High maternal bmi upset

[anno12]

So basically i came out of my lovely 20 week scan where no issues seeing baby had been mentioned to read a drop down stating restricted view due to high bmi

This has really upset me i am a size 8 on the top and 10 to 12 in jeans and my bmi is 26 which i know technically would mean overweight but to give some perspective last year i was a size 6 with abs and very very slim maybe a bit scary slim and my bmi was still showing as 24 therefore i don't place much faith in it.

I have a disability with means at the moment i have reduced mobility (should improve after pregnancy) but this is why i have gained weight and i having struggled with eating ( not eating enough , excessive dieting and exercise) most of my life so i am very aware i have gained weight to the point i do not look in the mirror.

However after basically seeing FAT plastered on my notes i looked , i have a curvy shape big chest small waist and wide hips but other than my bump i can't see any excess fat i had a really flat tummy when i got pregnant and its only now got a small neat bump.

Now size 20 or size 10 i don't think its nice for that to be put on your notes however i am hurt it is on mine.
I spoke to my midwife about it and she was surprised as she said usually its women with bmis in the 30s that experience this and she would not class my bmi of any concern or class it is high

Do you think maybe i have hidden internal fat and thats what the sonographer struggled with even though my belly looks neat ?
Should i try lose some weight get bmi to 25 ?
Should i expect more upsetting comments this pregnancy ?

No1 else mentioned my weight i am under consultant care due to having ICP in my last pregnancy and i actually said to the consultant about weight gain since i can't walk much and she laughed and told me not be silly said i was fine so i just didn't expect any 1 to have a issue with my weight but clearly sonographer thought i was very overweight.

Ps i am so grateful scan was good but wish that hadn't been on my notes and also no offense to any one with a bigger bmi than mine i think we are know our weights and don't need reminding. For me i guess it is just a touchy subject

What upsetting comments were made? High maternal BMI on notes is just like high blood pressure or any other medical thing, it's not a value judgement.

In the nicest way, what relevance does it have on your life?

It's just a factual statement on your notes, your BMI is slightly higher than "normal" and it's a standard term put on notes from a sonographer.

As long as you're happy, your midwife is happy and your baby is happy then why get yourself worked up about It?

Medical notes should be factual. This was factual.

@kowari for me that is upsetting no1 else at booking or anything has stated my bmi is high and given i am a size 8 on the top half , still not in maternity clothes and litterally can't even pinch at any fat on my stomach i find it upsetting. I don't know how much smaller my waist and stomach area could be to be honest this is probably the first time in my life i haven't been boney

@stackhead @roromary my midwife said my bmi at book was actually recorded at 25 at booking and she would not expect a women with this bmi to have that on her notes at all. She said that would not be classed as a high bmi

My midwife in her experience a bmi of 30 of above would trigger this statement and i have had 2 other scans it is not noted.

I find it hard to believe someone who is a size 8 can be classed as fat and high maternal bmi is classing me as fat

Obviously both midwife and oh keep saying you know you look slim and are healthy so do not pay it any mind but i have always had issues with gaining weight so much so i had to talk to member of the midwifery mental health team about it in my 1st pregnancy so this has left me distraught

She also kept commenting on what beautiful clear images she was getting.
And when she handed my pictures she said what lovely clear profile pics we had got so of course it is surprising to see the opposite on the notes
Also the high maternal bmi is selected on the drop down but her comments say scan was clear and and good view so it makes no sense i was either too fat for her view or it was clear as she has written

It's just an factual explanation for the restricted view, not intended to remind you of your BMI or to upset you.

It’s factual from a medical point of view, that is all.

Honestly, if it's a drop down list they may well have accidentally selected the wrong field, it's easy to do if what is often clunky software!

@StrawberryPi that's exactly what I was going to say! Probably just selected it by accident!

@kowari i do not understand the factual element of given she has wrote clear views obtained in the typed up notes and she kept telling me how beautiful and clear the images where even stating i was making her job easy

And i still don't understand how a size 8 is fat .. i was diagnosed with anorexia at a size 6 so is going back to that my only option in order not be labelled as fat ?

It literally as unravelled every bit of work i have did in the last few years to not be obessed with weight and numbers .. my oh told me to decline weighing at booking and i wish i had .. but maybe i just have huge amounts of internal fat

@anno12 it could well be a mistake and selected in error, but even if it isn't, try not to fixate on it. Your body is going to change so much in the next few months, which can be upsetting (I found the lack of control over my body quite difficult to deal with at times) so try to focus on the positives. You have a healthy, happy baby growing in there! Even if your BMI is high (which it might be, as clothes sizes can be very misleading and not consistent between shops), it's temporary. Congratulations on your pregnancy!

