Big Baby

Yes you can definitely have a medication-free birth with a big baby. My mom gave birth to both me and my brother (I was 10#1 oz and my brother was 10# 11 oz!) drug free. My sister's baby was 8# 14 oz and she did it drug free too.

Also, for the record, the ultrasound estimations of birth weight can be off by more than 1 lb, so it's entirely possible that the baby is average. Don't let them scare you! I highly recommend reading some of the birth stories posted on mothering dot-commune (many of which are drug-free). Also, wonderful stories of drug-free births are published in Ina Mae's Guide to Childbirth - which is a great read anyway. Congratulations!

My doctor said my third was going to be pretty small. When she was born she was 9.14. So, an ultrasound is often wrong!!!

Hi E.... I am a 36 year old mom of 3. I have had 3 medication free births, 3, yes, count them, 3!! :)

My first was 6lbs, 13oz
My 2nd was 7lbs, 5oz
My last was 8lbs, 1oz

I had zero problems, outside of the obvious pain issues, which I am sure you can remember from having your first.. I actually felt way better after baby #3, than I did after any of the others (stitches healed great, etc)......

Hope this info helps, I think you will be fine!!

There is no way possible to know precisely how big a baby will be. My doctors never even bothered estimating it for me. They told me that they shy away from doing that because they are never accurate. Instead they would say "Oh she's measuring right where she should be at this time, or "Within the range of where she should be" etc...", but they never said your baby will be "big" or "small".

It's still early and I wouldn't put much stock in their measuring at this point. They are typically off by 2 pounds on either side.

I had my second child drug free. It wasn't by choice though. When I got to the hospital I was about 7 in a half centermeters dialated. They couldn't even give me pain meds through the iv. I was okay with it because I had him in two hours of going in. Of course that was after the 6 hours at home. My son was 7lbs 5.1oz. My daughter was 6lbs 13.9oz at birth. I had an epideral for her though. I wish you good luck with yours.

Hi,
Congrats on a new baby, have they checked for twins. My husbands side has many sets and they to were told early in their pregnancy that they would have a large baby. Turned out to be twins.

J.
www.noahbyjodi.com

E.,

Our son (our first) was 9 lbs. 7 oz. and I couldn't believe it. Our daughter, although I was positive she would be huge, came out 7 lbs. 12 oz. I can't speak to the medication-free birth since I had 2 c-sections, but despite the fact that I "felt" a much bigger baby inside me, she came out a relative peanut. My advice is don't stress out since there's no way to know for sure how big the baby will be. Good luck to you! A natural birth is an admirable thing :)

E.,

I'm currently pregnant with my 2nd boy due 8/27/07. I kept a pregnancy journal for my 1st son and have the same one for this one. Compared to my 1st pregnancy, my measurements are about 5 (yes, five) weeks bigger than I was with Jacob...and I started this pregnancy off weighing 17 pounds less than I did the first one. It could be how I'm carrying this one (more out than high), it could be a lot of things, I suppose.

At my last appointment, I was told that I seemed to be pretty big. Actually, his words were "You're a 'healthy' size. We need to keep an eye on that." My first son was 8 lbs 10oz. I'm a little worried about this one. The smallest child my mom delivered was 8-6 and my brother was 11-10. My sister was 9-6 and they took her 2 weeks early because of my mom's history with my brother. Had she gone to term, my sister would have been around the 11 pound mark, too. Her mother (my Grandma) never had a baby under 9 pounds and most were close to 10. After reminding my doctor of that, he noted the file and said we'd have to watch that, too.

As for the medicine-free delivery...I went in to the delivery room willing to try to go med-free, but it wasn't too long until I was getting some in the IV. Lol. I'll probably try that again and see what happens this time.

I think it's a choice you can make as you get closer to August and see how big your baby is at that point. Even then, they aren't always accurate. Maybe do what I did and say you want to start off med-free and see how it goes once you are in there.

Good luck and congrats!

Hi E.,

My son was born last July and I had him 2 1/2 weeks early cuz he was so big. He was born at 9lbs 3oz and they said if I went full term he would have been well over 10lbs. I had a c-section because of his size and the fact that his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice. They said had it been one or the other I would have been able to have him naturally but not both. plus I had gestational diabetes. I know alot of people who have measured a couple weeks ahead of their due date. Doctors can be wrong. They told me my first son was going to be huge and he was under 7lbs so as long as there is no risk to the baby's health by having him naturally then you'll be fine and from the sounds of it other then the size the baby sounds perfectly healthy!!

Congrats and enjoy cuz they grow up way to fast!!!

It is impossible for a doctor to say definitively how big the baby will be just by how your belly is measuring. Your measurement can be bigger just by how the baby is turned that day, how much amniotic fluid you have, etc... Even an ultrasound with measurements is not full-proof b/c it can be off by a full pound. Don't get all worried about it. My fourth was 8 pounds, 15 ounces with no meds [although not by choice :) ] Don't stress yourself out about a big baby. It's not worth it!

