Preggers with BIG baby... should I get induced early?

[abbybaby]

Hi, I'm 33 weeks Pregnant with my first baby, big babies run in both families, I was 9.11 lb and BF was 10.2 lb.

My mum & grandma had difficult labours due to narrow birth canal/petit frame & big babies. My grandma had an emergency cesarean with my mum, and My mum was in labour for over 48 hours with me. I'm pretty sure they'd make you have a cesarean if you were in labour that long these days.

The thing is I really, really, REALLY don't want a cesarean. My last scan at 31 weeks showed my baby was already 4.6lb (average for 31 weeks is 3.5lb) my doc said baby is bigger than average and bigger babies also have a tendancy to be late. I'm worried if I go overdue she'll be huge and I'll end up having to have an emergency cesarean. The doc said an option would be to get induced on my due date or earlier if necessary if the baby is still measuring/weighing more than average.

Obviously in an ideal world I will just go into labour naturally a week or so early and everything will be fine.

But faced with the prospect of an over due baby, a BIG over due baby, and a High risk of having to have an emergency cesarean. I'm seriously considering getting induced early.

So... anyone had any experience with big baby labour, being induced, being induced early, or just general advice/opinions on the above.

Thanks x x x

Hi my dd3 was weighing nearly 5lbs at 32 weeks and as im only 4'11 i was abit worried. She was born 4 days late weighing 8'11 which is by far my biggest baby (7'9 and 6'7) but the labour was no worse really than the first. HTH

Try not too worry too much about how you will deliver and the weight of your baby - the good thing is that they are monitoring you closely and communicating with you well.

Can I ask why are you so anti-caesarian?

I had a 10lb2 last child and after 2 days had a section he was back to back and wouldnt descend (plus had already had one section for breech baby) but a friend of mine had similar weight baby after an 8lber and she thought his delivery was much easier as she had more to push against.

I presume they will do another growth scan nearer the time, you never know it may slow up and not be as big as you fear.

my friend gave birth to a baby 11lb 8oz with no pain relief - she said it wasn't any harder than a smaller baby.

I wouldn't wait to be induced much past due date though if it was me.

Good luck! I am sure you will be fine.

I had the same as Denny with a similar size baby (10lb 5oz).

They are unlikely to offer a section for a first baby unless there is good reason. In the first instance they are likely to see how you get on once you are in labour and take it from there. The labours that your mum and gran had may indicate how yours will go but then again, they may not (mine was nothing like my mum's).

Best of luck, and if you do end up with a section, they aren't so bad.

I was induced at 37 weeks dd was 9.8

I would say no, as I believe that induction gives you a HIGHER risk of needing intervention and/or an emergency C-section.

also:

• scans are notoriously inaccurate at predicting size
• the 'ease' of birth is depdendent on a lot more factors than just weight - position, size of head, loads of other things
• big babies aren't neccesarily harder to birth anyway
• your mother and grandmother may well have suffered from being made to labour on their backs/lying down etc. as was the 'fashion' then. You will able to make sure you have a much more active labour and be in a more favourable position to labour/push/deliver

if I were you I'd definitely see how things go and look into things like optimal foetal positioning

my first was 9.14 and I was induced at 3 days over for high BP, my second was 10.5 and I went into labour naturally at 13 days over. It was MUCH better even though he was bigger

I'm with mrsjohncusack. My largest was my 2nd she weighed in at 10lb6 and I'm only 5' and a size 6-8 hips! The induced my next on my due date and I nearly ended up with a failed induction and emergency section.

My Mum is 4'10 her first was 9lbish and an emergency section but all 4 of mine popped out quite easily and quickly once they actually got labour established...

Statistically, the research shows no benefit to inducing early for suspected large baby. The rates of complications (for mother and baby) are pretty much exactly the same -- in fact, pretty much the only difference is that being induced early makes you more likely to end up with a c-section than going to term.

So given that you want to avoid a c-section... no, I wouldn't go for early induction.

P.S. DS was 10lb 5.3oz and two days early, so big babies don't always go late.

Ds1 was induced and arrived 9 days late. He weighed 9lbs 8oz.

Ds2 was induced at 38wks and weighed 9lbs.

