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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think a 9lb'er is not really that big??

144 replies

teaaddict2012 · 24/05/2012 14:34

I was 9lbs when I was born and my DS was 9lbs 3 , I know it is big but I thought anything below 10lbs is okay really.

apparently not , I was told I need a special consultant as I had a 'big baby before' I was a bit Shock Hmm I can understand 10/11/12lb being a bit concerning but 9lb!
AIBU to think this is slightly overboard.

OP posts:
5madthings · 24/05/2012 17:56

am sure its not all consultants but some are soo annoying and patronising! when ds1 was born i noticed he had a birth mark on his head (my sister has one the same but on her leg) anyway the consultant INSISTED that it was a mark from a fetal scalp moniter that i had had during labour... only i hadnt had one!! i said no its a birth mark the same as my sisters one. but he was quite insistent it was a mark from a scalp moniter and i said NO i didnt have one of those in labour, he said i woudnt have known! i am pretty sure i WOULD have known as to attach it they would have had to put it onto the babies head whilst in utero, by putting a hand up my fanjo!! but oh no i didnt know apparently. in the end he read my notes, and then conceded i was 'probably right' Hmm

5madthings · 24/05/2012 17:59

mckayz glad your consultants are being supportive, many are not at all, esp once they think 'big baby' it seems to be pot luck! i bet people assume you had a c section when you say how big your ds2 was? everyone assumed i must have had a section when i said how big ds4 was and then when i say umm no, natural birth in the pool, they are Shock

TroublesomeEx · 24/05/2012 18:00

Mine were 6lb 3oz and 3lb 9oz.

All this talk of 10lb babies is making me wince! Blush

McKayz · 24/05/2012 18:07

5mad Yeah everyone thinks I had a c section. We had no idea DS2 would be big. I never measured big with him or anything. I had a presentation scan just before he was born but they didn't do measurements and just made sure he was head down.

I had a consultant with the boys as XH has a disabilty. He really really didn't want me to have a homebirth with DS2. I wouldn't handle the pain, what if I needed a CS etc etc. But this time I didn't have to see him until I was measuring big and he doesn't care this time round, despite knowing baby might be big. Very strange.

EdlessAllenPoe · 24/05/2012 18:09

[[http://publications.nice.org.uk/induction-of-labour-cg70/guidance#induction-of-labour-in-specific-circumstances 1.2.10 Suspected fetal macrosomia
1.2.10.1 In the absence of any other indications, induction of labour should not be carried out simply because a healthcare professional suspects a baby is large for gestational age (macrosomic).]]

Induction not recommended.

though that doesn't mean the whole NHS has to actually act on this evidenced based advice...

diddl · 24/05/2012 18:11

Sounds huge to me!

Mine were 1.1kgs & 2.3kgs!

5madthings · 24/05/2012 18:11

we werent expecting ds4 to be that big, i did think 9lb+ but not almost 11lb! was a bit of a shock when they weighed him :) i always measure small in pregnancy and they were worried i would have small babies...

its totally pot luck with consultants it seems!

and re big babies and wincing, everyone does that but i actually dont think it makes that much difference, its head size that counts and even small babies still have largish heads, babies are all born with big heads, ds4 did have a HUGE head tho, off the top of the chart, thankgod i had him in a pool as i am sure that is how i 'stretched' and didnt need any stitches! not because i have a bucket fanny as everyone seems to assume!

5madthings · 24/05/2012 18:12

thanks edlessallen i thought that was the recomendation, but they dont seem to adhere to that!

EdlessAllenPoe · 24/05/2012 18:16

op you can decline the appointment if you wish.

HCPs may not interfere with pregnancy for fun, but sometimes out of a box checking mentality, or out of outdated practice....or of applying statistics crudely without taking into account individual factors.

a friend who is 6'2 was told her baby was 'huge' (it was 10lbs, but fine for her), she was told she was 'obese' (the height/weight chart went to 5'8) though still wearing size 10 maternity wear...and her first two labours were induced, though a large baby usually takes longer to appear (so no allowance for a different pattern of labour).

i would hazard that HCPs are more likely to interfere in births of babies they suspect are large, so you could be looking at a iatrogenic effect.

McKayz · 24/05/2012 18:17

My MW said today that if baby does measure really big tomorrow then they wouldn't induce but they would ask me to go to the MLU or hospital to give birth. But that I don't have to agree if I don't want too.

happy2bhomely · 24/05/2012 18:27

ohchrist I didn't mean to downplay the 'uncomfortable' bit. I suffered with spd with dc 3 and 4, and felt like my pelvis was going to split 4 ways. I appreciate that pregnancy 'discomfort' can go much further than a bit of backache and heartburnSmile I was lucky that I have a long torso, so I always had room to breathe!

I used to smirk Blush(inside) when I saw pregnant women waddling (making a fuss) while I was running for the bus at 40 weeks with dc2. That was until I found myself unable to get out of bed/off the sofa/up a step without assistance and gasping with the pain. I'd rather give birth than endure that again! karma got me good.

