36 week induction

[Justlilixo]

Good morning, I'm looking for a bit of advice/see if anyone has been in my situation before..
I've been told that I need to be induced tomorrow at 36 weeks due to my placenta being too big for bubs and trying to push too much blood to her body causing growth issues...
Has anyone had this before? And how was baby upon being born. Her estimated delivery weight is approximately 4lb 11oz. I'm so torn on having no idea what to expect 😕

Did they offer c section as alternative? I had. C section for similar at 35 weeks.

I haven’t had your situation but DC2 was born at 36 weeks (but big at nearly 7lb) and DC1 was born at 34 weeks weighing 4lb 15.

In your shoes I would definitely push for a C section rather than an induction, for the baby’s safety. I gave birth vaginally to DC1 and it didn’t go well for her, she was stuck for a long time and it had lasting effects. I have since read that small babies can be harder to birth vaginally as they don’t have the momentum of larger babies (or something like that?). Inductions often end in a C section anyway statistically so that would add to my reasons for insisting on one.

Both babies were absolutely fine except for the effects of the birth on DC1. DC1 stayed in NICU for a while but with my 36 weeker we were in 2 nights (more because I had GD than because of being early).

A 36 week baby should be able to breathe without help (they should give you steroids pre birth to help with this) and hopefully she will be able to feed too. As she is small they may want to keep her in hospital for a little bit and give her tube feed top ups while she gets the hang of regular feeding.

Good luck, she is likely to be absolutely fine. Remember in utero weight estimates are often wrong!

Caesareans aren’t always best for baby’s safety when pre-term. Under 39 weeks the risk of respiratory distress syndrome is higher with caesareans than vaginal births, even in babies that are 37 or 38 weeks. Obviously in some situations it IS safer, but not a blanket rule. Something to discuss with the consultant for sure but I wouldn’t jump to it lightly.

I was born at 36 weeks by caesarean. No issues at all and was about 6lb 2

Not the same medical situation as yours, but my middle DC was born at 36+0 - I went into spontaneous labour totally out of the blue.

I’d had growth scans up until then because there were concerns that he was too small. It was estimated that he’d be 4lb 8oz at term of he continued following the same curve on the charts.
He was actually born weighing 5lbs 13oz, and was perfectly healthy. He didn’t need any help with his breathing, his temperature regulation was normal, and he was feeding like a champ. His was also my calmest and most normal labour - both of his sisters who were full term babies both had a flair for the dramatic 🫠😂