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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Anyone prev had to have midwife AND gp led care in pg due to being a chubber?

21 replies

yousaidit · 08/05/2008 10:57

when i gave the mw my weight, she said, ooh, you'll have to be gp and midwife led because of your bmi. Now i know this means i'm a fatty, but what happens? I've only had mw led with dc1! Do they tell you you can't have your baby?????!!!!!!!!?????

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SKYTVADDICT · 08/05/2008 11:01

When pregnant with DS I wanted to be midwife led and my BMI was a little over, luckily lovely midwife was a little "inventive" with the figure which took it down a bit.

All went to pieces anyway as DS was "supposed" to be big and ended up being consultant led towards to end. He was only 8lb 10oz though!

ILikeToMoveItMoveIt · 08/05/2008 11:05

I would ask the MW what exactly the GP is going to do about it? Unless of course they are indeed going to tell you that you can't have your baby

margoandjerry · 08/05/2008 11:11

waste of time. I had shared care just because my hosp were too crap to go as far as actually allocating me a mw for the whole pg - nothing to do with weight although I probably would fit that category too.

Quite what the GP is going to add is not clear. MWs have scales and bp monitors too don't they! My GP's doppler was broken for the duration of my pg and she was entirely uninterested in the pg and in me so I don't think they add a great deal.

sophiewd · 08/05/2008 11:12

I have a very high BMI but this was never suggested to me, Saw GP once in first pregnancy when she just went through the do's and dont's and this time round have seen consultant once as i had section first time.

MissusH · 08/05/2008 11:25

I have a high bmi and am 19wks with my 2nd dc.

When dd was born I was treated pretty harshly - I was referred for consultant-led care as I was also told baby would be big/high bp/diabetes etc. The drs I saw at the hospital were pretty nasty about my weight (comments like "cs's are dangerous for people like you" and "you have put your baby's health at risk with the lifestyle you lead" wtf!!)

Anyway, dd was born after a normal delivery, no high bp/diabetes and she was 7lb 15!!

I am now in a different area and this time around the mw made a standard suggestion at my booking in about eating well and even said that overweight ladies tend not to gain much more weight (result!!).

I have also been referred to the hospital but I think this is just procedure cos of my weight. I had an appt at 16wks, nothing was mentioned about my weight & everything was ok and I don't go again until 34wks, seeing my mw for all other appts. So not much difference to mw led care, really.

BabiesEverywhere · 08/05/2008 11:34

With my DD I was a size 28 and a massive BMI, appart from using it for a reason I couldn't have a home birth (which is rubbish BTW) it wasn't an issue.

This time I am now down to a size 18 with a much lower BMI and I have had two mentions of my weight on my notes !!! Go figure.

I suspect a lot depends on where you live and the attitude of the midwife you are assigned to.

TheProvincialLady · 08/05/2008 11:53

It's not just having a high BMI - my BMI put me slightly in the Underweight category and the MW who did my booking in made me feel like a freak. She said I would have to be referred to the foetal growth clinic for constant monitoring as my baby would not grow properly. I argued that I am naturally small with a small frame and so are most of my family (when my mum had me she was 2 inches shorter and half a stone lighter and no one made a fuss).

When I got to the clinic they told me to go away as I was perfectly healthy, good iron levels etc, and nothig to worry about. DS was born 8lb 12oz. I often wish I could see that cow MW again and tell her

margoandjerry · 08/05/2008 12:40

ProvincialLady, OT but did you name yourself after the Diary of a Provincial Lady? I love that book!

TheProvincialLady · 08/05/2008 12:52

Yes I did, it's one of my favourite books!

TheProvincialLady · 08/05/2008 12:53

I am a namechanger BTW (was NineUnlikelyTales, not that I expect that to mean much to you)

Cadbury · 08/05/2008 13:04

I have had a high bmi when I fell pregnant with all 3 of mine. I was under the midwife soley for all three and apart from checking my weight every month or so, they made no mention of it. Ironically, being pregnant is the only time my weight goes down so maybe that is why they weren't as worried, but they let me have a home birth with the last one (other 2 were induced). I wonder why it is different with different people?

margoandjerry · 08/05/2008 13:34

oh nineunlikelytales - I remember you! Great new name - I give that book as a present about three times a year. It's also permanently by my bed for soothing and cheering purposes

mrsboogie · 08/05/2008 16:47

I have a high BMI and there hasn't been too much made of it so far (they are more disapproving of my age at the moment). It really irks me the fuss that is made of it -of course if you were so huge that you couldn't walk or your heart was under massive strain it would be a worry but I am tall and strong and not that fat so I can't see the problem. I eat healthily and practically gave up drinkng for a year before getting pg so I will clobber anyone who criticises my "lifestyle".

