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.

7lb 12 oz, v healthy (apgars of 9 at 1 then 10 at 5). Due on 4th born on 11th. Labour took about 38 hours from crampy-twinges...turned out he was back to back and had flexed his neck...useless but incredibly painful, irregular contractions meant I needed syntocinon, then epidural, then someone spotted meconium, cue half an hour of totally numb pushing followed by episiotomy and forceps, reasonably mild post-partum haemmorage and anaemia for me.....no probs for ds at all!
Didn't diet in any way during pregnancy.

DD 1 was born on 18th Sept... 12 days after she was due. Was 6lbs 11ozs. Labour started at 2pm on 17th... went into hospital at midnight and had her at 5:31am on 18th. So labour in hospital when it was 'painful' was onmly 5 and 1/2 hours!!! Cord was round her neck and were about to decide upon a C-section when out she flew!
Only tore slightly and was not stitched. Plus had an epidural (although did not work) So much for them slowing the birth down...!
Personally I have heard v.tiny babies do not help themselves, but then big babies are too big!

Ds1 - 8lb 15oz - about 2.5 hours
Ds2 - 9lb 9oz - 1 hour 45 mins
Ds3 - 9lb 2oz - 1 hour
Times are from first contraction to delivery each time, tore with ds1. All very healthy afterwards.

So I would say that in my case big meant an easy labour!

dd - 25 hour labour - 6lbs 10oz
ds - 7 hour labour - 7lbs 8oz

heavier = easier for me

dd1 - 9lb 7 oz, easy labour, no tear, took 8 hours
dd2 9lb 4 oz, very easy labour, 1.5 hours, no tear
ds 10lbs easy labour, no tear, 3.5 hours
obviously I just pop 'em out!

ps - my midwives have always said that bigger babies make for an easier labour - they're more rounded and cause less tears.

DD - 9lbs 3oz - 10 hour labour - no pain relief or intervention

DS - 8lbs 13 oz - 3 hour labour - no pain relief & 1 push !!

Don't want to chance my luck so stopping there thanks !!(That's my excuse anyway !)

DS - 6lb 1oz. 7 hours from 1st painful contractions until he was born. Used TENS machine, gas and air and had dia-morphine. Worries over his low heartbeat during labour led to a forceps delivery, a second degree tear and a pph afterwards. I was sewn up in theatre after having an epidural.

He was fine - spent first two hours of his life being cuddled by DH while I was being stopped from bleeding.

DD - 7lb 11oz. 6.5 hours from 1st painful contractions until she was born. Used same pain relief as for DS (really shouldn't have had the diamorphine again - really slowed things down )

No worries with the labour. She needed a little oxygen after she was born but was back with me within a minute. I only slightly tore and had no stitches.

Had friends around when she was 38 weeks pregnant. She hardly ate anything because she was so worried about having a big baby and they wanted a natural birth. He didn't bat an eyelid because "she never ate much". Dh and I were (privately) horrified. She she seemed really muted and exhausted looking - much more so than I was at that stage and I was quite ill for the last few months of my pg. Would therefore not commend eating less while pg. I feel that if you fancy/crave something in particular to eat or are just plain hungry it is your body tellung you something.
Anyway - I barely moved for 4 months and was well fed by dh and ds was 8 pounds 4. Admit to being worried, though, because all the docs kept commenting on him being a big baby (I was a 10 pounder). Whole thing 4 hours, no pain relief.

Friend's dd was 6 pounds 13 btw, 63 hours, epidural, episiotomy, forceps, then ventouse. She was in hosp for 8 days recovering. Baby then fed constantly for the next month further wearing her down and is now bottle-fed and friend finally getting over the birth. Her dh is shocked by how hard it has been for her.

so what is an offically big baby? im never sure what the rules on this are.
i was told mine were huge for dates and would have been monsters!

DD, 6lb 2oz - 21 hours

DS, 9lb 6oz - 2 hours (Just made the hospital)

I know which one I'd choose to do again!

dd - 8 lbs 1 oz, horrific labour
ds - 8 lbs and 7 oz, piss easy labour

dd- 4lb 1 oz-emergency c section, knocked out
ds1 6lb 8 oz-screamed the effing place down, his head was so big
ds2 7lb 14oz- c section due to placenta previa

Jamsam - I don't know - friend said she had a 'history of big babies' and he was 7lb something two weeks early - doesn't sound that big to me!

dd1 22 hour back to back labour - 8lb 2oz
dd2 4 hour labour - 7lb 3oz

ds was 9lb 12 oz

Waters broke at 6am, contractions from 8am, went to hospital at 3pm when contractions were 3 min apart.
Ds was born at 7.29pm by emergency cs, he was undiagnosed breech, I had preaclampsia.

8lb 5 waters broke but he didn't emerge so had to be induced. More due to position than size though.

dd1 was 7lb 3oz nightmare of labour
dd2 8lb 7oz brill labour if all like that would have 10 kids

14 hours of induced labour (meconium in waters) with 4 hours of pushing. Used tens, entonox and epidural as it was excruciating labouring on my back in one of those bloody uncomfortable labour beds strapped to machines. Epidural was late, only worked on one side but was bliss. Ds born 91b, 3oz with ventouse assisted birth (head needed to be turned). Greedy thing drank my amniotic fluid. Amazingly, ten on apgar score which made up for all the stress leading upto the birth.

ds1-7lb 3oz 25 mins labour
dd1-6lb 12oz 47 1/2 hours labour
dd2-7lb 12oz 5 hours 6 mins labour
ds2-6lb 8oz 6 hours labour resulted in csection
dd3-6lb 4oz 22 hours in labour!(also was induced with her)
ive never had any stitches whatsoever,and the only complication ive ever had was with ds2 when had to have c-section as the placenta came away and i lost too much blood

DS was 8lb 9oz. He was 5 days late, my waters broke and I was in labour for 24 painful hours (they didn't tell me but I think he was back to back, it felt like someone was slowly cracking my spine open). I used gas & air and diamorphine. They had me pushing for 2 and a half hours, still couldn't get him out so I had to have a episiotomy, then they used ventouse (not much though as he was just about out).

He was rediculously healthy and still is. Breastfed for 8 months (although he didn't take to it very well at all). He hardly ever gets ill, the odd cold here and there, bit of sickness over winter nothing major.

I ate whatever I wanted during pregnancy, pigged out sometimes (we had a lot of takeaways ). Craved sharp sour flavoured food (mainly fruit stuff). Put on 3 stone which I have only just now lost. I miss being pregnant.