Ultrasound Saying Baby on Bigger Side

Oh pthhh....those things are just a wild guess. They told me I was going to have a 10+ pounder. He was 7 lbs, 10 oz.

My first was 9lbs. Ultrasound estimated big and I got scared. I'm a small 5'4", 125lb +30lb pregnancy weight.. the Dr said it makes no difference how big or small anyone is built, what matters is the shape of the pelvis and whether it can handle a big baby. She said based on her evaluation I shouldn't have a problem. He did end up being a vaccuum delivery but that was only because they wanted to get him out fast because his heart decel'ed.

I delevered a 10 pound baby a few years back. She came out fast and I didn't even need stitches! She was however my second child so that may have made it easier. Just two weeks ago I gave birth to my son who was 8.7 and it was a great delivery as well.

Hope this helps! Good luck :o)

Also...my ultrasound tech pegged him at 8.8. She was only 1 ounce off!

Don't sweat it girl! They have predicted both of mine to be 9 pounders, both were full term plus some and one was 7lb 14 oz and the other 7lb 11oz. Don't worry, late term ultrasound is historically inaccurate. Just breathe, the baby is going to just be whatever size they are meant to be and come when they want or when you and your dr. decide to induce. It will be ok :D Congrats!!

Don't stress due to an estimated weight. Many women have successfully delivered large babies without complications... just make sure you talk to your OB about perineal oiling and stretching and moving around to better positions that your body needs to give birth (on hands and knees, on knees with hands against the wall or bed, etc).

Don't agree to IVs unless you absolutely need them, labor as long as you can at home - leisurely and relax with showers and make sure to eat and drink PLENTY before you go to the hospital - because once there they will not allow you anything by mouth. American hospitals are the only ones who will deny sustenance to those who need it most - birthing a baby is hard work!

I've been measuring big for fundal height. I should be between 28-29 and am at 34 inches... I'm not too worried about it, I thankfully have a Midwife attending my Home birth VBAC and couldn't be happier about it!

Good luck with your labor - keep in mind you can refuse any treatment and ask questions on WHY they want to do something. I'm sorry you will most likely be made to agree to continuous fetal monitoring - but you can (and I advocate strongly to refuse) internal fetal and uterine monitoring.

I should also say I'm a Nurse... I wish I had all this info BEFORE I had my firstborn.

Just wanted to add that a bigger baby is healthier (for the most part) than a too small baby. All my four babies were just a couple ounces shy of 9 lbs- not super big, but not small either. I have no complaints of the size, it wasn't a big deal. Really, though- your baby sounds healthy, and that is great:)

I had an ultrasound done 16 days before my due date and was told he was about 8 1/2 lbs well I had him two days later and my peanut only weighed 6 lbs.
I know lots of women that have had bigger babies and they had no problems my sisters little boy weighed 9 lbs 10 oz my sil daughter weighed 9 lbs 14 oz and my sil is a very very tiny lady. She was her biggest and easiest delivery. You'd be surprised what our bodies are capable of.

Don't stress, our bodies where made for this! I have heard of woman having 12 and 13 pound babies vaginally with no tearing by just taking their time and letting their bodies adjust and stretch. Childbirth always seems way scarier until you have actually done it!

Big babies... ahhh memories. I was HUGE with my second baby and my doc said... "Naw, you'll deliver an average size baby, nothing to worry about." Well, my son was 10.5 lbs!!! 21 1/2 inches long. I delievered him naturally with only a few IV meds. My delivery went well, however because of his size they kept us 2 extra to moniter him (blood sugars) and me because my uterus had a difficult time contracting back down. We all came home healthy and happy. He is three now, and wears a size 6!

My first was 10 lbs 2 oz, which my doctor wasn't expecting. I had gained only the "normal" amount of weight and only had a 20 wk US, so the doctor thought the baby would be about 8 pounds. I was induced early for my 2nd child, and he was 9 lbs 14 oz. I would say the size of the head is the bigger "problem" vs the weight of the baby. Unfortunately, my 1st had(has) a HUGE head. But I survived, and so will you :) And it wasn't traumatic enough to keep me from wanting a 2nd child. Good luck!

My first they told me he would be big meaning 8 lbs and he cam out 7 Ibs 12.5 ounces. My daughter they said the same and she came out 9 Ilbs 3 ounces. It is all in the tech and doctor and quality of machines they use. Most likely it will be fine no matter what size baby is. Good luck and don't fret just enjoy the delivery and go with the flow . :-)

My doctor always told me all it is is guesswork.