I can't see what a gp could possibly do that a mw couldn't - unless they would be seeing you more often?

arthursmum · 08/05/2008 17:33

My stupid midwife didn't mention anything at all about my BMI in all the sessions I saw her, even though I had not cleverly chosen vertical stripes or was standing behind something larger, like a bus.

It wasn't until I arrived at the Birthing Centre at my hospital, having been avidly reading every natural birth book I could get my hands on and all ready to get it going, when the midwives there told me there was no way I would be able to give birth in the centre because of my weight.

I was put in a bed and my husband sent home. I was completely and utterly devastated and absolutely humiliated. I truly believe it was because of this that I had such a bad time, eventually having an emergency c-section.

I was so livid with the midwife that I had a huge go at her when she came to see me when I got out. If I hadn't had DS in my arms I would have probably sat on her, then she would have known exactly how much I weighed. Dopey mare.

paddycat · 08/05/2008 19:14

I had a high bmi first pregnancy, got even bigger (huge - twins) and didn't get any comments at all about my weight, though I did notice it circled several times on my notes! By the next time round I'd lost 7 stone in total, and they didn't even bother weighing me! Honestly, bmi is only one of a number of ways of measuring people and its not as though you can do much about it by the time you're at the stage of seeing a midwife. "ProvincialLady", a good friend of mine I met through SANDS was blamed by a consultant for the stillbirth of her daughter for being "obviously anorexic", even though she is clearly naturally very slight, so you just can't win either way. Shame the same consultant missed the fact that she was suffering from a bloodclotting disorder, but I guess its always easier to blame the patient.

PregnantPenguin · 08/05/2008 19:23

Just to say that I have GP and MW cover - not due to BMI, they haven't mentioned that thankfully!!!, just because that's the way my hosp do it. I've never even been weighed as part of my pregnancy so far. (Which is good, because I know I have put on lots! So I'm not sure about the idea that overweight people put on less...)

I actually wish I had 100% GP cover TBH. GP great, really interested and as excited about this LO as I am. Every time I go to hosp I see a different MW and they don't appear to give two hoots...

So this could be a good thing for you?

missmama · 09/05/2008 10:05

I have a high BMI and have been told I am high risk. But not what this involves.
But the midwife also made a point of telling me that they dont weigh pregnant ladies anymore.

moosemama · 10/05/2008 13:50

I was wondering at what BMI they consider you high risk. I know 25 to 30 is considered overweight and 30> is considered obese.

Do you have to be in the obese category for them to consider you high risk or is it the same if you are overweight?

Have just been out and bought myself some new scales so that I could work out my BMI as I was worrying about this. My last mw was super fit herself and made a big deal about having to get a bigger blood pressure cuff out to use at the end of my pg. (None of the other mws needed to use one on me though.) She made me feel really bad about myself despite the fact I wasn't that overweight and only gained a lot due to crippling spd which limited my movement.

I think its all a bit odd really given all the studies about stomach to hip measurement ratio being a much more important indicator of obesity - if I go by that I'm fine!

Like mrsboogie I am fit and healthy with a healthy diet (even healthier since I found out I am pg) I take regular exercise and have had 2 previous children with no problems at all. So, why oh why do I find myself still worrying about how they are going to treat me?

AlexandraPeppernose · 10/05/2008 17:03

I had my booking appointment and they told me that a BMI of over 35 is the line they draw with home births but with a BMI of 34 I might need closer monitering.

moosemama · 10/05/2008 18:03

Thanks AlexandraPeppernose you have set my mind at rest. I know its silly to fret about it - after all, its too late to do anything about it now.

Its just frustrating, because I was aiming to be at my target weight by August and then we'd start trying (if I did't get cold feet first - which I was beginning to ).

Unfortunately, not only did I have to stop exercising due to injuring the tendons in my foot - I then found out I was already pregnant . Ah well! What will be will be I suppose!

Original poster

yousaidit · 17/05/2008 19:19

unfortunately, my midwife wasn't able to be so imaginative with my bmi to avoid the gp, otherwise she's be ahead of jk rowlings for fantasy!!! Can anyone tell me how mean the gp is and how often you have to see them?

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