If you've been pregnant twice..

[thechunkypixie]

And we're say a healthy weight when pregnant 1st time, but over weight (4ft heavier) the second time, can I ask how it affected your experience. Where you treated better 2nd time around by medical staff/midwives? Was your birth different?

I was overweight with DS1 and 3st heavier with DS2 so obese. I wasn't treated any differently nor was my weight mentioned. I didn't put on much weight with DS2 because DS1 wouldn't let me sit down for more than five minutes .

My obese pregnancy, 16 days overdue ds2 was 3lbs lighter than overweight pregnancy, 2 days overdue ds1!!
But yes, generally heavier women have heavier babies.

I was also medically 'obese' with no2, although not that huge I like to think. Anyhow, the only difference was they made me go for a fasting blood test in case of gestational diabetes. The test was a fine and I didn't get GD. Whereas my petit normal BMI friend did get GD in her second pregnancy. (But all was fine anyway)

Congratulations!

I put on a tonne of weight breastfeeding after ds1 (was still breastfeeding when ds2 conceived), but then lost shitloads breastfeeding ds2. Got down to normal bmi, only for my health to get worse and my weight sneak back up again.

I've had 4 pregnancies, each time I put on a different amount of weight, was a different weight at term and had a different birth.

I put on the most weight with DC1 who was my smallest baby and the least amount of weight with DC2 - my heaviest baby. DC3 was a surprise and I was really worried that I had not lost any baby weight from having DC2, I ate sensibly (never went hungry, certainly didn't diet) and didn't put that much weight on.

Birth 2 and 4 were the easiest. In terms of care the MW's were lovely and concerned about my/the babies health.

First in hospital age 38 at just over 9 stone

Second at home age 40 at 11 stone

Neither mentioned my weight. For my height I was just under healthy BMI with the first and over with the second.

Being heavier second time round didn't affect the labour or birth for me, but it certainly affected the oregnancy in so far as carrying extra weight made me more exhausted and sometimes out of breath.

I might be wrong, but I think there's potential complicatons if you're very overweight and have a section.

I was a lot heavier when I had DC2. I was probably a size 18 at start of pregnancy (can't remember BMI although I'm betting it was similar to OPs) and a size 2 million at the end of it - I just absolutley ballooned even though I was eating fairly healthily. It all came off fairly quickly after the birth although my stomach muscles have never recovered.

No, made no difference at all to labout. I had a natural waterbirth in a MWLU - amazing experience. Baby was 9lb but long and skinny. I had not so much as a stitch. DC1 was 8lb 12 so only a tiny difference.

The pregnancy itself was fine - my usual low blood pressure, no Gestational diabetes or other indicators, just a normal, happy pregnancy. I never saw a consultant once.

So in answer, no, I didn't notice any difference in birth/labour but I did gain a whole lot of weight during pregnancy which probably put me at higher risk of certain things, but none of those things actually happened.

Thank you so much for your responses, really interesting to hear the varied experiences.

Mintyy, I apologise I thought I'd posted in chat.

I think my friend was just going by her own experience, so I hope I get a nicer reception from my new midwife lol

I've had 3 babies at radically different weights from underweight to the obese category. It's made no difference to the pregnancy, labour or delivery. I've declined to be weighed in all my pregnancies but it's obvious to look at me, I'm sure, whether I fall into a high risk category or not but every midwife I've met has been lovely and it's never been an issue. My second and third babies were born at home and although I don't weigh myself, I'm sure my bmi would have been over 35 in the third pregnancy.

I was only about a stone heavier, definitely overweight according tot he charts but probably not worryingly so. The midwives never commented on my weight and the second birth was a lot quicker and easier. Both pregnancies were quite easy - I was probably a bit more tired the second time but always suspected that was more to do with 1-year-old DS1 than unborn DS2.