Poll - how big was your baby and how hard was your labour?

[beartime]

I've been reading the Gentle Birth posts about dieting leading to a smaller baby which means an easier labour, so wanted to see if this is really true. Also should take into account if the baby was healthy or not afterwards - because maybe small means less healthy?

So can you give your baby weight, length of labour, any complications and health of baby?

Mine was 8lb 7oz, 17hrs from first twinge, got cord stuck round his neck which led to episiotomy and ventouse, very healthy. Also tore.

[jamiesam]

ds1 - 7lb 13oz, 13 hours from first twinge to ec/s, baby very healthy.

ds2, 9lbs 3oz, 9 hours from first twinge to birth, included episiotomy and 3rd degree tear. Baby even healthier!

[beansontoast]

7lb 13 oz (slap on the 50th centile)
7 hrs from first painful contraction (thats a pound an hour ho ho ho)
no delivery complications
no health probs for baby

good luck with all th eevidence!

[beartime]

hmmm so looks like baby might be healthier but maybe not us afterwards!

[emkana]

dd1 - 8 lb 14, 11 hours from first twinge to birth, gas and air and pethidine, no complications or intervention. 2nd degree tear

dd2 - 9 lb 6, induced because overdue, about four hours from established labour to birth, gas and air. 2nd degree tear

[beartime]

beansontoast

[jampots]

baby1 - 8lb 9.5oz - 62 hours from regular contractions although show was 2 weeks before and waters broke 9 days before (39 weeks)

baby2 - 8lb 12 - elective c/s in order to prevent a reoccurance of above (37 weeks)

[Aimsmum]

7lb 14oz labour was 24 and a half hours. I had an episiotomy as DD's heart rate kept dropping and not picking up too well, but once born she was totally fine if a bit mucusy (sp?) for a day or so!

[Mazzystar]

8lb and 1/2oz, healthy as can be, very relaxed and gentle labour but ec/s 11 hours in as he had flexed his neck. ate generally healthily through pregnancy with exception of early pg nausea rmemdies of bacon crisps

[jampots]

both babies were 9:9 and had no probs

[milward]

10 mins - just fine - 4.570 kilos! Never diet & gained 30+kilos whilst preg. bf is helping to use it up!

[beartime]

62 hrs Jampots? Maybe I didn't have it so bad after all!

[beartime]

errr wots that in english money milward?

[LaylaandSethsmum]

Beartime Hi!!! I've also seen the gentle birth advice and dieting during pregnancy is a big no-no really ( imo!). If a full term baby is born light when otherwise it would have been say Caleb's size then it has to be undernourished in the womb, surely!!

BTW Layla was 8lb 1oz 17 hr labour and episiotomy and ventouse
Seth was 9 hr labour ( only 4 hrs of real pain though!) gas and air natural home birth and slight tear that didn't need stitching and weighed 8lb 7.5 oz.

Why not try for a home birth next time? I found being at home and fully in control I was loads more relaxed and able to cope!!

[CattyB]

Hope your research is enlightening

ds#1 was 9lbs 12.5oz, Home birth - 15hr from 1st twinge, long second stage ending in epis. I bled for a long time after but ds very healthy, great b/f'er.
ds#2 - 10lb 2oz, Home water birth, 6hr labour, very easy birth - very short 2nd stage. Very Healthy but slow to b/f.
ds#3 - 9lb 12oz, Home water birth, 5hr labour, very short 2nd stage. Very healthy, great feeder.

Hope this covers all you asked.

[Yorkiegirl]

DD1 6lb 3oz episiotomy, official labour 7 hours 20. Very difficult. Epidural.
DD2 7lb 5oz very easy delivery, gas and air and tens only, no episiotomy or epidural. 3 hour labour. Slight tear but no stitches.

[niceglasses]

All my babies were sml

7 4
7 2
7 5

bout 24 hrs, 16 hrs and 4 hrs. All pretty hard labours I thought anyway, but the last at least VERY VERY painful, but much more prodcutive pain if you know what I mean - I knew it was getting somewhere, where as 1st time, the pain was just gearing things up I thihk. Don't forget as well it can depend on length of the baby - although sml, mine where all longggggg and that takes some work as well.

[Nemo1977]

DS 9lb 1oz 90min labour..very quick very easy.
DD 6lb 14ozs 8hr labour, nightmare time as she wouldnt engage so kept getting threatened with c section. Then when it came to giving birth had to do it without pain relief...never again like that..lol

[Nemo1977]

meant to add ds very healthy, dd had jaundice and is also quite a sicky baby with reflux and quite bad excema.

[beartime]

L&SMum - Hi! I did try for a homebirth this time But its a nightmare reliving it! I read that 8lb was ideal when I was pg, but then talking to my dad about lambing he said that they try to keep the sheep from eating too much so that their lambs are smaller and the labours easier. Apparently they all overate this year as they were in a field with too much grass in, and on ehad to have an emergency c-section LOL (with a local anaethetic ) So I guess I'm questioning the bigger = better theory!

[beansontoast]

beartime - there were other aspects to it all that would make you less i promise!..my own health was a bit of an issue.

[beartime]

well Yorkie and Nemo seem to blow that theory out the window

[beartime]

I mean the smaller = better theory

[Ellbell]

dd1 - 4lb 12oz (elective section, though, so kind of irrelevant)

dd2 - 7lb 8oz. Labour was c. 8 hours. First stage was fine, second stage was tough (two hours). Baby absolutely fine.

Having had a small baby (due to complications) would not dream of dieting to try to have another small one. Although dd1 was healthy, she was in hospital and tube-fed for 10 days and never fed well, etc etc etc.

[Nemo1977]

beartime I actually ate worse when having DD but think that running around after Ds helped to burn it off. I was also told that DD would be 10lb plus but she was a dinky doll.

[Miaou]

dd1 - 16 hours labour - 6lb 13 - failure to progress, ventouse, episiotomy

dd2 - 8 hours labour - 8lb - tore (that's it)

ds - 4 hours labour - 8lb - retained placenta

Hmm......