Feeling sad about birth options

Induction based on size alone is a debated topic with some people saying that your body won’t produce a baby too large for you to birth. But then hearing things like shoulder dystocia make me not sign up to that belief.
My first was measuring 97 percentile and they wanted to induce me. You don’t have to say yes. And can push it back as far as you can in the hope you go into labour naturally beforehand.
I opted for two days ahead of my due date and had a sweep in the week which got things moving and I went into labour naturally two days ahead of my planned induction so didn’t need one in the end.
My birth had lots of issues in the end so regardless of induction you never know what’s going to happen.
But also to say they said my LG would be over 9lb and she was 8lb 10oz. So still big but not quite as big.

My doula recommended reflexology and acupuncture as great ways for inducing labour x

thank you for the advice! I’ve got this thing in my head that I really don’t want an induction of any form, and would rather take a planned c-section over it… I’m not sure where that’s come from but that’s my gut feeling. But at the same time, a c-section is still at the bottom of my preferences 😅 Do you know how long they would’ve let you continue to push back the induction plan, if you had wanted to?

that’s good to know! Will look into those ☺️

Two days before my due date seemed to be my limit. My due date was a Sunday and they don’t like to do indications/planned sections over weekends so reckon you could get them to agree to wait till your due date if it’s a weekday. It takes a fight (even though it shouldn’t) but stand your ground.

if it’s any consolation, i got told my first was going to be big and was scheduled to be induced at 38 weeks, but baby came naturally a few days earlier and was only 6lbs1. i had polyhydraminos so an early SROM was always on the cards, but other than that i’d spent the entire day repacking hospital bags and sorting out baby stuff so idk if that did anything. i’ve heard expressing and sex can help bring labour on, but that’s if you can even be bothered😂

i was pushed to have a section, even during labour i was told if baby isn’t out in ‘x’ amount of time i’d be taken to theatre and i said no everytime. looking back i really regret it. i have no positive feelings regarding giving birth to my daughter, i felt horrendous, i threw up the whole time and developed sepsis markers so i felt incredibly shit. i ended up tearing really bad and lost a lot of blood so recovery was awful, looking back i wish i had just had the section to save myself the suffering after.

They are so often wrong. Can you get a second opinion/another scan to check maybe before you make your decision?
I have my growth scan tomorrow, but personally, I won't accept induction or csection just on the basis of predicted weight. I'd rather go into labour naturally and then have the csection if it becomes medically necessary. My first was an emergency section and I'm still glad I got to at least start the process on my own terms, even though it didn't end how I wanted.

Get another growth scan. They told me mine would be 7lb something and he was 9lb 4. How big are they predicting? Percentiles give different outcomes for everyone.

I went into birth naturally 5 days over and had a 4 hour 20 min active labour and no tears just small graze. So it’s possible x

If they told me my next was going to be 12lb I’d be considering my options though 😂

I’m the same but don’t know what to do. I would rather be safe especially for the babies sake and go for planned c section but hubby is a little worried for me and c section. As a high risk pregnancy they have been scanning at least once a month and the last scan at week 32 was showing 99th centile weighing at an estimated 5.1 pound. Baby seems to be growing at 1 kg per month. I’m also stuck but need to make a decision as I’m week 34 today.

Mine was 6lb at my growth scan at 34 weeks. Have they told you what you’re estimated at 40 weeks?

Best thing to do is really get them to explain the risk. They sometimes say higher risk this etc but you could still be looking at 0.something %. Consider this Alongside whatever they identified as higher risk and make your decision. People get put on growth scans because they are ‘higher risk’ but the risk can still be very very low. I have a bicornate uterus (heart shape womb) and if you read it’s higher risk everything only small percentages and never had an issue.

You should feel proud of yourself now just by getting through a difficult pregnancy. Regardless of how little one is delivered, you should be proud of yourself. An induction or c-section delivery don’t make you less of a mum in any way.

Saying this, you have choices and don’t have to go for either option. You can say no and look into the risks yourself and make your own decision.
I was induced the first time and I would like to avoid it this time as I had a long and exhausting labour. My LO is also measuring big, I have a follow up growth scan today and hopefully that will help me make my mind up.
I was tested for gestational diabetes which came back clear, so I know there’s one less risk factor to try and have a spontaneous delivery.

Also remember that there’s an error margin of 15-20% when determining fetal weight in scans before 37 weeks.

I was told my first was estimated to be 10lbs after regular growth scans during pregnancy (I had GD so this increased my risk factor) I let them talk me into an induction at 38 weeks and had a very unpleasant birth.

This time round I swore I wouldn’t be talked into an induction again. I went for a growth scan at 32 weeks and baby was coming up 99 centile for abdomen size too. Estimated to be 5lbs. Everything else like femur and head circumference in normal range. They have said at this stage they aren’t concerned because everything else is low risk and said it could just be due to the natural margine of error that comes with ultrasound scans.

Both pregnancies have been with different trusts. My first with kings in london and my second now in Kent - I think there’s often differences with how trusts manage these things and consider risk etc which does indicate that certain things, like being large on a growth scan are not immediately as risky as everyone says.

As everyone on here has said, don’t be afraid to ask more questions, weigh up your options, ask for more time i.e. pushing back an induction or asking for sweep if suitable. This is your pregnancy and your birth and you have every right to make your own informed choices and not be scaremongered into doing the first things suggested by consultants/midwifes.

And just to add, my predicted 10lb baby was born 7lbs so no where near there estimates! They can so often be wrong!

Thanks everyone for your useful advice! We’ve had two scans recently - one with a consultant and another with a midwife and they’re both saying the same thing, but as everyone has already mentioned, we are taking it with a pinch of salt 😶 I’ve heard so many stories where baby has been predicted to be a certain weight and they’ve come out smaller!

We mentioned a couple of times that we will probably want to wait until baby comes naturally, so they are recommending that we talk to a consultant midwife about our options… Has anyone else been in this boat? Positive experience?