38 wks but measuring 40. MW thinks it unlikely I'll be "allowed" to go over due date. Advice?

[greengecko]

Until now I've measured bang on for my dates at each ante-natal appointment. A scan at 34 weeks showed that growth was completely normal. Height of fundus was 37cm when I went to day assessment unit at 37 weeks. Despite all this, MW has asked at almost every appointment for the last two months whether I or my partner were big babies (no - both average birthweight, although both now taller than average (I am 5'10'', with relatively slim / athletic build)), whether there is any family history of diabetes (no, and I've had no sugar in my urine at any stage of the pregnancy), and has generally given the impression (without any real basis) that she thinks this is likely to be a big baby. She measured my fundus at 40cm at my 38 week appointment and mentioned that I was unlikely to be "allowed" to go over my due date (without offering any further explanation). She's booked me in to see a consultant next week. I want to go to this appointment armed with as much information as possible. Very grateful for advice from anyone who's had a similar experience. Will this inevitably end in induction / C-section before due date (keen to avoid if at all possible)?

Honestly? I think she's talking rubbish.

All the way through with my 3rd baby, my mw kept banging on about the HUGE baby I was having, she told me to have an epidural asap in labour as I'd apparently never be able to birth such a big baby and then I'd be ready for a section blah blah blah. Baby weighed a mere 7lbs 14oz and came out incredibly easily. I measured 2cm bigger than dates during all my pregnancies as well.......when I had a moan at her postnatally, she just said "that's a big baby for someone your size" - I am 5ft 1 and had already birthed an 8lb7oz baby easily

Really, I wouldn't worry about it!

You have the right to listen to their advice, take your time to mull it over, and refuse to be induced/C-section. I imagine that if they had compelling evidence that your baby's life was in danger (please understand, I am thinking about a very extreme circumstance) they could have some legal recourse, but really, you have the right for this birth to be the way it suits YOU and your baby, not them. I was bulldozed into being induced first time round and went into second birth much more clued up about what my rights were and understanding that hospitals have their own agenda of what suits them. Good luck and I hope you are able to stick to your guns.

Thanks - that's really reassuring. I don't have complete confidence in my MW, but this has all had me a bit worried, as I assumed that as an experienced medical professional she knew what she's talking about . Will be good to get a second opinion from a consultant and go from there. If there's a serious risk to me or the baby then I see that it could make sense to be induced / have a C-Section. But I'm just not convinced that's the case at the moment.

She may not even have measured you in the same place or the baby moved so you maybe measuring bigger.

Like dotty i am only 5ft 1, I measured big for my 3rd baby and was told by the mw i was having a 'big' baby and when i asked how big was told she thought about 8lbs, I was thinking 10lb+ as was 40 + 9 when she said this.

I just laughed and said that not big. I won't worry as i had 2 babies at 9lb 4 and 9lb 2 with just gas and air. One was a week early and one was a week late.

BTW she was right he was 8lb born at 40+11 induced with just gas & air. He was the only i had a tiny tear.

I measured bigger than my dates and was very worried when told this as I thought I would have to have a CS and wasn't happy about the idea. MW thought DD would be about 10lb. She was in fact 8lb 1.

If there is a problem, it's good you've got an appointment already. Try not to panic, there's lots of responses here that show that measuring bigger isn't always anything significant.

Some consultants are sticklers for managed labours; they don't really seem to understand the advantages (like less chance of instrument delivery) of natural, non-intervention birth. So don't assume that whatever your consultant advises will be "right" for you, but make it very clear what your preferred outcome is. With your height, it is possible that your baby is big, but women have big babies naturally all the time! So even if they scan and confirm its big, then so what?
My baby was big on 28 weeks scan, and despite me having big babies in the past, they are for some reason convinced that I have "hidden" GD or some nonsense. I've got to the stage of refusing blood tests because I'm so fed up of it, having been induced for nonsense reasons in the ast I know what to expect from my consultant, and I'm not prepared to be compliant any more.

Then again, the consultant may well be very positive and supportive, so try not to get stressed about the appt in advance.

That sound a bit of an overreaction to me! I measured over all the way through my last pregnancy. Midwife stopped writing in a measurement after 36 weeks she just put a ++ in the box! Nobody said anything about me having a 'big' baby nor did I get any growth scans etc. I was 'allowed' to go to 42wks before I was induced and ds was 10lb6oz.

This time I've been told they will let me go to 42weeks again even if it looks big, midwife said 'well you managed to give birth naturally last time so you know you can birth a big baby anyway!'

I have found it varies so much from area to area, it seems to be a very anti-intervention approach where I am, which I think is a good thing Although I won't be impressed if this one turns out to be 13lb...ouch!!

Two weeks ahead is not uncommon at all....fundal height is one of the least realiable means of guesstimating size. Some midwives don't even take fundal height measurements.

It is rare a woman will grow a baby too large for her to give birth to. When women have difficulty with a good sized baby it is more often due to baby's position, mother's positions, her being in bed most of the time during labour, choice of some interventions, and not being able to utilise optimum positions during second stage.

Unless unusually large...and they would have known this much earlier on and have been keeping watch....a suspected good sized baby does not medically warrant an induction or c-section.