When I had dd I was told that policy had changed and they no longer induced early for large babies. Dd was induced at 40wks and despite the scan showing that she was enormous, weighed only 8lbs 4oz. Growth scans aren't all that reliable.

Thank you everyone for your replies, you've been really helpful. I guess I will wait and see what Doc says at my next scan 36 weeks.

sophierosie I'm anti-caesarean because the recovery afterwards is harder, the scarring, and I just don't want to give birth by way of operation. Obviously if I medically have no choice or the Baby is in distress etc I wouldn't hesitate to give them to go ahead but I just want to do everything possible to avoid being put in that position.

Denny185 & MrsJohnCusack thank you for your comments, I also heard that bigger babies are easier to deliver, it's just if she's too big to fit though my birth canal that they're worried about.

I don't want to be induced, I'd love to do it all as naturally as I can, I'm just worried that if I wait, she'll be late, BIG, I'll have a terrible labour resulting in an emergency c-section.

Maybe I'll just wait until I'm 36 weeks then start with the old spicy food, raspberry leaf tea, lots of sex etc to try and bring her along a little earlier but naturally ha ha ha.

But really thanks again to everyone who commented, good luck with your pregnancies, Children etc x x x

Try not to worry too much as they are known to get the size wrong too! My friend was told her baby was going to be over 9lbs and it was only 7lb 2 and even though big babies are in your family it might not be a bad labour for you. Keep us posted on what happens though x

Induction will increase your statistical chance of needing a caesarean.

However in hindsight my only hope of a natural birth would have been to have had an early casaerean. DS was 12lb 12 at 42 weeks and was an EMCS after 40 hour labour - he simply was too big to come down the birth canal let alone for me to push out. I had a scan at 37 weeks where the sonographer described him as "no tinkerbell". Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I don't know if I had been induced at 40 weeks instead of 42 whether I would have had a natural birth. I do know however that despite being like yourself... not wanting a caesarean and worried about a big baby... that I was completely at ease with the decision for the caesarean in the end. I do however wish I had done more research about induction beforehand because I probably would have pushed for another scan at 40 weeks and then chosen to skip induction and go straight to caesarean because it wouldn't have taken a genius to realise there was no way DS was coming out naturally, so I feel I had 2 incredibly uncomfortable overdue weeks and 40 hours of horrific induction-induced labour to result in the inevitable CS anyway. So that would be my advice - research induction and also push for another growth scan in a few weeks.

first sentence should read "early induction" not "earl caesarean"!!

I also agree with MrsJohnCusack - they told me with my first that she was measuring big but werent overly concerned. I went 15days late before being induced and it wasnt the nicest experience, and ended in ventouse delivery. I managed with a few puffs of gas and air and Libby weighed in at 9lb 1, and she was also very long!

Second time round I was scared of same thing happening, didnt want to be in hospital so booked for home birth. Once again at 36wks there was concerns about baby size, which sent me into a panic about shoulder dystocia (sp?!) etc but my midwives were truely fantasic - they calmed my nerves and made me feel like I could deliver a big baby naturally and at home, and if there was a problem they were competant enough to deal with it.

I was 6days late with Ellis, had a few problems pushing (2hrs!) as my contractions just didnt last for more than 30-40secs the entire labour but delivered Ellis naturally without any pain relief. He weighed 9lb 14 and looked huge! The midwives were again fantastic, really encouraging but did say after that had I been in hospital I wouldnt have been left to push for so long and would have had some sort of intervention.

Good luck, I wish you well and look forward to hearing about your lo's arrival

My consultant told me that the baby really doesnt put on theat much more weight in the two weeks they would 'let ' you go overdue in. If its going to be big at 40 weeks then its big.. IYKWIM.

My first was 9.5lb and a week over, my second wasa few days over and i had been told to expect a large baby. I refused induction (offered becasue he was expected big) as i wanted to have a waterbirth - i was in active labour for about 2 hours and even though his shoulders did get stuck ( shoulder Dystopia) with a bit of manouvering from the MW he soon popped out. He weighed in at 11 2lbs

I am currently 35 weeks and measuring big, going for scan next week. I wont be induced though this time though either, and will just see what happens.

