30 Weeks Pregnant - one concern

Hi all
I am now 30 weeks. I went for an ultrasound on monday n doctor said that the baby is big 4lbs now (myself and my husband both were big babies during the birth) and she said in another 10 weeks normal weight gain for a baby is 5 lbs. So for my baby by that time it will be 9 lbs (which is exactly my weight during birth). I want to know is there a chance of delivering a big baby thru' normal delivery(vaginal delivery). I am starting to have concerns about the weight and also about the delivery.

I need some adivce regarding these.

Thanks in advance.
-Dsrini

Hi D Srini,

Don't concern yourself overly. You can have a normal delivery even with a big baby. I have friends who have delivered 9 plus pounders normally and both my babies were big 8lbs 7 oz and 8 lbs 14 oz. Both were normal deliveries.
Just relax. Walk, walk, walk, thats is the best exercise to loosen all your muscles and help in the normal delivery. Also, do Kegel exercises to strengthen the muscles in the pelvic area.
The most that happens in a normal delivery if the babies head is big is that the doc will do an episiotomy( tear the vaginal opening alittle more) to aid the baby coming out. As long as you do not have any other complications, you don't have to worry about your wieght or the baby's weight.

Vandhana

hi don't worry,
u'll have very safe delivery,recently in china a baby with 6 1/2k weight born,both mother & kid r safe also the lady is very happy didn't suffer more in her delivery..
i don't have experience,but i want to info u & give support,all the best for ur delivery,take care.

Hello Dsrini,

One of my friends also had a big baby(7 lbs) and it was a normal delivery.Only trouble was that for her,the baby's head was big and she had to lose blood.But she told me later that the doctor was not good enough.I am sure that a good doctor will definitely help you make the right decision.so please donot be scared.I hope you will have a normal delivery.

Thanks all for your reply.
Its really helpful.

Thanks again
-DSrini

Hi
i too delivered 8 pound baby in normal delivery. my baby head is big so they did episiotomy. walk walk and do kegal. happy healthy pregnancy.

Hai Dsrini,
All the best for a safe delivery and a healthy baby. Please don't laugh- my son was born in 28 weeks and his birth weight was 1.5 kg and it came down to 1.35 in a week and he stayed that way for 3 months. I used to ferverantly pray for a weight gain on 50 gms atleast, everyday morning when the baby was about to be weighed.
I wish you all the luck for a happy delivery, do not worry.

Hi,

I have a similar question. I am 30 weeks pregnant now and today my massage therapist told me that the baby is really large for this stage of the pregnancy. I haven't had the anatomy scan as yet, so I do not know the exact weight.

My question is, for large babies, wouldn't a C-section be preferred over an episiotomy? I've had friends who had the episiotomy describe it as a pretty hairy experience and recovery is more difficult than a regular C-section. I've personally known women who've opted for a scheduled C over a natural delivery and of course approved by the ob-gyn.

Dear Careerminded,

Again it depends on the doc, what they want to do. My gyn told me if the baby goes over 9 pounds, she will do c section. But during my last scan at 40 weeks, the baby was 8 lbs 12 ozs, so we decided to try for normal. Regarding the episiotomy, it is done only in the last stages of labor when you are really pushing. Now with the pushing movements, if the head is big, you can naturally tear near the vaginal opening to deliver.Other wise, they do spray a local anesthetic before they cut. Also if you are planning to take an epidural, you will not feel a thing. ( i did not take epidural, and i did not feel anything when they did the episiotomy and stitched me up later.)
My experience has been that the recovery is much quicker after an episiotomy compared to a c section. Yes it does hurt a little, but the wounds do heal a lot faster. They do have things like sitz bath etc... that aid in the healing process.

Good luck with the delivery.

Vandhana

Dear careerminded and dsrini,

Don't get tensed thinking about the delivery. I also know friends who have delivered 9pounders normally. Careerminded, don't bother about what people say about your baby's weight by looking at your tummy. For me people used to say that I have a really BIG baby, while infact the baby was only 6.2pounds when born. Even my doctors would tell that it was a big baby and all that.
Its is true as Vandhana said that after an episiotomy recovery is much faster than a C-Section from my personal experience. I delivered my baby thru a forceps delivery and had a lot of tears. Infact when I asked the doctor right after he stiched me, he only said "yes you had really bad tears". While pushing, the baby's heart-rate was drastically coming down, so the doc quickly decided to go for forceps over a c-section and I was thankful he did that. I have heard horrifying experiences where they make you go thru all the labor pains and last minute they decide on c-section, its like having 2 deliveries in one I feel...bearing all the labor pains and also going thru c-section recovery afterward. Initial 2-3 weeks was terrible for me...but sitz baths and ice packs helped me a lot (the nurse was kind enough to give extra ice packs from hospital).
Another thing I want to add is - in my opinion here in US the doctors mostly try their max to get the baby out thru vaginal delivery. Its a lot less risk with the patient developing complications after the c-section surgery and less trouble for them with insurance companies etc. I am sure if my case was in India, I would have 200% had a c-section.

Take care and enjoy your pregnancy!
Sihi