I would put it out of my mind. Is it possible they have the dates off a little? Your baby's "due date" is only an estimate, as anytime between 38 and 42 weeks is considered term. With my first they said, "I think it's going to be early and I think it's going to be big". Well, he WAS 3 weeks early (hmmm, maybe) but he was only 6 and a half pounds! So I would not even think twice about it and (try) to enjoy the rest of you pregnancy. Congrats on #2...I'm due with #4 about a month before you. All 3 have been med-free births and have been bigger than my first...7#-10 oz. and 7#-13 oz. All 3 were early as well. You'll be fine :-) Just remember what a wonderful reward is at the other end of labor and delivery!

Drs can be wrong in their prediction of when you conceived, so that can be part of it....they assume with their "pregnancy wheel" that you conceived on day 14, but every woman doesn't ovulate on day 14.

I had my son med free and he was 8lbs 5 oz. He also was trying to get out from 29 weeks on so I was pretty far dialated and effaced before I went into the hospital. Labor was fast, but very painful and intense with no breaks but I was able to handle it. I did not feel like I needed any meds until the very end and by that time he was already on his way. I also know someone else who gave birth to a 10 lber without meds, so it is very possible.

Towards the end of my pregnancy and even while I was delivering (med free not by choice), the doctor told me that I was going to have an 8 lb baby (but I measured right on each week). Now I know it was because of the way I was carrying my daughter. She was born 7 lb 4 oz. (very average)...big difference, but estimating a baby's weight is not an exact science in my opinion. Many factors play into that estimation.

Hi E.~
I just had my 2nd baby this past Feb. I have a 4 yr old boy, who was 7lb, 5oz and 19 inches, born on his due date. My baby girl, though, was 9lb 1oz and 21 inches. She came about 2 weeks early, due to me requesting to be induced. Before I go any further, I'd like to mention that I am a fairly small person-I'm 5'5", and am only about 120 not pregnant. I had an epidural with both my kids. With my son it was wonderful and I swore I'd have one with all my babies!! However, with my daughter, it wore off just as I was ready to begin pushing. The hospital I delivered at gave me an epidural with a "clicker" that I can click whenever I felt any pain and/or pressure so that it would inject another dose into my body. I chose not to use it at all with her. I definitely felt everything, but what I felt was pressure more than pain. Believe it or not, my delivery and recovery experience was much more pleasurable and tolerable with my bigger baby than with my smaller baby. I didn't have any pain meds even after the delivery.
Good luck with everything, and I'm sure all will be wonderful!!!
~J.~

I was 3-4 weeks further along and my two boys were both 8lbs. 11 oz. I had an ephidural with both, so I can't help you on delivering med free. My mom had an almost 13 lb baby med free, if that helps any (she tells me she can't remember my sisters birth, so it couldn't have been that bad). That being said, a doctor can't really tell the size of the baby until they are born. An ultrasound helps, but they never know for sure. Try not to worry. The baby has to come out, and once it is over you won't remember the pain....just pure love. :)

Could they be wrong about your conseption date? I dont think that I would worry about it too much. I had an ultrasound and they told me I was going to have a bigger baby than I actually had so measurements and ultrasounds can be wrong. Congrats on your upcoming birth! My husband and I put up 8 foot storks to announce new babies. Call us if you are interested. Take care, J. ###-###-####

Hi E.!
Congratulations on your baby!

I have an 8 month old and a 3 year old and all through my 2nd pregnancy I was measuring big. They would measure me and gasp, "whoa, this one is a BIG one!" Scared the bagezus out of me! I was also planning on a natural, drug free birth. They also told me that I would not see full term (my first was a preemie) and I made it to 2 days before my due date!

I did it drug free and that BIG baby that everyone talked about was 7lbs 4oz. Sure, he felt big coming out, but he certainly wasn't the monster that they had anticipated.

There really is no way to know for sure how big the baby really is - even on the ultrasounds when they measure. Its all a guess.

The drug free birth was an amazing experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat (my first was an emergency c/s). Best of luck with your next 11 weeks!
B.

Hi E.,

In my second preganancy, I was consistantly measuring big by 2 or 3 weeks. I delivered a 9lb 11oz baby boy, at home,completely medication free. I found it a much easier delivery than my first,who was smaller.
Hope you have a quick,safe, wonderful delivery!!

L.

I had 2 big babies. First was 9-11 23 inches long, my daughter was 8-12 at 21 inches long but she was 2 weeks early so she would have just as big. BUt with my second child the drugs wore off by the time I was ready to push and I can't imagine doing it without the drugs with a big baby. You still feel it it is just not as painful.

Good luck! I don't believe them when they say they can estimate the size ahead of time - they were off with both of my kids.

I had both my kids without painkillers - just under 7 lbs and 8 lbs. 4 oz. But one of my good friends had an Eleven Pounder via natural childbirth! The newborn looked like a 3 month old. Can you imagine? No bad tearing, either - amazing.