I think - and i am no doctor, that generally your body grows what you can deliver, if you really dont want a section then go with how you feel, try and rely on your own bodies instinct, learn all about diff breathing techniques, and just go with the flow, but, thats no guarantee that you wont need a section IF things change and you cant deliver. Try not to have anything set in stone in case things have to alter. But most of all try and enjoy the experience of beinging a new life into the world...how ever that might be!

Good luck and let us know!!

I think mine is going to be big also as both DH and me are very tall. It was 6lbs 11oz at the 36wk scan and must be a good 9lbs plus by now. All the doctors I see says its a "fair size" which must mean "huge" but the GP I saw today said that babies don't put on much weight in the wks past your due date and start to loose some as the placenta is slowly producing less food for them. I'm 40wks + 6days and am assuming ours will be a whopper which terrifies me first time round.

hmmmm, just resurrecting this thread momentarily....had my 36week scan today, measuring in at 9.2lbs...!

Try not to worry too much and just see how it goes. My only advice to you is to be flexible in your birth plan. I wanted a natural water birth with no pain relief and was deffinatly against the idea of an epidural or a section. I was induced (3x as it kept failing) on my due date as I had developed pre-eclampsia and spent my labour strapped to monitors so I couldn't even walk around nevermind have the waterbirth I was so keen on. Eventually I had an epidural and an emergency section as my son was a large baby, I am a short lady and have an oddly formed pelvis on the inside (we only discovered this when I was unable to give birth). I developed post-natal depression because I was so determined to have the "perfect" birth and had not been prepared for any other outcome.
I think if you are flexible on your birth plan and talk to the midwife about your concerns then you will feel more in control weather you give birth naturally or require intervention. By the way the cesarean was nothing to worry about in the end and I will definatly be having one next time! My recovery was much quicker than I expected, I was up and about later the same day, only stayed in hospital for 2 nights, walked up and down a huge hill to register the birth less than a week later and was driving after 3 weeks. And I'm the sort of person who can't walk for days if I so much as stub my toe.
Good luck! x

hi all I am pregnant with my third girl my first two weighed 8lb6oz and second was 8lb Taylah was born by emergency c section after failed induction and three day labour then with Eden i opted for a c section she was delivered at 39 weeks after both c sections my recovery was fine and was up and about next morning home after 4 days and pretty much back to normal within 3 weeks i am now worried as have had scan today and my consultant says this baby is a big un I am 28 weeks and she weighs 3lbs already i am scared of my uterus rupturing which i have heard can happen after c sections he also said that he was gonna deliver her at 39 weeks but is now considering doing it significantly earlier does any one know how early they will deliver a baby these days. Have another scan booked for 4 weeks time.

First baby was 8lb13, was induced, it was hell on earth.

Second baby had 33 week scan, they told us he was a monster, he was a week late and 10lb5, it was fine, just gas & air, quite enjoyable (DH will tell you otherwise).

Would avoid getting induced if you can, from my experience will make things a lot more painful. My midwife (second time around) told me not to worry, your body will only produce a baby that you can deal with birthing. She was completely right.

Both of my ds were big, 1st ds 9lb 15, 2nd ds 10lb7. With my 1st I was told I would definately be overdue and that I would probably end up with a section. I devided that as there was nothing else wrong, such as gestational diabetes I was obviously meant to make big babies. I did all I could to ensure that ds was in a good position and remain mobile in labour.

In the end ds1 was born at 39 weeks.

For ds2 I had acupuncture to try and move things along and went into labour at spot on 40 weeks. I decided not to listen to all the scare mongers and just trusted that my body could birth the baby that it had made. My second labour lasted 2.5 hours, 2nd stage just 2 minutes.

Try and relax and trust that your body can do it, also use any positions that can help in labour such as standing and squating etc. Good luck

At 36 weeks I was offered a scan because I was measuring big, the sonographer assured me that DD was going to be on the 99th centile. DH and I were both bigger babies so we were rather expecting that news.

Bang on 40 weeks I went into labour spontaneously with DD, who weighed exactly on the 50th centile!

Thats an error margin of 49% over a mere 4 weeks! I'm pretty sure my bump didn't double in weight over one month, so there must've been a pretty substantial misestimation on the sonographer's part.

In the literature they warn that third trimester growth scans are notoriously inaccurate, but I was pretty impressed by just HOW inaccurate they are.

So I would suggest that you take this into account when predicting a big baby, it's less of a science than you may think.