Has anyone else had this with larger baby? Petrified and exhausted at 23 weeks

[AuntieJay]

Hi all,

Sorry for starting another thread - I did make one a few weeks back but wasn't sure where to post.

At my 20 week scan (I was 21 weeks) I was told that baby is measuring big 97th centile and I have too much amniotic fluid (polyhydramnios).
Was referred for a growth scan this week (23 weeks exactly) and he is still bigger and I have more fluid. That being said he has strong heartbeat good movements and is apparently ‘structurally fine’.
However, apparently, it’s rare for a baby to be measuring big so early and to have too much fluid so I has asked to have a CVS test yesterday so they could check for chromosomal issues relating to overgrowth syndromes and have to go back in two weeks to speak to a geneticist and have another growth scan.
I’m an anxious person anyway, although a lot of therapy had got me on track with that, but I’m a mess waiting for all the tests/results which might just come back as ‘baby is big’. I’ve not slept well in weeks and have been in floods of tears since the growth scan.
I’m under King’s in London which is a research centre so I’ve no idea if they’re just being over cautious or there is genuine concern. Noone really explains anything well and they seem to want as much info as possible which is good but I’m exhausted.
Has anyone else experienced similar or can just empathise with the anxiety?

My baby was enormous. 98th percentile. Perfectly healthy. The only problems were that 1 My tummy got stretched beyond all recovery, and 2 I needed a c section because the baby was too big to come out through the pelvis.

Glad your little one was healthy, your poor tummy though! I'm moisturing to the max but I'm not sure it's going to be super effective!

my baby measured weeks ahead and was 99th centile for everything throughout my pregnancy... I was at kings for unrelated reasons but other than continually testing for gestational diabetes they never raised any concerns about baby's size. did they tell you what they are testing for specifically? I think sometimes they do forget to explain stuff clearly but it's okay to remind them you need more explanation and keep asking questions. I used to ask for stuff to be written down so I could digest it better.

They just said rare conditions that could cause overgrowth. I think they're concerned because I have too much fluid too and have tested negative for diabetes but it just feels like a lot. Writing things down is a really good idea, thank you!

I think I am quite worried that the consultant is suspecting more than she's letting on but maybe that's just me being paranoid?

I think the not knowing if they are being over cautious or genuinely concerned is really hard... they are scientists there and I do think they can forget the human emotion side sometimes. But it's an amazing facility and we are lucky to have it. I hope your appointment with the geneticist is a line in the sand there and you can get some clear answers. Maybe write down a list of all your qs over the next couple of weeks so you can take it with you and go through it with them xx

I can't speak for your exact situation but in my experience they were really upfront with their concerns and at no point tried to sugar coat anything so I don't think they would hide concerns from you or anything like that. but can you phone them and ask exactly that question? I'm sure they wouldn't want to leave you to worry alone for weeks

Dc2 was massive. The growth scans I had indicated 8lbs ish, he was nearly 11. Growth scans are notoriously unreliable.

I had 1 (!!) Stretch mark!

I had this too and so much fluid. Was speak of induction etc. he was 6lbs 2oz! Very unreliable I feel

There are many other reasons for baby being big, the most common of which are:
Dates don't actually agree with their dating scan date - was your calculation 'out' compared to theirs? Mine certainly was, and they said I was big and due a couple of weeks sooner than I calculated based on when we DTD & period dates (Baby arrived on time according to my calculation not theirs)
You and /or your partner are tall - and you were /both were big babies I'm average height but a wide 'big boned' style build eg have never fitted a size 10 despite once being 8st, my shoulders and chest are too wide. Also hubby is 6ft 3. Babies long and very scrawny, under 7lb! Daughter had largest head of all - 38cm. She has to order riding hats in a very large size, but they also fit DH....
How tall are you both? If you've a roomy frame, surely baby has room to expand to fit?

So in the absence of further information I'd wind back the worrying a fair bit, as far more likely one of the above scenarios or that others have suggested, than the 'rare' complications!

Also worth remembering 97th percentile is still in the realms of 'average' but some babies have to be a bit bogger or a bit smaller to get to that average!

It’s worth remembering that the centiles don’t mean anything, as the centiles they use for growth scans are tailored to you (your age, weight, ethnicity l, size of previous babies etc). Case in point: had 28 week growth scans with DC1 and current pregnancy. Measured within 5g of each other. DC1 was labelled as 90th centile. Currrebt pregnancy? 50th centile. Because my
personal growth chart has changed to take into account the size of babies I’ve had before.

It’s good they’re checking, but I don’t think you should worry.

Dates are often wrong.

Growth scans aren’t always accurate.

The largest 3% of babies are just the largest 3%. Somebody has to be. Most of them are perfectly healthy.

Personally I had big babies and gallons of fluid, also placentas hefty and cords long enough that the doctors remarked on them. Now quite large, very healthy teenagers.

I measured small and was under weight, had to have extra scans because they were concerned. DS was over 9lbs. They probably don't have that much of a clue tbh and so can't really tell you anything for definite, no point telling you in detail about the rare conditions when it may be nothing.

My first was 10lbs 4oz at just before 37 weeks. I did developed type 1 diabetes when pregnant but he was not a chubby baby, just long.
My second I was bigger and they said it was the amniotic fluid. But didn't recommend any tests (and I was 43)! She was just under 10lbs at 38 weeks and was chubby (she also had no blood sugar readings so spent first three days in NICU). I lost a lot of fluid and blood during that section.
Thing is what happened to me and my babies may not be the same for you. Don't anticipate bad news though, easier to say than do!

Thanks so much for sharing all your experiences, it's really helpful to hear and glad you've all had healthy babies.
They've just said testing for 'rare' issues that could cause overgrowth so will just wait and see and hope for the best.
In terms of size, I'm v average 5ft 5 and a size 10, husband is 6ft and skinny so baby could be long and tall!
I do have quite anxious tendencies so going to have a chat with my MW about some support for that in the meantime.
Thanks again 💐💐💐

My baby was 95th percentile and my consultant queried if id been tested for GD, I said no because my midwives wouldn't test unless he was over 100th percentile. She then asked how big the babies in my family were, my DH was 9lbs and his brother 10"6, with his other siblings in between. Our DD was 8"11 and I was 8"9, and she simply said 'ah probably just got those big baby genes.' He was born 10"2 and healthy. Your baby could well just be a cute chunky one, or also just as likely the scans have been inaccurate and it's just the measurements being slightly off, there's countless posts on this forum with big babies in pregnancy coming out very average sizes! I can't comment on the fluid though, although I'm sure Lucy Watson (insta influencer) had this and posted about it on her YouTube possibly so that might help to hear hers, and others, experiences and positive outcomes.

Also to add myself anc my DH are also average height, I'm 5"4 and he's 5"9 if that helps!