Only posting here for hopefully some replies

[thunderonlyhappenswhenits]

Sorry !! Just hoping for some experience off moms who may have already been through something simliar.

Basically im 31+3 pregnant with baby number 2. Been having growth scans since 27 weeks due to a blood clotting condition. It was discovered baby is big and by 29 week scan already weighed 3.8lbs, I was booked in for a gtt anyway due to having pcos and therefore being high risk for gestational diabetes. Turns out I do have it and for the last two weeks I've really changed my diet the best I can, still eating enough but just cut out the crap ! My blood sugars have been really good.
Fast forward to today and had another growth scan estimated weight is now 4.5lbs, but baby has dropped from the 90th percentile to 80th and the doctor has said although she isn't concerned because the baby is still big they now want to do weekly scans to monitor growth.

Is weekly scans even a thing ?? I thought they needed a few weeks inbetween them?

Also I questioned if the reduced growth could be down to me changing my diet and was told no, it wouldn't affect baby's weight in two weeks. So now I'm really confused as to how I've gone from being told what a whopper she is to now being concerned about reduced growth.

Sorry forgot to mention what's worrying me, what could have caused this drop if it isn't the diet change ?
I do have the blood clotting disorder which can be a cause of reduced growth but I've been on blood thinners all of my pregnancy. They have also said blood flow through cord is normal and so placenta is functioning properly. So what could it be ?

That sounds stressful. I've known 3 women who have had to have weekly scans due to their babies measuring small (I don't know anything about weighing the baby...I didn't even know they could do that) and they were all fine in the end. I think it's really difficult to accurately measure so it seems like it's easy for them to be over cautious.

I'd try not to worry too much. The growth scans can be notoriously unpredictable.

Both times I was on regular growth scans and told I was having tiny babies.

The first was 6lb 8oz and the second was 8lb 3oz.

My daughter was measuring quite small around the 37 week mark, and even then I only had growth scans every couple of weeks, until finally by 39+4 they decided to induce me as she still hadnt grown. The fact that they’re doing it weekly makes me think they’re more concerned than they’re letting on? It’s kind of strange that they’re saying it’s nothing to do with diet when that seems to be the only thing that’s changed. One thing I will say (and this is totally just an opinion) is that they really don’t seem to inform you of all the details as much as they should. This is something I realised throughout my pregnancy. It seemed they wanted me in and out and didn’t really give me much info unless I asked, and when I did the answers were quite vague and I was looked at funny. Being a young first time mom it was very daunting. Do you have an assigned midwife? I’d say ask her about it if you feel that when you go to scans you’re not getting straight information or you end up leaving confused. I have found that they’re jam packed when it comes to scans so that may have something to with it. Your midwife may be able to take more time making sure you fully understand what’s going on. Sorry if this was crap lol, I just wanted to answer as I saw no one else had said anything yet. Best of luck with your pregnancy! I guarantee it will all be fine❤️

Thank you everyone.

Yeah I have been looked at funny too when I've mentioned things/asked questions in the past! I do have an assigned midwife but my midwife is one trust and hospital another so they don't share any information which is annoying ! I will mention it though when I next see her as it's really confused me.

I don't get how it can change so fast in two weeks from wow big baby to she's still big but dropping down so now we want to see you every week! The thing is when I was diagnosed with the diabetes they said we need to slow her growth down lol well surely that's what's happened then isn't it ?!

Aw that sounds stressful. I didn't have any of your problems (though I'm half-convinced I had gestational diabetes), but every time they measured my fundal length it alternated between too small and too big, and kept sending me for additional scans. The baby was on the big side when he was born, and after taking a while to regain his birth weight there has not been any issues with his growth. He's a happy and very healthy boy.

Good luck!

I had weekly scans towards the end of my pregnancy because baby was measuring small. By week 39 though he had caught up and while be was 6 pounds 11 when born at 39 weeks. He was no where near as tiny as they feared. My consultant said that babies in the womb all grow at different stages. Some grow but by bit and some grow in big spurts but that they had to monitor progress just incase. My son is now an absolute chonk at 9 months while my friends baby who was born a day later at 9 pounds , is now a dinky little thing.

I don't thinks these growth scans are at all accurate, I was concerned at second baby being big, told at scan no he's be a 7lb and was in fact 9lb.

But don't rely on a forum chat, call whoever spoke to you and get some proper reassurance. Good luck going forward. 😊

Thank you ladies !

The doctor called me, I questioned if my diet change could be the cause of the baby's drop on the chart and she said no she doesn't think so as it's only been two weeks since diagnosis and diet change and she doesn't think it would affect babies weight yet. So 🤷🏼‍♀️
She said im now going to have weekly scans, Doppler one week and growth the next. So im glad they are keeping an eye anyway even if I haven't really had any answers !

I had GD and up to 30 weeks was told I was going to have a huge baby - like 10lb... It suddenly changed and at 36 weeks 5lb 11 ish. I was on 2 weekly scans from 24 weeks. The doppler one is a blood flow to make sure baby is getting enough oxygen. I had this inbetween one of the 2 week scans.

I was told weekly is pointless as it isn't really accurate before 2 weeks -but I guess every hospital is different.

I gave birth at 38 weeks and he was 5.11 and absolutely perfect. He is now 8 weeks and nearly 11 pounds.

Try not to stress - they aren't the most accurate and as long as baby is growing thats the main thing- just think you get to see your baby each week on the scans :)

Oh I also never got an answer on why it changed but I'm convinced it was my change in diet - I didn't handle GD well and didn't eat as much as I should have for sure out of fear of my blood sugar spiking

@Nat888 oh thank you for replying, it's quite specific what I'm asking about with the growth chart changes so glad you have experienced similiar and know what I'm on about !

Yes this is what they plan to do with me I think, one week Doppler, one week growth.
I just didn't get how they could go from saying oh she's a whopper and we need to slow her growth, to her growth slowing and then making me worry... I thought this was what they wanted to happen you know ?

I've really struggled with the diet change but by no means have I not eaten enough because im bloody starving all the time lol. I totally get the worry of sugar spikes though... my fasting levels are always really good and I think that's the main one isn't it ? If they were consistently high I'd need medication I think but so far they're well within target

I have found that dr's are great at causing stress while not answering anything properly and just leaving you in the dark.

First of all in reality either of these scan results might be off - maybe baby was never that big or maybe theor growth hasnt dropped as much as it seems right now.

Secondly, I believe it's the change of 10% in growth that has triggered the two weekly growth scans and doppler scan every other week inbetween. It's fairly common regime they follow when there's a change in growth pattern (this happened to me).

I have no knowledge of GD, but I've tested negative to it and my baby is also measuring big. So also always handy to keep in mind that some babies/humans just are a wee bit bigger/smaller than others.

While it is always worrying and concerning to hear anything outwith the 'norm' especially in pregnancy then please do take solace in the fact that you are being closely monitored and if anything should flag up as different they will hopefully spot it early enough.
Do always ask the questions though, consultants especially tend to forget that we don't know as much as they do, which is why I think they come across as dismissive at times giving conflicting advice. Xx

Ywah same with me - I was so confused when it changed so much. They may suggest induction at 37 38 weeks like they did with me. Don't stress too much about it though - just keep doing what you're doing. It's really good that your fasting sugars are always good. That's the main one that is really bad to be high.

I went on to metformin once a day at 32 weeks as mine started to creep up.. diabetes team said sometimes it just does even if you havent changed your diet so just make sure you keep an eye on them.
It's really good if you can manage on diet change alone