They told me my son would be 9.5 lbs at birth. He was 8lbs 6oz. There is a huge margin of error on the ultrasound. Don't freak out just yet!

The ultrasound tech measured my son in as being over 10 lbs on Aug. 8th. So my doctor decided to do a c-section on Aug. 17 and little man only weighed 8 lbs 5 oz.

My first son was born at 36 weeks via an emergency c/s. He weighed 8 lbs 14 oz. The c/s is basically because he got stuck, and after almost 2 hours of pushing with no progress and his heart rate shooting up to 185 it was decided that it would be too dangerous to continue with a vaginal delivery (I have very narrow hips, never looked pregnant from behind).

I went into labor with my 2nd son at 36 weeks and he was also delivered via c/s due to fear of a repeat from the previous delivery. I was already huge and the dr was worried that the baby would get stuck again. My second son was 9 lbs 1 oz.

Honostly, when push comes to shove (no pun intended) you won't really care about how big your baby is. All your care about is delivering a healthy baby safely. And besides, I know plenty of women who were told they were going to have 10+ pound babies only to deliver 7 pound babies. So just try to relax and enjoy the rest of your pregnancy.

A.

I had an ultrasound right before my delivery, literally the same day. They got the baby at 8lbs 7oz. He was born at 8lbs 4oz at only 37 weeks.

My second baby I didn't have a late ultrasound but I was measuring 3 weeks bigger the majority of the pregnancy. She was born at 9lbs 6oz at 39 weeks.

My son was 9lb 8oz. I had an epidural, but my delivery was amazing. I was smiling/laughing/crying the whole time. I didn't tear or rip or anything, and he was out within a couple of pushes. So in my case, delivering a bigger baby wasn't bad at all. I only got one ultrasound at 22 weeks, but my doctor did predict around 38 weeks or so that he would be around 8 lbs.

N. ~
At this point in your pregnancy, ultrasounds are not used to predict the weight of a baby, and the tech isn't supposed to tell you anything at all. The margin of error is about 2 pounds, so your baby could be only 6 lbs. We don't use ultrasounds at this point to decide baby's weight because of the discrepency. How have you been measuring at your OB's office? If you're measuring appropriately, odds are you're just fine :) Don't stress about it.
Good luck!
D.

Updated

N. ~
At this point in your pregnancy, ultrasounds are not used to predict the weight of a baby, and the tech isn't supposed to tell you anything at all. The margin of error is about 2 pounds, so your baby could be only 6 lbs. We don't use ultrasounds at this point to decide baby's weight because of the discrepency. How have you been measuring at your OB's office? If you're measuring appropriately, odds are you're just fine :) Don't stress about it.
Good luck!
D.

Recently I heard it put this way....where do you gain weight? Your butt and hips right? So does the baby. Your baby's head is already done growing, once you push out the head and shoulders, the rest just slides right out. Fat is squishy. :)

To many woman get pushed into csection and then have an avg sized baby(remember, a csection is a major surgery). Even if the baby does turn out to be big, no one knows if your pelvis can birth the baby until you try. Just try, and let your body do the work. Your body is made to give birth, so relax. The hormones in your body that have been loosening your joints will help your hips to open up and birth your baby the way you want. Try to ignore any horror stories about giving birth. Although they're well intended, it can just make you more nervous. If you can't shake the thought, there are people out there to do a fear release through hypnosis. Heartfelt hypnosis is one located in Birmingham. Best of luck.

My first daughter was 7lbs and a horrible labor. My second daughter was 10lbs and had a huge head. The nurses and doctor measured it 3 times!!! My second daughter was so much easier then my first. The ultrasound was off on due dates and weight for both my daughters. Don't worry about the size our bodies are built for giving birth. You will do grea!t

