Anyone else on course to have a big baby?

[Dalesgirl16]

I'm 32 weeks and my baby boy is predicted to now be over 10 pounds in weight, head and abdomen off the scale. My toddler girl was 8 pounds. I can't believe he is going to be this big. Today he apparently weighs 5 pounds 8 ounces and has had a growth spurt since four weeks ago when he weighed 3 pounds 3 ounces. Are these scans really accurate?! I'm shattered and getting hungrier but trying to control my weight gain as, although I have gained (only?) 17 pounds in this pregnancy I was overweight to start with.

I’m not sure they are accurate... I was predicted a 10lber - at 33 weeks on scan he was apparently 6lbs. At week 39 they suddenly said he wasn’t huge and estimated him to be 8lbs then 5 days later when he was born he was 9lbs 2.... essentially they kept changing their minds!

Growth scans are notoriously inaccurate and can be off by 2lbs.
Eating a lot will make you gain a lot but not necessarily the baby unless you have Gestational Diabetes. It's not really something you can control, some people just have bigger babies! Are they concerned at all?

I asked about inaccuracy after reading about it online but she said they could waver by 500grams? I was given gtt test after last scan showed big baby and it's negative. Today they just said the consultant will speak to me again about it next week. I recently had an appointment to discuss VBAC as my last pregnancy ended in emergency caesarean and we ended up booking an elective caesarean as, for many reasons, they say I'm unlikely to not end up having emergency caesarean anyway. I'm just hoping that somehow I will go into an amazingly fast natural labour, the baby ring be so big and I will not have caesarean as the recovery is so long, especially as this time I will have no help once my husband goes back to work and I have a loud toddler.

If it’s any comfort, my 10.5 pounder was a much easier birth than his (slightly) smaller brother.

He was estimated at 6lb at 33 week scan and I was comedy pregnant. He was off the top of the length chart at birth and didn’t drop any of his birth weight in the first 5/10 days. He’s now 3 and a force of bloody nature.

When I had my first, they said he was weighing 6lb at 31 weeks. My waters broke at 38 weeks and he was 9lb 6oz, so he put on half a pound a week between that 31 week scan and when he was born. If I went to 40 weeks he would have been 10 and a half pound. They estimate was right in my situation but the most important thing is a healthy baby so don't worry about the Labour, it will all be over and done with and you'll have your strong healthy baby x

Meant to say I'm expecting number two now and this one is measuring ahead now, if be delighted if he came early again and I didn't have to go through the last week's of pregnancy

Wow ok! Big measurements around my stage of pregnancy. Yes, me too I would like to give birth a little early as I was late last time and every day was just exhausting!

My baby was due to be large, off the scale throughout from 36 weeks. Induced at 40 weeks, he turned out to be 8lb. They're notoriously inaccurate I've heard

I had scans every 2 weeks done by different people (NHS and private). They were all very consistent with each other and on track for 10lb. He was 10lb10oz and very long with a giant head as we’d expected.

I've been having growth scans every 3 weeks because of previous shoulder dystocia with my last big baby, my baby is measuring 9lb 1oz now at 37 weeks, I asked the doctor after my scan if they were accurate and she said the weight can't be guaranteed but the amount and rate the baby is growing is pretty accurate. I've had a sweep and I'm booked in to be induced this weekend x

My DD was measuring big all the way through - no GD (though they made me have three tests ). At 41+2 she still hadn't even dropped. Went in to be induced but they basically said "she's not going to fit" so I had a c-section. It went about as badly as a c-section can go without anyone dying but was still a totally fine experience. She was 10lb 13oz and stuck in my pelvis! She's now 1 - 98th centile for height and head size but after dropping quite a lot in the early weeks she's remained pretty consistently at 70th for weight.

No one at any point said I was going to have a big baby (except a comment by the midwife auxiliary when I got shown to my bed just before I delivered 😂). She was an easy birth, much easier than my firstborn. She was 10lb 3, DC1 was 8lb3

They certainly didn't predict my LO would be 11lb 1oz...

I've been told I'm on track for a 10 pounder; keeping everything crossed that they're inaccurate!

My first was 10lb 2. This one is expected to be the same or more. I’m currently at 25 weeks and have an extra scan at 36. They predicted my first to be 8lbs so I don’t trust their measurements on bump alone at all!

Had I know she was supposed to be big I might have panicked but I was blissfully unaware and had a really good labour with minor tearing only. That makes me less worried about this time. I probably had the ‘nicest’ birth experience of my NCT group and the largest baby of the rest was 8lbs.....

Big doesn’t mean bad :)

Even if it is a big baby, I'd give birth to my 11lb 7ozer over and over again compared to his smaller siblings! Easiest labour by far.

I was measuring way ahead at your stage of pregnancy but it slowed down a bit towards the end so was only a little over average. My almost 10lb daughter was a much easier and faster delivery than her 6lb 7oz brother! No trauma to me either, it can be done!

I had a couple of growth scans with my first because of fertility treatment. They predicted he'd be about 8-9lb, I can't remember exactly. He ended up going 2 weeks overdue and being 10lb on the dot! His birth was actually fine, I had a 2nd degree tear but no scary complications or anything. I don't think that bigger babies necessarily hurt more than smaller ones during the contraction stage, though the pushing bit and the risk of shoulder dystocia is worth thinking about. Can you get another scan closer to term so they might have a better idea of his final size?

Currently 23 weeks with number 2 and booked for more growth scans. They've said if this one looks like >10lb at 38 weeks they'll offer me an ELCS, or otherwise induce me closer to term than I was last time.

We were sent for growth scans twice after my bump measurements were on the small side. Somehow, the scans actually showed we had a porker (estimated just under 10lbs at birth).

Midwives delivering laughed when I told them (in labour induced hysteria) and said no way was my belly big enough. They were right - she was 7lbs 10oz.

Dalesgirl16 my dc1 was 9lb (girl) and at 33 weeks I was told given scan, plus weight of first child, fact child 2 was male he was likely to be over 5kg/ 11lb which is the point at which, given dc1 was an emergency section, a planned section was strongly recommend.

Dc2 was 8lb 6.

So 3.5lb under the prediction even given he was born at 38 weeks - he'd probably have been about 9lb 6 max at 40 weeks.

I was told my first was going to be huge. Had growth scans, last one at 36 weeks where she was predicted to be 9lbs.

She was 2 weeks overdue, born 42 weeks and 7lb 5oz! I've always taken
their accuracy with a punch of salt

They just measured me 3 weeks ahead at my 25 week appointment and said they’ll have to remeasure & see if I need a scan at my 28 week, though I’m hoping it’s just because the tape measure over the belly technique is inaccurate! I’m also tall and so is my partner so presumably the baby is going to be on the long side...

Hi OP
My first was 10lbs and my second was nearly 13lbs.
Both were predicted to be average at growth scans so they were not very accurate for me!

I have noticed an increase in baby weights in the last few years. Lots of friends have had big babies including one who was 4 weeks premature and weighed nearly 9lbs!

There's a 10 year difference between my two DC and I compared their red books once. With DC 1 born in 2006 he was on the 99th centile at 10lbs.
In DC2's (born 2016) red book if you're born at 10lbs you're on the 91st.

Thanks for all your replies! I really am hoping for a vbac even though the dr and midwives think I'll end up in emergency caesarean anyway. I asked about accuracy of scan but they didn't say they are that inaccurate!

My scans correctly predicted a big baby who arrived at 8lb 12 at 39 weeks. The consultant recommended I use the hospital MLU rather than freestanding or honebirth which was a good decision as he did get a little stuck. But it was a good, quick labour.