurts. What's the difference of a few pounds? It's still going to hurt.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Message edited 6/19/2012 11:15:41 PM.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Posted by MAC222

1-You look fantastic! I would have never guessed 30 weeks looking at your pic

2-I think you are apprehensive about scheduling something, based on wanting to experience labor and deliver the baby vaginally-so go with your gut!

3-With both pregnancies, I gained nearly nothing the first 6 months or so, and then the last 2 were when the scale started to rise. You may not realize you are swollen, bloated, retaining water...the real positives to pregnancy..lol!

You can do it! My friend had an 11lb baby naturally last year, and they had zero intention of giving her a c just because the baby was big.

I was always measuring ahead like you were, and I was not interested in being induced. I was adamant about not wanting a csection, so I know where you are coming from. I specifically chose a dr that would not induce early, or even on my due date. His rule was you go to 42 weeks unless medically necessary. With both of my boys, they told me they were 9-10+lbs, and they probably would have been if they weren't both early.

Congrats, enjoy this exciting time, and let us all know how the next appt goes!

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Thank you everyone for your responses, they really made me feel better!!

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

They were expecting mid 9's for DS#1 (always measured 2 weeks ahead) He was born at 10-2. DH and I were both 8+, my dad was 10+ (naturally)

Let nature take it's course. I ended up going into labor 8 days late and after 2 days they called a c/section, but I'm glad I tried at least.

(growth sonos were right on the money for my other two kids though!)

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I had same situation as you. He measured large and my doctor was concerned. She didnt want to wait too long so she scheduled a csection 1 day after my due date. I felt comfortable with that but I went into labor the day before my due date. He was born vaginally at 9lbs 13 oz. 21" long. It is amazing what our bodies can do. I am by no means a petite girl though. Not overweight, but " big boned"as they say.lol

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Posted by Poppy811

Posted by MAC222

1-You look fantastic! I would have never guessed 30 weeks looking at your pic

2-I think you are apprehensive about scheduling something, based on wanting to experience labor and deliver the baby vaginally-so go with your gut!

3-With both pregnancies, I gained nearly nothing the first 6 months or so, and then the last 2 were when the scale started to rise. You may not realize you are swollen, bloated, retaining water...the real positives to pregnancy..lol!

You can do it! My friend had an 11lb baby naturally last year, and they had zero intention of giving her a c just because the baby was big.

I was always measuring ahead like you were, and I was not interested in being induced. I was adamant about not wanting a csection, so I know where you are coming from. I specifically chose a dr that would not induce early, or even on my due date. His rule was you go to 42 weeks unless medically necessary. With both of my boys, they told me they were 9-10+lbs, and they probably would have been if they weren't both early.

Congrats, enjoy this exciting time, and let us all know how the next appt goes!

Thank you so much! You're so sweet. The black is slimming-lol. Your number 2 is spot on! Just curious, if you dont mind, how early were your boys and what did they weigh?

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

i gained 6 lbs in one week towards the end. the next time i saw the doctor i was back to my regular weight as if hose 6lbs never happened. still don't know why.

they also measured DS at over 9lbs. he was 7lbs 15oz when he was born. (although he did have very large shoulders)

i had to have a c-section because i never got past 3cm. afterwards i found out he was sideways anyway and never would have come out naturally.

if it's safe try seeing what happens. your baby may be a lot smaller than they think.

good luck!

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I'm very petite too and everyone was concerned about the size of DD when I was pregnant. Truthfully, we had let nature take its course. Like you, I wanted to experience birth and my doctor was all for it - there were no medical issues and there was no distress on my part or the baby's part. I was overdue though and if I had gone about 2 more days, they were going to induce. I never considered getting a c-section, but because I am small and DD was too big for me that's what happened. I pushed for 4 hours and they all thought it was going to happen naturally until she got stuck.

Lesson is - you simply never know and you have to do what you feel is best.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

I had the opposite, they had me coming in every week because the baby was measuring too small and they were considering a c-section because the baby may not have been getting enough nutrients. I delivered (via c-section but for other reasons) at term a 7lb baby. If you google this - you will find that so many moms were told they were going to have a big baby or a small baby - only to deliver a baby within normal range. Ultrasounds are not an exact science, so the measurement is based on an estimation. Once that estimation is calculated - your doctor needs to respond - it would be inappropriate for them not to (I think that's why midwife's tend to do less u/s). So - if you can relax and trust your instinct that everything will be ok, that would be my thought. And you look amazing for 30 weeks!!

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

The same thing pretty much happend to me, but the baby was measuring a little smaller. They said he was high 7 lbs - mid 8 lbs when i was 39/40 weeks. My Dr gave me the option of waiting until i go into labor naturally and then doing a csection, or inducing the day before my due date. I was upset as well because I wanted to experience going into labor naturally and didn't want a csection. I also have an incompetent cervix so they didn't want me to wait much longer as a bigger baby couldve damaged it more for future babies if i delivered vaginally. I chose to get induced and deliver vaginally and my baby turned out to be 7 lbs 11 oz. Once I began pushing, the babies heart rate was decreasing rapidly, so they wanted to do a c section after a few more pushes. Luckily he came out after a few pushes! But the weight isn't always accurate. I would maybe try to push your Dr. to induce if you're open to the idea it may turn into a c-section, at least you'll be able to experience labor.

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice

Re: Expecting with first baby - need some BTDT advice