How does baby's size affect labor?

[azgirl]

Okay, so it seems somewhat obvious that larger babies may be harder to push out and make crowning more painful...

How does the size of a baby affect contractions? It's my understanding that the function of contraction is to open the cervix...is there more to it than that?

I know these are pretty dumb questions. I birthed a 2lb 25 weeker and I just don't know how to apply my labor experience to a full-term labor with a healthy-sized baby (in the event that I am blessed with such a baby) All the drugs they had me on slowed down my contractions until I only had a few every hour. Each contraction was 5 or 6 minutes long -long enough for me to black out completely during each one. I found the contractions manageable, but most would argue that of course it's super easy to deliver a 2lb baby...yet I found my very short crowning to be painful and I didn't like that at all Pushing was too easy, considering I wanted to hold him in

I don't have an incompetent cervix. I was in intense pain for several hours before I went to the ER and was only dialated to one. I was in labor in the hospital for a week before I delivered.

I'm having trouble processing all of this as I consider having more babies.

[mmaramba]

Well, 2 lbs vs 7+ lbs is a big difference, but I will just say briefly that interventions and positioning seem to have a greater effect on pain/pressure/etc. than baby size.

In general-- in a labor where mom has freedom of movement and has no or few interventions-- the larger the baby, the better the positioning (gravity, less room to move around). I would love to have a "big" baby (8 lbs 12 oz or bigger) for that reason.

[gravida]

Sorry to hear about your little baby.

Remember that a babies head moulds as it comes out so it's not as big as it seems. A full term head would be bigger than a 25 weekers but I'm not sure that the difference between a 5 lbs babies head and a 9 lbs babies head would be all that much.

A midwife told me that she found big babies seemed easier to birth. Lots of baby weight to push apart the bones, lots of baby for the uterus to push on, lots of weight for gravity to work with. Her experience was smaller babies were harder labors. I'm not sure how small she was talking, I assumed ~5 lbs.

FWIW I had a 7 lb 7oz baby with a long painful labor (although in hospital) and a 8 lb 12 oz baby (at home) with very little pain at all. A lot of pain (IMO) is how you see it. I was well supported, happy, relaxed with my second baby and not so much with my first.

Oh and I'm not a midwife, just a birth geek so take what I say with a grain of salt.

[demetria]

I have attended over 500 births and it always seemed to me that babies over 7.5 pounds came quicker and easier. 8.5 being the fastest, and easiest. (unofficial study, just opinion) I think the more ready baby is the easier. My babies were both considered really big 9.3 and 8.3 and both were very easy. Gravida made some great points. Good luck.

[cappuccinosmom]

Size of baby does not affect contractions.

I've had one under 7 lb, and I had two that were almost 10 lb, and hten 10.5 lb. The middle child (almost 10 lb) was as near "painless" labor as I'll get. It was very, very intense. But not *hurt* intense. The last one (10.5 lb) hurt like heck, all back labor. I don't remember enough of the first one to put the pain on a scale, I was just terrified, and on stadol so very loopy.

IOW, out of three, size wasn't a factor in how painful the contractions were. In fact, I also miscarried at 13 weeks and that was definite, painful labor even though the baby was miniscule at that early stage.

[Evergreen]

Both of my difficult labors were my tiny babies (full term tiny- so definitely not comparable to what you went through.) I think it made contractions more difficult and longer because due to their small size they were malpositioned and didn't' really fit.

[WifeofAnt]

I heard through a friend on facebook (who had 3 preemies, all less than 30 weeks) that giving birth prematurely is harder than having a full term baby. The hormones that are supposed to stretch things just aren't there yet.

[azgirl]

Lots of food for thought. My labor was obviously intervention-filled to the max....but different interventions...the drugs I was on made it impossible to move at all, I couldn't really even move from side to side on my own. I requested pain meds a few days into the process mostly because I wanted to mentally check out, I had on those electric massage stockings, a catheter, IVs, shots every few hours, etc. They gave me a couple of doses of Stadol, but then refused to give me more. They pushed me to get the epidural once it was obvious (only by me, at first) that I was giving birth. I was at 9.5 cm and I refused it, of course.

Anyway, my birth was so weird and different that it is hard to apply my experience. When you are in such preterm labor they won't do internals unless absolutely necessary, so I really had to "feel" and intuit where I was. (I seemed to always know) They don't want you on pain meds because they don't want you to go with the contractions since you are supposed to stall labor. They let you eat, drink and do whatever you want etc. I requested the catheter even though it sucks because I could feel myself progressing when I walked or sat on the toilet or peed.

I was intensely afraid, in a very medical situation, confined to the bed and quite uncomfortable but I found the contractions extreme but manageable. My strong, stoic friend just had a traumatically painful homebirth-turned-hospital birth so I am just a little intimidated by labor right now. Is it possible for the magnesium sulfate I was on to make labor easier? I do think my body and pelvis benefited from being in labor for so long. I won't be praying for a short labor.

Thanks for letting me process this.

[philomom]

I had quick, natural births with no interventions. Both babies were a shade under 7 pounds.