Expecting to go over 40 weeks? « Back to Group Discussions

[finnegansmom]

Anyone expecting a stubborn baby?  My last was a few days shy of 42 and the one before right at 41w.  I'm guessing this one will be somewhere around there, although I already cringe at the thought of hitting 42 weeks.

Anyone in a similar boat?  I know the baby will come when he or she is ready and there's really nothing I can do about it, but I'm 34 weeks, and am so enormous already...I can wrap my head around another 6 weeks.  But another 8?  uggggghhhh.....8 more weeks of sleeping in 45 minute increments in between getting up to pee 11 times a night makes me a little bummed.

[faithsstuff]

Oh jeez I hope not. Z was induced on his due date but my vbac team is cool with at least 42 weeks. I hope to everything holy I don't last that long.

[katelove]

I'm assuming 42 weeks. J was induced at 41+6 and wasnt ready then. This time my options are much more limited (VBAC) so I'm hoping she won't need as much cooking time but I'm telling myself 42 weeks so I don't get too fed up.

Because I have GDM and think I will need insulin soon my carers are going to want delivery at 38 weeks but I've already told them that I won't be doing that unless there is a clear indication. They will be jumping up and down by 42 weeks so, for all our sakes, I'm really hopIng for a nice spontaneous labour sometime very close to my EDC. If I dont need insulin they will be a bit more relaxed about "awaiting events" but not forever.

[sere234]

Ugh, like any expecting parents need the added stress of docs wanting to get that baby out fast at the end of pregnancy.

I started taking birthing day guesses from family members and I write them on my calendar. Makes the wait a little more interesting to see who will win :) I need to collect $ from them too to make it SUPER fun. 

[fayebond]

Originally Posted by sere234 

I started taking birthing day guesses from family members and I write them on my calendar. Makes the wait a little more interesting to see who will win :) I need to collect $ from them too to make it SUPER fun. 

 Great idea!  

I feel like this baby wants to go late (just a vibe), so if was just me I'd be going with 41w 1d.  And I have a family history of late (late late) second babies.  But, my mother is praying he/she will come a full two weeks early so she can be there. When my mother prays, everybody better get ready.  :)   If I tried the guessing game, everyone would probably put money on my mom's date.  It would be fun to guess anyway.  My brother would guess late, because then HE can be here (for the baby, not for the birth itself, they're cool with privacy on taht one, WHEW).

[oikophile]

Well, I was born at 36 weeks (first baby) and my younger brother was born at 37.5 weeks. Is this kind of thing hereditary? 

Murphy's law would dictate, however, that I'd go to 42 weeks and give birth on Thanksgiving :) We'll see.

[finnegansmom]

Originally Posted by oikophile 

Well, I was born at 36 weeks (first baby) and my younger brother was born at 37.5 weeks. Is this kind of thing hereditary? 

Murphy's law would dictate, however, that I'd go to 42 weeks and give birth on Thanksgiving :) We'll see.

I sort of think in part it might genetic.  I was born 1-2 weeks "late" and was 9#11 and 21.5", and my second was 41 weeks and was 9#10 and 21.5"....I think both gestation and birth size are genetic as long as other issues aren't in play.   I wonder in part if it has to do with pelvis size or maybe the ability to carry/birth larger babies?  The ladies in my family have big babies, I think we all come from "sturdy stock".  LOL.  I think some babies just need more time.  Just the same way some of my girlfriends have their babies at 35 or 36 weeks.  I'm very doubtful I'll have this one before 40 weeks, I really need to wrap my head around that and start thinking in terms of 42 weeks not 40 so I'm not super disappointed/frustrated on my "due date".

[Simonsez2u]

I am banking on around the 41 weekish mark.  Both of my previous births were at or around 41 weeks.  I am using that as my mental "due date" to avoid any disappointment when 40 weeks rolls around and no baby.  However, if it does happen then yay for me!
 

[jillc512]

Originally Posted by finnegansmom 

I sort of think in part it might genetic.  I was born 1-2 weeks "late" and was 9#11 and 21.5", and my second was 41 weeks and was 9#10 and 21.5"....I think both gestation and birth size are genetic as long as other issues aren't in play.   I wonder in part if it has to do with pelvis size or maybe the ability to carry/birth larger babies?  The ladies in my family have big babies, I think we all come from "sturdy stock".  LOL.  I think some babies just need more time.  Just the same way some of my girlfriends have their babies at 35 or 36 weeks.  I'm very doubtful I'll have this one before 40 weeks, I really need to wrap my head around that and start thinking in terms of 42 weeks not 40 so I'm not super disappointed/frustrated on my "due date".