PaulaMummyKnowsBest · 24/05/2012 18:27

I am only 5'4 and until recently weighed in at 8 stone (so quite petite)

My dd was born on her due date and weighed 8lb 15oz
DS1 was 2 weeks early and an impressive 9lb 13oz
thankfully DS2 was smaller at 9lb 4oz (3 days early)

In my experience therefore, 9 pounds is "normal". At no point was my midwife concerned with the size of my babies. All born very quickly (DD 6 hours, DS1 4 hours and DS2 2 hours) with only gas and air

LeBFG · 24/05/2012 18:47

I remember seeing a graph at uni comparing birth weight distributions from today with 100 year ago or something like that. There is a clear flattening of the curve i.e. more heavier and lighter babies born today...not surprising given antenatal and neonatal care has drastically improved survival. I can't find a suitable graph to link to, but wiki has something here so a 4 kilo baby at any gestional age is heavier than 90pc of all babies! So quite heavy I reckon.

In France, they routinely do the GTT thing - yuk! The MW said the blood test wasn't conclusive (so why did I have the blood test THEN the GTT?? I hate needles too!). The biggest surviving baby born weighed 22 lb 8 oz (i want a degree in wiki) in 1955!!! Wow!

Flisspaps · 24/05/2012 18:55

McKayz there's nothing they can do at an MLU that they can't do at home anyway!

DS was intended to be a homebirth, he was predicted to be 'big' - 9.7 - 10.7. I had 1 growth scan and declined any others (using a line I got from a other MNer 'more scans wont make it smaller!') I was 'high risk' anyway before this. I continued with my plan until I'd been pushing in the pool for hours with no sign of DS. We transferred in, the MW who'd been with me mentioned she thought DS might be transverse Hmm (but she'd said nothing to us), he wasn't but he was oddly positioned as 8.2 DD was, and he was delivered in theatre with forceps.

If I could go back I'd do the same thing again.

If you want a homebirth with a big baby then I'd say continue with your plan. You seem sensible and willing to transfer if necessary, a smaller baby isn't a guarantee of an easier birth and a bigger baby isn't a guarantee of problems arising.

Xmasbaby11 · 24/05/2012 18:57

It's quite big. DD was 9 15 and people still talk about it!

McKayz · 24/05/2012 19:05

Fliss the MLU is right next to the hospital maternity ward. I am going to have a homebirth though. I want to use my pool and my DH works abroad so it is much easier for childcare to have the baby at home.

I keep thinking I am going to end up with this tiny 7lber with no clothes that fit!! Grin

CalamityKate · 24/05/2012 19:31

"Big end of average" yeah that's what I think too.

rainbowsprite1 · 24/05/2012 20:10

DD1 was 8lb2oz and DD2 was 9lb 4oz and i had far less tearing & hardly any stitching after DD2. it was actually far easier to push her out as well. if i was to have a 3rd (I'm not planning on it!) i would be hoping for another 9lb + baby :)

MamaMaiasaura · 24/05/2012 20:14

Easiest birth was my biggest at 9lb3. In 2 hours I went from 2 cm posterior with length to fully dilated. She was out within minutes. I reckon her size helped that a d good old Newton

WaftyCrank · 24/05/2012 20:24

My DS1 was 9lb 14oz. He damaged my bladder and pelvis, I was incontinent for a month and didn't walk without crutches for 3 weeks. He seemed pretty big to me!
DD was induced at 2 days over (DS was 10 days late) and 8lb 14. I had a GTT with DS2 which was fine and was under consultant care. He was also 8lb 14oz at 11 days over.

Now expecting DC4 and they're leaving me to it this time.

TheBigBangFairy · 24/05/2012 20:31

9 lb is big for a first baby, but not abnormally huge. I'm surprised they're going to monitor your next for that reason alone? Maybe something else is concerning them?

My DC1 was 9lb 2oz. I didn't get any special treatment or monitoring for DC2, even though I actually asked for it because I was nervous she was going to be 10lb at birth. I've a small frame that doesn't squeeze out big babies particularly well.

DC2 turned out to be 10 lb 13oz and birthed in < 2 hours. Fucking ouch. I still recovered quicker from her birth than DC1 though.

ISpyPlumPie · 24/05/2012 21:09

DS was 9lb 2oz - neither DH or I are large but DS was almost 2 weeks late so think that may have accounted for it.

I was v lucky -straightforward vb with no stiches - but was panicking a bit this time round as my little brother was exactly a pound heavier than me and I don't think I'd be quite so unscathed with a 10 lb 2ozer! The mw at my initial appt was reassuring though and said that DB may have been bigger than me because he was a boy, so I could end up with either a similar-sized or smaller baby depening on what flavour we get.

I am only 12 weeks though, so I suppose there's plenty of time for them to change their minds and start worrying. My understanding though was that it is only if you've previously had a baby of 9lb 15oz or more that it is a potential concern, but that might just be in relation to GD.

Deadsouls · 24/05/2012 21:13

9lb doesn't seem big to me!

My DS1 was 10lbs 2 and my DD2 was 9lb 13...when I was pregnant with the first no one seemed to know that my DS would be so huge, but I had to have a EMCS (just as well I spose), and then the doctor said I should let the midwife know if I were to have any more children. I guess they just want to test glucose and maybe anticipate if there may be any problems with birth??

SetFiretotheRain · 24/05/2012 23:18

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Morloth · 25/05/2012 00:33

For me 9lbs wasn't particularly big or difficult, I am of the 'child bearing hips' persuasion though and we are both big tall strongly built people.

DS1 was 8lbs 5 and DS2 was 9lbs 1. DS2 was slightly easier to push out, I assume because DS1 had cleared the 'path'. No stitches for either.

I like a nice big baby especially as a first time mum, I think I wouldn't have been as confident if they had been more delicate. They were both great big chunkers who it felt quite safe to toss about when changing etc.