to be completely shocked and disgusted at the leaflet I've just been given by my mw???

[mummylovesnancy]

This leaflet, titled 'Raised BMI in Pregnancy' was passed on to me by my midwife at my booking in appointment yesterday. Along with the words 'You can't have a home birth, you probably won't deliver naturally and you'll be given consultant led care.'
I'm 28, I have 2 PERFECTLY healthy children who both have perfect height to weight ratios, eat well, are active and are generally normal children. I weigh 13st and I'm 5'2 which puts me in the 'obese' catagory according to the good ol' BMI index of wonder. I have been roughly this weight and exactly this height for all of my adult life. I am overweight, I accept that, but what I don't accept is being told to read this sodding leaflet which tells me, among various other little pearlers, that:
*I will have raised blood pressure. (Not 'I may', 'I WILL')
*I will be prone to urinary tract infections. (never had one in my life!)
*'Bigger Ladies' (exact wordage) get more blood clots. (Dumb Fuck)
*Examinations will be difficult. (Why? Because you have to part all my layers of fat to get to my vag?! How fucking degrading)
*I will have restricted mobilisation. (Will I? Because I don't now, will it automatically come with being fat and preggers?)
*Putting in a drip will be difficult. (yeah because my hands are so freaking chubby.)
*Breastfeeding will be challenging (I've managed it with two babies, now because you've changed your guidelines I think I might struggle.)
And my favourite one yet:
*The risk of stillbirth or your baby dying in the first 28 days is increased in 'larger ladies' (Thanks for that one, nhs, I just had a misscarriage 8 weeks ago. Was it because I'm fat?)

It also mentions on about 7 occasions that I may want an epidural. Is that to keep me quiet?! It also offers to refer me to a dietician and a counsellor.

I have been overweight (or a larger or bigger lady, as the nhs prefers) and given birth naturally twice with absolutely no complications and one of them was a home birth. I can't believe I have to read all this shit. The idiot who wrote this doesn't even know how to place an apostrophe or comma ffs!

Does anyone agree with me that this is a disgusting, degrading, scare mongering piece of shit or am I being an unreasonable pregnant wreck??

Yeah, and if the choice is between giving up your 5 fags a day habit but then starting again and ending up smoking 15, it's better just to smoke the 5?

That's so fatalistic and daft!

Right so everyone should remain overweight for fear of gaining even more weight Timewasting?

Meanwhile, unborn babies are put at greater risk?

It's not fatalistic, it's fact. And Elaine, that's not analogous.

It's fact that people who lose weight end up fatter than before? Really?
And it's analogous in the sense that both hypothetical situations are nonsense!

The point being is that a 'diet' in the general sense (i.e. short term deprivation of foods until a desired weight is reached, at which point 'normal' eating can resume) won't work.

You have to make a change for life, you really do.

OP why are you shocked? There is nothing in the leaflet that is not accurate. It will cost the NHS a lot of money to deliver you and your baby safely, and they would like you to be reasonable about your expectations. Being obese at 28 will feel and work a million times better than when you are 38, 48, etc. Since you mention nothing about medical reasons, they can only assume it's your lifestyle choice. If you're completely shocked and disgusted, one can only hope others who have to deliver your case have more noble natures.

If you want nice, you can always go private. They may be nicer, they may be more judgemental. You can also go it alone, many women in the world do. Some don't survive, some babies don't. So count your lucky stars that you're obese at 28 and getting consultant-led care in the UK.

You should complain to the Health Trust and the head of the maternity unit about unscientific rubbish like this being distributed to patients.

"x, y, z will happen" is ridiculous.

Mind you your thread did give the anti-fat brigade a platform, which must be nice for them.

The amount of blatant fat hatred disguised as care for the OP's health on this thread is astonishing. She's well aware of the facts, but some people seem disappointed she's not actively self-loathing.

OP, good luck to you. By all means give feedback on a scaremongering and poorly-written leaflet, remember that once you're informed of risks you have the right to make your own mind up about your birth, and perhaps consider losing weight - if you want to - after your baby is born. Congratulations on your pregnancy.

That's about it in a nutshell wallowaway

Why would anyone be pro-fat?

The leaflet is inaccurate and scaremongering.

Fine to say "there is an increased risk of X", but it's ridiculous to say that these things WILL happen. "Increased risk" may actually mean the risk is fairly small, which is totally different to saying something will definitely happen. There are, of course, many women who don't have raised blood pressure, difficult examinations, problems with drips and so on.

They'd fail their medical examinations if they made claims like that.

Deary deary me. I was just pissed off at being handed this incredibly badly written leaflet (which, ironically, was handed to me by a midwife who was spilling over the edges of her chair and has a picture of an obese doctor on the front).
There's no need to be so bitchy pants.

Was the MW pregnant?

you are right of course. midwives houldn't be alowed to be fat, or smoke, or drink, or be grumpy. cervix uses this as the perfect excuse to retire

i posted about that leaflet in pregnancy when i got it. its total bollocks, i have had 3 kids and never got it before its new. i just looked at it and was like so because i am a bit fat i cant deliver my child vaginally. my midwife looked a bit uncomfortable and said no it will probably be fine but we have to make you aware of the increased risks because of your raised bmi.
it is ridiculous to tell someone who has a bmi of 32 or 34 that they may have to have a c section because of their weight, its sensationalism and actually not very good to tell pregnant woman who could already be feeling vulnerable about a increase in weight during their pregnancys.
i am a bigger woman i always have been, i give birth to bigger babies. i am not a cookie cutter, nhs, bmi, fit in to the box ticking system, just like lots of other people.

actually OP are you pissed off because it is badly written? or that you were given it at all?

Case in point OP. The midwife was fat - What of it?

Should fat people not be midwives? What are you actually saying?

Don't really see the point of pointing out the risks once someone is pregnant. it's not like there's a lot they can do about it - the baby is coming anyway. An overweight person isn't going to become unoverweight in pregancy, so it does just seem to be about causing unnecessary worry. If a doctor thinks the patient in front of her/him might need a c-section then she/he can discuss that with their patient. Not some ridiculous leaflet trying to be a catch-all for every overweight patient that walks through the door.

Mind you your thread did give the anti-fat brigade a platform, which must be nice for them. Indeed it did. I'm fairly new to mumsnet and have just had my eyes opened big time! Cheers for that! It's also laughable how many people have totally missed my point. I'm not shocked at the information they're giving, like I've said before, I know it's important and I like to be well informed. I'm shocked and disgusted, firstly that they would allow this leaflet to be distributed when it's so badly written and the info is wrong. And secondly that I was told I can't have a home birth and won't deliver naturally. It's a load of bollocks. I'm not bothered about it being 'nice', I'm bothered about it being right. A lot of people will take that as it's written and be scared shitless. Which, I think, is irresponsible.

mummylovesnancy,

The information in that leaflet needs amending. Could you please tell me which Trust/service provider wrote the leaflet? Someone from this forum has probably already tipped whoever needs to make the amendment already, but I would like provide the Trust with feedback as well. As others have already remarked, if what you say is true, the wording is sloppy and incorrect and it needs amending.

Please write me a PM if you prefer.

it is also the hole gestational diabetes thing and high blood pressure thing. i was are not all pregnant woman at risk from this.... mw yes but as a woman with a high bmi you have a higher risk. ok, so why not just a leaflet with the risks and a subsection with the higher risks with bmi not omg you are going to need so much help if you are fat!!! which is to be fair just not true.

I'm saying it's ironic that a fat person was telling me not to be fat.

whole