Please Help!!!

[ladybugamber]

My husband and I went in for another ultrasound this past Thursday and found out that baby Zachary weighs 8 1/2lbs!! They are wanting to either induce me or go ahead and schedule a C-Section on Tuesday... I'm scared to death. I dont want to be induced or have c-section but at the same time I dont wanna wait and have a 10lb baby! (this is my first) So...:

Anyone have any suggestions on natural ways to induce? I've dilated to 1cm as of last Thursday... and I've been having sex like crazy! (My husband is loving this part!!)

I still haven't had regular contractions yet and I'm getting very nervous! I need some suggestions... and fast!!

Thanks in advance!!

[alegna]

Not in your group, but had to reply. U/S is NOT reliable for estimating weight. Not at all. In your shoes I would refuse the induction and of course the section. Babies come when they're ready and they don't grow bigger than mama can birth.



-Angela

[ladybugamber]

We are having bio physical ultrasound due to a test we failed... so they are pretty much positive that he weighs that much. Regardless he's a big baby. They know that for sure!

[Lizzo]

I'm not in your DDC...but...please don't fear big babies. A big baby is NO reason for induction or a c-section.
My first was 9lb 1 oz...and I pushed 11 minutes with only a lil skid mark of a tear. I liked having a big baby and I hope this one is bigger.
8.5lb is pretty normal these days. It's no longer the dark ages where womyn can only gain 15 lbs during pregnancy! Big babies are healthy babies- be proud of yourself!!!
Your body is amazing and incredibly capable. You are strong.
Ultrasounds, especially this late in pregnancy are not very acurate at all. Even biophysical profiles.
Angela is right, your body grows a baby that is right for your body.
You can say no to an induction and a c-section. Do not let them scare you.
Now, you can take evening primrose oraly and vaginaly. 2 capsules oraly and then pop 2 capsules up into your yoni as close to your cervix as possible when you are about to fall asleep.
What worries you about big babies? Is it tearing? Maybe you should do perennial massage.
Walk walk walk...you should do that anyway.
Be healthy, be good to yourself and enjoy these last weeks or days of pregnancy. You'll onyl be pregnant with this baby once!!!

[geekmediainc]

I agree with Lizzo. Your body is very capable!!!

[mamachandi]

I am not in your group either ,lol! but had to respond. My sister (who weighs 110 lbs at the most and is 5'5) had 2- 10 lb babies vaginally. You CAN do it, your body is perfect and you were made to have babies!

[MindOverLaborDoula]

I am also not in your due date group, yet (ttc this fall and need to get some prospective for me and also for my clients!).
That said, I've had a client that the profile said that it would be an 11# baby and it came out 7#3oz.
Another said 10# and it came out 9#4oz. Before preg she was only 100 pounds and only gained 30 during her pregnancy. Oh yeah, she didn't have a single skid mark either.
If you do go in for an elective induction or c-section, keep in mind that it is just that.. elective.
The pp are all completely right. Your body does not grow babies bigger than you can birth.
I've had people say, "but I HAD to be induced (or c/s) because the baby was going to be over 8 POUNDS!!" And... what's the point? Oh, so they choose to be induced or have a c-section.
It's always the same thing for post date, or anything else they can think of!

[Caroline248]

I was told my son was going to be WELL over 8 pounds...he was 6 pounds 15 ounces.

I would wait...the baby will be fine. You don't have gestational diabetes, do you?

~C~

[Miss Juice]

Not in your DDC either, but why break the trend?

My 9 lb 2 oz baby was easier to birth than my 7 lb 12 oz baby.

I know too many women, in real life not stories, who induced because they were worried about the baby being too big, only to find out, after the induction led to the epidural led to failure to progress led to a c-section, that the baby was only 6 or 7 lbs. Please don't let them scare you. It's hard, especially when you're soooo ready to meet this baby, but not only are US unreliable at this stage, 8.5 lbs is not that big. Even IF that's true, and IF the baby continues to gain .5 lbs per week, he won't be that big before you deliver (you're right past your EDD, if I remember?).

[BundleFishMama]

Just wanted to agree with what everyone else has said! Don't do it - you do NOT want to deal with a c-section if there's no medical reason for it, and take it from someone who agreed to an induction and regretted it - you really don't want to have to deal with that either, if you don't have to (and often an induction turns into a c-section anyway, if the baby or your body isn't ready). Birthing a big baby when s/he and your body are both ready is MUCH better than dealing with pitocin, etc. and/or major abdominal surgery!! Besides, 8 1/2 lbs really is not considered THAT big anymore.

If you have a c-section, you will likely have a much harder recovery. It is not a minor thing, there are risks. You might face some challenges getting started breastfeeding and bonding. Also think of the future - it's getting harder to find docs to do VBACs in this country, so if you end up with a section you may have to have them for future children, too, and then you'll never get to know what it's like to have a baby naturally (of couse not to put down moms who have had to have multiple sections - but you know what I mean, it's not something to take lightly).

Not to scare you but just to encourage you to stand up for yourself and your baby and let nature take its course - good luck!!