@strawberrypi my midwife suggested it was maybe a accident as not on previous scans and her typed up notes are the total opposite

I know i am being ridiculously upset but i was told by a doctor a few years ago to not focus on scales and bmi and focus on how i look / feel eating well and now i feel this is clearly led to me being too big but as i say i am still a 8 on the top and using this to reassure me all is ok

They may have selected it by accident given your BMI is pretty normal and you've said the sonographer commented on nice clear images. Honestly I would just forget about this. I had similar on my scan note where they put something like "technically difficult scan due to baby's position and patient adiposity" which was also a medical or tactful way of saying fat... It's not nice to read but it doesn't really affect anything.

Having a high BMI does not equate to someone being fat - athletes usually have a higher than normal BMI due to muscle weighing more than fat. So then stating ‘high maternal BMI’ is not them calling you fat.

Also highly likely if your BMI is within normal range that the tech just accidentally selected the wrong option from the drop down, really easily done.

@redpandafluff thank you everytime i feel him kick i do feel better and the actual scan itself was lovely, the sonographer could not of been nicer

I think hormones and fact i know i am less mobile is making me panic like i say such a touchy subject for me

As kindly as possible, OP - this incident has not unravelled your work; I think it has revealed that that work is on very shaky foundations. There's something quite troubling about the way you are 'pinching fat' and talking about how you 'still only have a small neat bump'. And you are translating the factual 8and possibly erroneously applied) label 'high BMI' into the value judgement 'fat'.

I think you need to go back to the MH team and try to get some sustained support in place. Your relationship with weight and with your own body is clearly disordered and it's important you sort this out, at its roots, so as not to pass these behaviours and ways of thinking on to your children.

www.rcog.org.uk/globalassets/documents/patients/patient-information-leaflets/pregnancy/pi-why-your-weight-matters-during-pregnancy-and-after-birth.pdf

I'd definitely assume mistake. I am a similar shape but much bigger (12 on top, 14+ on bottom) had a flat stomach until post pregnancy, BMI around 28 before pregnancy and had no comment on restricted view until it was restricted view because late gestation (baby is too big to "fit" in the scan range later on).

More recent pelvic scans (not pregnancy related) with 28+ BMI have been clear too - I was used as a demo for a med student who had no problems finding anything so I very much doubt your BMI had any bearing.

I would very much stay away from scales in late pregnancy though!!!

Maybe it was a new person who just details every tiny thing. Who knows. It's irrelevant. You know you're not fat, your midwife has told you you're slim.

Stop upsetting yourself by creating these negative fantasies about what this individual may have meant. It's pointless and potentially dangerous as stress can trigger blood pressure issues.

You need to change your focus onto something that's good for your health.

No one has plastered "FAT" on.your notes. Factual medical terminology has been documented. This isn't a slight against you, it's just simple fact. Medical professionals can't ignore facts in order to stop the odd person getting irrationally offended.

If you are as you describe you are then your weight is absolutely fine and you've nothing to worry about. Focus on enjoying your pregnancy.

Sounds like a mistake. My BMI was 33 and they’ve had no issues scanning me! It’s hardly been mentioned apart from having Gd screening. Weird!

[quote anno12]@kowari i do not understand the factual element of given she has wrote clear views obtained in the typed up notes and she kept telling me how beautiful and clear the images where even stating i was making her job easy

And i still don't understand how a size 8 is fat .. i was diagnosed with anorexia at a size 6 so is going back to that my only option in order not be labelled as fat ?

It literally as unravelled every bit of work i have did in the last few years to not be obessed with weight and numbers .. my oh told me to decline weighing at booking and i wish i had .. but maybe i just have huge amounts of internal fat[/quote]
Does your MW know about your history of anorexia?

@randomsabreuse my best friend said she believes her bmi was around 29 when she was pregnant and she also said she never had any comments on her scans either

My midwife said its more bmis in the 30s that can cause a issues and she really stressed can as she said even much larger women have perfect scans

My midwife did suggest i consider it a mistake as she said she has clearly typed up she had clear views so to focus on this

I think because i am a worrier i started thinking maybe it's internal fat etc

@theorigrights yes she does and i am seeing her in person next week and she said when can have a good chat about it then

She did suggest i could complain bout the comment as she did not believe it was necassry but the sonographer was so lovely to my face anyway and made the scan really enjoyable so i don't see what that would achieve