As a matter of fact, I just read a study abstract on this! http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2011.03154.x/abstract#.TskicfonjV0.twitter "A post-term mother (≥42 weeks) had a 49% increased risk of giving birth to a child at ≥42 weeks and a post-term father had a 23% increased risk of fathering a child at ≥42 weeks."  I thought it was particularly interesting that the chance of going past 42 weeks increased if the FATHER of the baby was born at 42 weeks or later (and not just the mother),

I think I have an inflated sense of how patient I would be if I went way over my EDD (my longest pregnancy was my first at 40w5d).  I hope this baby will not test that theory!  And, that study definitely applies to me, because my mother was induced with me at 43 weeks.  Fortunately, my DH was born just before 37 weeks, so apparently we even each other out :).

I feel the least certain about when this baby will be born since this is the first time I haven't known the conception date.  My EDD of the 7th is the absolute latest it could be AND I've been measuring big...all of which means I'll probably still be pregnant on my own birthday (the 18th)!

[MrsKoehn]

I'm feeling that baby will be early BUT it's not likely. I guess FTMs go an average of 10 days over. I was my Mom's first and 9 days early. For some reason, I am feeling Oct 17th, which is 3 weeks early AND my MW will be out of the country and her backup I would have only met once. It'll probably be late, December 5th would be 4 weeks over. I had 2 SILs go that long just fine. One has had a second so far and baby was 43 weeks. Both her kids were in the 7 lbs range.

[poema304]

I am actually really fearful of having a preterm baby. I have no real good reason for it, but I think about it constantly which worries me even more because its not something I really want to dwell on. My first DS was induced on his due date, my second son was born 4 days before his due date, but this one is 7 years later, so who knows what my body will do. I would prefer to have my baby at the 38/39 week time frame, but its just because I want to give birth before my mom flies in... and to give us more distance between a birthday and Thanksgiving

[eggsandpancakes]

Originally Posted by poema304 

I am actually really fearful of having a preterm baby. I have no real good reason for it, but I think about it constantly which worries me even more because its not something I really want to dwell on. My first DS was induced on his due date, my second son was born 4 days before his due date, but this one is 7 years later, so who knows what my body will do. I would prefer to have my baby at the 38/39 week time frame, but its just because I want to give birth before my mom flies in... and to give us more distance between a birthday and Thanksgiving

me too. i have zero, absolutely no, good reason to belive this baby will be pre-term early. my first was 35 week PROM, followed by hospital induction, my second baby was 37 weeks, spontantious labor and fully cooked, so yeah, mine come a little early. but with every low, twingy pubic bone pain thing i panic a bit. and i know that even if babe was born tomorrow, at 32 weeks it'd would be fine. but still, cook baby, cook. please.

[guen]

Believe it or not, as miserably uncomfortable and sleepless as I am already, I would be thrilled (I think, LOL) to hit my due date and maybe more. The closest I've gotten has been sometime in the 38th week, the earliest (my last) was 35 weeks.  I'm paranoid that this baby will come early, too, with all the difficulty that my last baby's birth and those first six months brought.  This is my last, not by choice but by circumstances, and I'm not anxious to have it over too quickly.  I daresay, if any of my other pregnancies had managed to make it to my due date, I might feel differently! ;-)

[Therese's Mommy]

My mom arrives 2 days before my due date and I would love the dilemma of "what to do with the kids" because I go into labor before she gets here.  BUT, I am sure this baby will be staying put for quite a while.  My first was born via induction a couple days before her due date (no indication I was about ready to go into labor), my second was born via induction at 42+ (she was 9lbs 2oz and 22") and my third came on her own at exactly 41wks (she was 9lbs and 21").  I really want to be home with baby for T'giving and not go into labor the day before (labor support is also hosting us for T'giving, don't want to put too much stress on her).  Sitting here at 32w4d and not feeling too uncomfortable at all.  Just having difficulty getting off our couch and drying off after a shower.  I am not getting my hopes up.

[fayebond]

Sounds like everyone wants to be able to relax on Thanksgiving! 

[wendelberry]

I appreciate all the reminders of how I don't actually want to go into labor soon.    