[ckhagen]

Lol... I am in your group so I guess I'm breaking the trend?

U/S weight estimation at this stage of the game is notoriously wrong... so wrong it's not even funny most of the time!

I had the opposite happen that most of the PPs have experienced. Just to show you it can be miserably wrong... I was induced because I was "overdue" (one day... whatEVER) with DS1, I went in 1cm dilated and 90% effaced.

The morning of my induction I had three people tell me that the u/s and their palpations indicated he was around 7.5 pounds. Well... after 38 hours of a horrible induction, an epi that kept me stuck in bed and unable to help him descend (he was not ready to come out... improperly positioned), and a c-section with failed anesthesia... out came a 10lb 8oz baby boy. They were three pounds off on their estimation! It just goes to show that you cannot rely on their estimations because they are just that... guesses.

This time, I'm informed. I know that it's not out of the ordinary to have a healthy 10lb baby (I'm 5'3" and 125 pounds btw). My body can do it... your body can do it. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't. Please don't let them scare you.

[BundleFishMama]

So, not to hijack the thread, but I'm curious - since so many of us have had U/S turn out to be really unreliable at estimating weight, what about docs'/midwives' estimates by palpation? Just wondering how accurate most of you have found that to be.

[jr'smom]

My first baby was 9lb 6oz. I loved having a big baby. Unfortunately he was a c-section because my water broke and I "failed to progress" as quickly as "they" would like. Knowing what I know now, I would have refused the induction and c-section. It was a very difficult, long, and painful labor only to end with surgery and a rough recovery. The baby and I got thrush repeatedly for months due to the antibiotics they automatically administer in the hospital. I have a feeling the one I'm expecting this month will be even bigger. They'll come when they're ready! And even if my water breaks, I will wait for the baby to come in his own time as long as all signs are that he's doing fine. I've talked to lots of moms who've had more than one baby who say their biggest was not necessarily harder to birth than their smaller ones. Most recently I met a mom of a TWELVE+ pounder! She said it was not a difficult birth and he was born at home with no pain meds. Her first was nearly eleven pounds. I hope you've found the encouragement to reject the interventions! Good luck!

[willow659]

Don't let them push you into having interventions. The best thing for you and your baby is to wait until your baby is ready to come. Your body really will grow the *right* sized baby.

Not in your group, but had to reply. U/S is NOT reliable for estimating weight. Not at all. In your shoes I would refuse the induction and of course the section. Babies come when they're ready and they don't grow bigger than mama can birth.

[Mama Coltrane]

God, don't listen to them. 8 1/2 lbs isn;t that big- it is really healthy and birthing that sized baby isn't such a big deal. Not to mention, US are notoriously innacurate. My friend got scared into a cs after they thought her babe was 11lb. Baby was 8 lb even. Boy was she mad!

[Caroline248]

Originally Posted by BundleFishMama

So, not to hijack the thread, but I'm curious - since so many of us have had U/S turn out to be really unreliable at estimating weight, what about docs'/midwives' estimates by palpation? Just wondering how accurate most of you have found that to be.

My midwife estimated him to be around 7 pounds before the ultrasound...she was off by one ounce!

~C~

[Simplicity]

Personally speaking I don't think that size is all that big. Of course, I don't know your body size or anything. My son was 8 pound 12 oz when born. I'm tall at 5'8 but before pregnancy I was 120 pounds and during I did gain some weight. However, I birthed him just fine. I know people who have birthed 10 pound babies!

So, I guess my point is... If there is not a medical reason to do a CS I wouldn't do it. When is your due date? Have you passed it? Is something else going on?

If you are uncomfortable with the CS and are healthy I say tell them you don't want it. You probably will not have a 10 pound babe... and if you did.. You can do it. Don't allow doctors to scare you into something you do not want to do.. Unless there are other medical reasons behind it which doesn't sound like the case? I dunno. I wouldn't do it.

[tsume]

Originally Posted by BundleFishMama

So, not to hijack the thread, but I'm curious - since so many of us have had U/S turn out to be really unreliable at estimating weight, what about docs'/midwives' estimates by palpation? Just wondering how accurate most of you have found that to be.

With our first the MW said 8# 3oz and he was 8# 4.2 oz and that was 2 days before he was born.

Our second our MW (a different one) said the baby was 'the perfect size for my body'

Our third our MW (same with number 2) said almost 8 pounds and she was 7# 13 oz

[earthmama369]

Everyone's given you great info on the inaccuracy of ultrasounds. 8.5 pounds really isn't that big even if the u/s is correct. Mama, you CAN do this. Don't let them freak you out -- just try to relax and let your body do the work it knows how to do.

[StacyL]

Yeah that to all the info about the inaccuracy of weight from U/S.

However, having just delivered a ten+ pound baby, I can assure you that you should not be scared of delivering a large baby. It's NOT the weight of the baby that makes a difference in what YOU feel - it's the POSITION. As long as your baby is LOA, you should be just fine. Don't be coerced or scared into an induction or a c-section by your medical "scare"-givers. Your body works just fine.