How do you know if your baby is "too big?"

TrendyTina · November 2011

I often hear about women having c-sections because the baby is "too big." I'm 5'11 and DH is 6'4, so we know our baby is most likely going to be on the large side. How do you know whether the baby is going to be too large to truly fit through the birth canal?

Would you try to push the baby out naturally and if it got stuck have an emergency section? TIA!

LindseyJW · November 2011

sizing estimates can be off by as much as +/- 2lbs towards the end of pregnancy, so it's nearly impossible to have an exact weight measurement.

you know your baby will fit because except in rare instances, in normal pregnancies, most women's bodies will not produce a baby that is too large to come out vaginally. if it were the case that so many of us make babies that need to be surgically removed from our uteri as society would have us believe, the human race would be MUCH smaller than it actually is since so many more women and babies would have died before safe cesareans during birth.

unless there was a medical need for a surgical birth, i would never opt for a cesarean!

tokenhoser · November 2011

The assumption that a baby is "too big" doesn't make it true. Lots of c-section babies could have been delivered vaginally but were never given the chance. There is a perception that a c-section is the safe choice, but that neglects the many complications that can arise from the section itself.

Even an "emergency" c-section often has some time associated with it - time to make the decision and get an epidural and then have the surgery. There are very, very few "knock you out and get it done NOW" c sections performed.

In other words: wait and see and you'll probably have no problem. If you have a doctor that brings up your "big baby", seek a second opinion before signing up for a section.

mrswhiskey · November 2011

My last ultrasound had the baby locked in at 8.5 lbs at 36 weeks. But we are going to try "trial of labor" to see if he can be born vaginally. Only after that will we discuss a c/s.

frostnoel · November 2011

If you watch "Pregnant in America", the filmmaker's sister is told her baby is "too big" and that she has to have a c-section. She gets a 2nd opinion and has her baby naturally.

You can't really base your baby's size off of you or YH current height. I was a 9 lb+ baby and am 5' 5", while my brother was a smaller baby and is almost a foot taller than me.

kaeti_su · November 2011

TrendyTina:
I often hear about women having c-sections because the baby is "too big." I'm 5'11 and DH is 6'4, so we know our baby is most likely going to be on the large side. How do you know whether the baby is going to be too large to truly fit through the birth canal?
Would you try to push the baby out naturally and if it got stuck have an emergency section? TIA!

You don't. There's no true way to know this before the birth. Whether or not a baby fits (easily or at all) depends on a lot of factors-- baby's size, baby's head size, baby's positioning, mom's positioning, the shape/structure of mom's pelvis, etc.

My MW estimated that I had an average-sized baby (which I did), but if I had been told that she was going to be big, I would have opted to try for a vaginal birth with the understanding that a c-section may become necessary.

rosiemomma · November 2011

I am 5'9, my daughter was 9'11' I birthed her naturally. My sisters have large babies the small ones were 8lbs and the big ones 11lbs. They had them vaginally and some of them epi-free. My mother who is 5'8 about 140lbs birthed me naturally at 12lbs 9oz!!!! I could imagine if it were to happen it would be rare a woman would need a c-section because she couldn't physically handle it. I would not worry for myself.

fyziksgirl · November 2011

Your baby almost certainly isn't too big; it's so rare as to not even really be a worry. Your body and baby know what they're doing, and unless you have suffered from severe malnutrition or serious hip problems your baby will almost certainly fit. Often interventions, such as c-sections, are done based on the idea that a baby is "too big," but that is very rarely a real concern. It is just a strange idea that medical professionals have latched on to that has caused the c-section rate to skyrocket far above what even ACOG says it should be.

One example, I have a friend who allowed herself to be induced because she had been told her baby was getting "too big" to be delivered vaginally, and if they "allowed" her to go longer she might not be able to avoid a c-section. After a hard induction (since baby was not ready to come out and mama was not ready to give birth!) she gave birth to her giant baby...who was 6 pounds 7 oz.

Trust your body, you can do it!

iris427 · November 2011

kaeti_su:
TrendyTina:
I often hear about women having c-sections because the baby is "too big." I'm 5'11 and DH is 6'4, so we know our baby is most likely going to be on the large side. How do you know whether the baby is going to be too large to truly fit through the birth canal?
Would you try to push the baby out naturally and if it got stuck have an emergency section? TIA!
You don't. There's no true way to know this before the birth. Whether or not a baby fits (easily or at all) depends on a lot of factors-- baby's size, baby's head size, baby's positioning, mom's positioning, the shape/structure of mom's pelvis, etc.
My MW estimated that I had an average-sized baby (which I did), but if I had been told that she was going to be big, I would have opted to try for a vaginal birth with the understanding that a c-section may become necessary.

Yes

There is no accurate way to tell ahead of time whether your baby will fit through the pelvis or not. Most babies will fit just fine--the survival of the human species has depended on it for millenia.

BrideNamedMeg · November 2011

My grandmother is 5'0'', probably weighed 110 when she was having babies and gave birth to a 10+ pound baby at home with no problem. All of her babies were pretty big, but that one was the largest!

I'm only 5'4'' - my son was 9lb 5oz and his birth was only difficult because of his presentation (OP). I still managed to have him med free at home. Like PP's have said, it's extremely rare to have a baby too big to fit through your pelvis. I know at least two people who had almost identical birth experiences to me with big babies and OP presentations, both of them ended up with c-sections because their doctors convinced them there was no other way to get the baby out. Who knows...maybe it was true for them, but having done it I know it's possible!

MsOCT · November 2011

If I remember correctly, I read somewhere that much of this talk of "baby too big" and frequent cephalopelvic distortion occurred in the past due to women who were affected by rickets, which actually caused a change in the shape of the pelvic outlet. This was before ultrasound, and since we are no longer so nutritionally deprived, most have normal pelvises. I've known a few people who were induced for "too big baby", who had lovely little 6lb babies.

Monkeybabe · November 2011

I think our bodies can handle a lot more than people tend to think. My mother gave birth to an 11lb 10 oz baby without meds, through her vagina. My mom is 5'3.

nosoup4u · November 2011

What everyone else said - no one can predict whether your baby is going to come out vaginally (or if it's macrosomic) until after it's born. This is a good link to read:

https://birthsen.tmdhosting930.com/?p=1531

FWIW, my first son was 8 lbs 4 oz and OP, and ended in a c-section after 4+ hours of pushing. My second son was 10lb 10 oz (and 23.5"), and was born vaginally. I'm 5'10" and my DH is 6'1".

redheadinlove · November 2011

just another thought, don't assume your baby will be big because you're both tall. On my side, all the babies are 9 pounds and my whole family is small to medium build and fairly skinny. On my fiances, they're all tall broad husky people and they were all 6 pound babies! (please please be a 6 pound baby lol)

Haley.Beth · November 2011

Trust your body. DH was the smallest of his four siblings at 9 lbs 8 ozs. His mother is a tiny little thing, 5'3 on a good day and she gave birth naturally to all four of them, the biggest being 10 lbs 13 ozs (that woman is definitely my hero). I've heard a good estimate isn't how big you and your partner are now, but to take an average of your birth weights (I don't think that's entirely accurate though). Like pp's have said, the only time your body will make a baby too big is if you have CPD or uncontrolled GD.