I have no EDD and lately have been super worried that I'm in the wrong DDC and maybe should be in the Dec. one!  YIKES!  I find it so difficult to tell how far I might be along...some days I feel huge, others like I can't really be more than 25 wks (my best guess right now is 33wks).  There's so much variation between people that it seems useless to go by measurements.  I'm just really wishing that I hadn't stopped keeping track of periods last fall!!  

I can see major movement in my tummy as I type this on my laptop, so hopefully that means I'm on the farther-along side of the spectrum.  Like everybody else, I'd really like to have this all over by Thanksgiving.  But somehow I'm not super confident about that.  We did go get our birth supplies this morning, just to try to hurry LO along...or at least be prepared if all our guesses are off by weeks in the other direction!

[faithsstuff]

Wendelberry---I would be so stressed being unsure of EDD.  Not that knowing it does anything magical, I just like the countdown:)   

I'm on insulin now and since I just started I have to go to the peri every week for NST and biophysical profile.  The doc practices evidence based medicine and if baby isn't in distress and my sugar is controlled he is cool with 42 weeks, waterbirth, non medicated, etc.  He has more faith in my body then I do at this point!  However, my midwives have pointed out that I have two dates (Nov 12 and 18) and that those will be important if I go post 40.  

[MrsKoehn]

Originally Posted by wendelberry 

I appreciate all the reminders of how I don't actually want to go into labor soon.    

I have no EDD and lately have been super worried that I'm in the wrong DDC and maybe should be in the Dec. one!  YIKES!  I find it so difficult to tell how far I might be along...some days I feel huge, others like I can't really be more than 25 wks (my best guess right now is 33wks).  There's so much variation between people that it seems useless to go by measurements.  I'm just really wishing that I hadn't stopped keeping track of periods last fall!!  

I can see major movement in my tummy as I type this on my laptop, so hopefully that means I'm on the farther-along side of the spectrum.  Like everybody else, I'd really like to have this all over by Thanksgiving.  But somehow I'm not super confident about that.  We did go get our birth supplies this morning, just to try to hurry LO along...or at least be prepared if all our guesses are off by weeks in the other direction!

As a FTM I don't know what to expect in labor. Trying to just relax about it and prepare. It's probably a good thing for me that I don't get excited about things until they're happening. Even then not always, esp when there's a lot of variables. Now I do tend to over plan then freak when it doesn't happen. SO I'm trying to keep to planning what I can and the rest just prepare for anything.

Oh it would drive me batty not to know when I cycled. I keep track of it on paper and chart mucous and temps. Even now so I don't get out of the habit. I like stats and weird stuff like that.

Measuring, I measure 30 at my 34 week check. I am a small person (5'), so are my Mom (5' 3 1/2") and sister (5' 4") so I expect to be a little smaller. My Sister had short babies and she said she always measured behind. I haven't asked Mom but my sis said she said she always measured behind too (though I bet #4 she didn't. He was BIG and LONG). It's really not a big deal. Babies grow at different rates and sizes in and out of utero. That's why people are all different shapes and sizes. : )

[Marilyn82]

My DS was a cesarean at 40 weeks and I never went into labor but wasn't showing any signs of it, that's for sure! DD was born at a full 43 weeks (actually 43 +1 by the time I actually had her lol...went into labor at 43 on the dot). So yeah....I like em well done :) In all seriousness I pretty much plan on being 42 and will count myself lucky if it doesn't go past that, but you know...whatev.

I do have the added issue of the fact that I don't even really know my due date lol. I got pg on my very first - very weird cycle after having my daughter (18 months after birth - yay nursing). I historically have weird irregular cycles that are generally long, so I doubt calculating by LMP would be very accurate, but if I use LMP, my due date is somewhere in the middle of Nov. I had an U/S at 20 weeks so it was too late in pregnancy to give me any kind of accurate due date but they gave me Nov 30th, so I'm going with that one. I'm also measuring a few weeks ahead but I have big babies, soooo....basically, who the heck knows? haha

[finnegansmom]

Anyone approaching the 40 week mark?  I'll be 39 weeks on Sunday.  I feel pretty good considering how big I am and how often I'm dealing with the BH contrax.

My midwife doesn't so internals which is fine, I don't really think it offers much info anyways but I keep thinking about just this once, having the baby before 40 weeks. 

Anyone ever had 1 or more 40+ babies and then have an early bird? 

I don't really mind being pregnant but I find myself struggling to be the good, active mom to 3 boys (6, 4, 1) when I'm barely able to bend over and walk.