Small Baby ! 4weeks to small and breech

[YummyMummy17]

I'm 36weeks pregnant and my sons breech, and has been since I was 30weeks ! So I might have to have a section and I just had the midwife yesterday and I am measuring 4weeks too small ! This is my first child and therefore am really worried about all of it,

Does anyone have some advice or past experiences they can give me to help make me at ease??

xx

DD was breech from 28 weeks and was born as such at home with 2 lovely IMs - breech position doesn't mean you have to have a CS, although I'd have chosen one if I didn't know I'd have MWs with good breech skills.

Re. measuring small, fundal height is a very innacurate indication of baby's size as there are so many variables - how the individual MW measures, how much fluid you have, how the baby's lying will all have an impact before you get near how large the baby actually is. The average curves will also be based on the "average" baby (whatever one of those is!), but it certainly won't still be breech at 36 weeks. Was the MW concerned? Was it your normal MW? Did she have any thoughts afer palpating? (if you have the same MW who is moderately experienced, they may well judge growth or lack of better from palpation than they would with a tape measure.) One off scans to estimate size can also be wildly innacurate. How do you feel? Are you aware of getting larger or more uncomfortable?

Did your MW give any suggestsions as to how you might encourage your DS to turn? Accupuncture / moxibustion, hypnotherapy / chiropractor (Webster Technique), spending time on your hands and knees, spending time with your shoulders lower than your hips, sitting in a warm bath with an ice pack on his head, playing music / shining a light / getting your DP to talk where you want his head to be are all ways that have been suggested could help. Plus its still very possible he could turn by himself.

Good luck

I think I might opt for a CS as I wouldnt be able to forgive myself if anything happened to him through normal birth, but am going to look more into it, see what really is the best way....
Yeah it was my regular midwife, she didn't seem too conserned which I was quite annoyed with as it is such a big issue for me ! She has booked me in for a growth scan for tomorrow so my fingers are crossed ! She sayed once I will get to speak to a doctor and I may be referred to a hospital....
She hasn't explained anything in much detail which is making me at less ease !
She suggested going about my house on all fours, which I have been doing, ( for 3 and a half weeks) but it just hasn't done anything for me....
Do you think they will still give me an early CS if my son is small ?

Thank you for your response !

xxx

How did it go at the hospital? Sorry I couldn't get back on last night but DD wasn't right...

I can't speak about the small baby side of things from personal experience as DD didn't fit into that category (she was 9lb 12). I have heard of a large number of women, though, that were told they had a small baby and then popped out something up to 2lbs over the estimate! My starting position certainly woulnd't be to ignore the issue, but I'd probably put a fair amount of weight on how I felt the baby was growing. I'd also be more concerned if I was expecting a large baby (which I was as neither DH nor I were light weights).

On the breech side, what DH and I came to realise was that there is no risk-free way to birth a baby, whatever position they're in. Most consultants are surgeons and, as such, feel much more comfortable with the idea of a CS (which they do regularly) than they would with the idea of a vaginal breech deliver, let alone a hands-off vaginal breech birth (This article by Mary Cronk summarises the differences between these two quite nicely - having heard the outline of the breech delivery from the registrar we decided it was hands-off or CS. We also found that the advice given by the NHS was based strongly on the Term Breech Trial, which found CS to be safer, but has since been widely discredited. A more recent study in Paris found that as long as the women met certain criteria and as long as they had supporters skilled in breech birth, vaginal breech was no more risky than a CS.

Its such a hard decision, and there is rarely a single right answer. Each option has different pros and cons and a different risk profile. At the end of the day, all you can do is choose the option that you feel happiest with - for us that was a hands off vaginal breech birth but for many women that's a CS. Fingers crossed your got some reasurance today, and everything goes smoothly however it happens

I had my growth scan today, but i have to wait for a consultant to call me to find out whats what about his size there was none available when i had my scan!
But it was great to see him again, but he's still breech , she sayed he might turn within the next week or so and they dont usually do anything untill i am 37weeks anyway so i have a scan next week and if he hasn't turned i will be planning my CS . I just cant wait untill he's here hopefully everythings ok....

I will let you know how i get on next week after my scan ! Thank you for all your help & advice

xx

Hi YummyMummy - FWIW when I had DD late 2007, I was sent for three extra scans because my bump was small for dates and they thought she would be a small baby. She was 8lbs And I know of plenty of friends who had the same experience and found that weight estimates were wildly out so I think Tangle is right and the scans are not always accurate when it comes to issues of size

And even if they are right and your DD is small, the Dr who I spoke to when I was pregnant made the point that small doesn't necessarily mean unhealthy...

Wishing you all the very best, keep us posted.