Plus size pregnancy

[MamaV2020]

Hey all, I'm new here and wanted to see if others are sharing my experiences and fears!
I'm plus size (5ft 5 & size 20) And I'm 7 weeks along today. It's my first pregnancy and of course me & OH are super excited but also a little nervous. I am waiting for my booking appointment to come through and although I am preparing myself for the comments about being bigger (I've read up on all the risks) I'm still pretty nervous. I've always been big but do eat healthily, I'm just not a lover of exercise .

I'm also wondering if anyone else has the same issues as me, in that, every book I read says "eat healthy - plenty of fruit and veg and exercise daily". Well right now I'm so tired all the time, that getting out of bed is a mission, let alone exercise. And I feel so sick constantly that the only foods I'm eating really are bland, dry foods, toast, sandwiches etc. I'm sure it will pass and I have every intention of starting exercise when I have the energy (I've already bought Davina's pregnancy workout DVD!) but right now I'm struggling.
Just looking for a bit of support really and to see if anyone else is feeling the same!

Thanks in advance

Hi op I'm 5ft 4in size 14 to 16 lost 2plb pre pregnancy. Midwives have been great about my weight they are more concerned if your bmi is over 40. It is important to do what you can to minimise weight gain during pregnancy so you don't develop pregnancy diabetes so I've been still following slimming world. Almost 20 weeks and I've gained 7lb so it's helping as I have had an increased appetite. Its hard in your first trimester but do what you can and pregnancy yoga is really good too :)

I'm not sure if I would say I'm plus sized, but not skinny either, BMI a bit higher than it should be. Midwife hasn't said anything other than a little bit of general advice on healthy eating. I was only weighed at my first appointment. At the last one I asked to weigh myself ( I deliberately don't own a scales) and the midwife said fine but she didn't want me to stress myself out about it and was keener I didn't weigh myself! I don't think they want to judge anyone for being overweight or make anyone feel bad or overly anxious about their weight. If they do start talking about your weight a lot, they are probably genuinely worried about your and babies health so I would take any advice/support. In the first trimester I ate toast, crackers and noodles. All I could really manage. Don't beat yourself up if you are struggling to eat healthily at the moment. I think it can be just a case of coping! I've been trying to do more exercise in the 2nd trimester, but is hard as I'm still very tired. My sister had gestational diabetes and ended up eating a very limited diet to control it - but is glad she did and she got help with it. I'd just say try your best, look after yourself and talk to the midwife about any worries. Congrats as well!

I think saying you should exercise daily is a tad ridiculous. Really the level of exercise you should be doing is dependant on what you were doing beforehand. For example, I was a weightlifter pre-pregnancy and im still lifting weights now at 19 weeks - albeit very light with modified movements. Just do what your comfortable with

I was a size 20 when I was pregnant with my little boy ( now 11 months )
They never made me feel bad , they spoke about diet etc and I do know how to eat right ( it’s all the other crap I eat around it that lets me down )

I did have a test for diabetes due to weight and age ... ( I was fine )

I ate a lot of right stuff ( once sickness went ) I do my 5 a day anyhow ( it’s just the extra rubbish around it that lets me down.

My little boy was perfectly healthy, and everything went like clockwork.

Just do your best and they will understand that you will potentially be going through a restricted diet.

I had a week where I would eat gerkhins and bread
A week of pizza
Crisps and crackers intermittently and cheesy pasta ... that was my first 4 months ( i took supplements )

After that it was back to fruit veg ( and far to much chocolate... but at least fruit and veg came back into my world )

Big congratulations

Thanks everyone for your posts. I appreciate the advice & support. Still waiting for my booking appointment but starting to feel a bit more relaxed about it all 😃

I'm plus size and currently 13 weeks pregnant. I can't fault any of the midwives I've seen so far, I thought they would mention my weight but said they work with many patients all shapes and sizes. In the waiting room for my first scan I was quite happy to see so many larger women.

My BMI is on the large size I'm 39. I'm a size 20 - 24 depends what shop! I always thought I'd struggle to get pregnant but to my surprise happend very quickly. So feel very lucky.

The only downside is that I'm classed as high risk. When I had my first midwife appointment she did a score and mine was quite high. I did think it was down to my weight but the main reason is that I had a stroke when I was younger. I have to take blood thining injections into my tummy, I hated it at first but getting used to it now. I got invited to have an early scan which they had to do internally and at my 12 week scan I had another internal.

The internal scan is fine, better than I thought it would be. Because of the fat around my tummy they do push hard when having the scan but my tummy is very badly bruised so had an internal one for a better image.

Good luck x

Hi I'm in the same boat! BMI of 35 on booking in. Had lost 2 stone before pregnancy and am still working out 3 x a week, with a good level of strength and fitness. I got myself in a right state beforehand worried that they would put me under a consultant and I wouldn't be able to use the MLU. Thought I would spend the whole pregnancy with people talking about my weight. At the booking in apt, when the midwife mentioned needing to do my height, weight and BMI, I told her my fears. She was really nice, we did the measurements and she said that given my level of fitness and that I was just at BMI 35, they wouldn't put me as a high risk and I could use the MLU - but that I needed to be careful of a lot of weight gain during pregnancy as this might then mean I couldn't use it. I had an early scan at 8 weeks and they didn't need to do an internal and didn't mention my tummy fat. So all in all I would say be honest with the midwives and try not to worry - enjoy your pregnancy!!

Thanks for all your messages. It's definitely making me feel more comfortable and happy knowing I'm not the only one worried about these things and that you have had positive experiences! I have my booking appointment tomorrow and I'll be 9 weeks. Looking forward to actually starting my antenatal care and being able to speak to the midwifes!

My bmi is 36, I've lost ten stone before gettig pregnant. My midwife at my gps has been lovely although because its 36 I will be consultant led.

Found he midwives at antenatal were nothing like my midwife at he GP. Have to say they have been atrocious with me regarding weight. As I said I've lost ten stone, and prior to getting pregnant I was working out 5/6 times a week, swimming, weightlifting and running. I havent been able to excercise as much as I'd like due to extreme tiredness in the first trimester and ongoing spotting. Hoping to get back to it soon.

As others have said though most are lovely, im currently 16 weeks and unfortunately I am dreading my consultant appointment at 20 weeks as last time I had a scan at 13 weeks they were horrible to me about my weight, chucking asprin at me with no real explanation and saying I need to go on a diet, and pretty much saying I was going to get gestational diabetes definitely. My own midwife doesn't think I need asprin and is lovely.

I'm sure yours will be lovely tho, must just be the ones I've seen at the hospital so far.

Good luck for tomorrow xx

I’ve had 2 plus size pregnancies. I’m 5ft 4 and a size 20. Was consultant led for both. The only time I ever felt bad about my weight was on my first scan the words ‘technically difficult scan due to maternal body gravitas’ (or something like that!) and when I googled what it meant, it was basically that my tummy fat made it hard to see what they needed. It wasn’t mentioned to me at the scan though, just what was on the notes afterwards.

I had the diabetes tests for both pregnancies which were both fine and no issues in labour and had two healthy babies. I did have some issues in pregnancy (reducing waters with dd2 which led to induction a week early and both dd’s were on the small side) but this wasn’t to do with my weight. Or if it was, I wasn’t told it was.

After the birth, both times I weighed less than I did at my booking in appointment. Pregnancy nausea at the beginning and then later it felt like the babies were squashing my stomach meant I lost a fair bit. Put it back on though didn’t I! Damn chocolate digestives!