Yeah ultrasounds can go either way.. +/- 1 -2 lbs ive heard. My son was 6 days early in 2008. Never got a chance to get one last ultrasound to predict size.. but my doctor never let on that she was concerned. He was 8lbs 11 oz and 22 inches. It was not bad at all, especially since it was my first. My daughter who came in June of 2010 was big from the beginning. I was always measuring 2 weeks ahead. Had an ultrasound after she was 4 days past her due date! they were predicting 10 lbs 4 oz... so we scheduled a c section for that monday ( this was a friday ). Couldnt sleep all night, and at 6 am my contractions were 2 mins apart! dropped my son and dog off, flew to the hospital. Doctor on call tried to talk me into no c section, but I said I'd rather ( i too was afraid of having a large baby ) and she was born at 10:41 am... 11 lbs 13 oz!!!!!!!! So that ultrasound went the other way, and was under estimating. My good friend just had a son, they were saying at least 9 lbs- he was 7lbs 6 oz. So you can never tell. Don't be scared, just talk to your doctor about your concerns and have a birth plan. Go in there knowing what you want. it definitely helps! good luck , you;ll do fine :)

Ultrasounds go 2 lbs. either way, believe it or not!!!!!! I would not worry.
Many people deliver large babies without a hitch and many people have a
problem delivering a 6 lber. You just have to go with it. It really is out of your
control so try not to worry. Congratulations.

My 1st was born at 36 wks & when they did the level 2 u/s they figured her weight to be 6lb 8 oz + or - 2 lbs & my 2nd was born at 37 1/2 wks they figured her weight at 10 lbs (b/c of my diabetes) + or - 2lbs & she was 8lbs 4 oz. I know that I can't tell you not to worry b/c you will anyways, but have faith, you will be okay.

With most of my friends, estimates have been over the actual weight. However, it was the opposite with me. My first was expected to be about 8 1/2 pounds, and was 9 lbs 2 oz. I went for an u/s with my second, because I was overdue by about 9 days, and she thought he was going to be about 10 or 10 1/2 lbs. He ended up being 11 lbs, 11.8 oz, and I had him vaginally with no medical interventions! Your body won't make a bigger baby than you can birth, and it wasn't that bad! Everyone was surprised and is surprised to this day as to how big he was, and that he was a natural birth. Take a deep breath and relax. It will all be okay.

This baby will come when it's time. Ultrasounds aren't that accurate with weight. Many babies are big - 10# or whatever - and they are born safely. Stop worrying!

I was told my first would be over 9lbs at birth. He was born at 36.5 weeks and was 6lbs, 7oz. My second was predicted to be over 9 lbs as well. She was born at 39.5 weeks and weighed 6lbs, 12 oz. I think the measurement system needs a lot of work! Congrats on your upcoming new baby!

My so called 8+ lbs turned out to be under 7lbs. They assumed I'd have another large baby.

The ultrasound tech when I was pregnant with my first child estimated our son would be over 10 lbs. I thought that was crazy bc I am a very small/narrow person! But lo and behold they were totally wrong. Our son was 8lb 11oz. I stressed about it at the time. I see now there is no reason at all for you to stress about this. It seems like for most people I talk to they estimate the wrong size...on the big side. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you not to stress and not to think about it. Your labor will be amazing. Your child will be gorgeous! Everything will be fine.

hehehe...

with my first pregnancy my daughter was supposed to be "over 9 lbs"

she was 6lbs 5oz a few days later, at birth.

Take it with a grain of salt... There is a really large margin of error... plus... there is a good chance even if the baby is big your delivery will go just fine!

Good Luck!
-M.

hahaha....my baby was weighing big for the last month or two of pregnancy. She was measuring SO big that we did a C-section. She was born at 10lbs9oz. Thank god she was a c-section!

I have not read the other posts and I have no direct expereince with late term USs, but, for my second child, a boy, the doctors' spent months screaming that this was going to be a big baby. I refused the final US and delivered a healthy 8lb and some change baby. He was nowheres near the clinical definition of a "big" baby (which by the way is 10 lbs and up). I felt like the doctors were setting the stage for a C-section and very carefully documented my refusal and that I was AMA. I knew in my heart baby was /not/ big and was healthy. I also felt that it did not matter what the baby's size was because in my mind there was only one way in and only one way out! lol. (now mamas, don't jump on me... I am pro appropriate medical interventions when needed...)

Anyway, my GF had a vaginal birth of a nearly 11 pound baby boy last fall. She commented about walking a bit funny afterwards, but said the delivery went fine.

Relax and don't worry too mcuh.
Best wishes for the best birth experience you can have!!
~C.

The estimated my daughter to be 9.5lbs give or take a .5lb she only ended up being 8.4oz

My first daughter was 6 lbs 14 oz. With the second one, the doctor commented that it probably wasn't going to be very big, probably like the first one.... no ultrasound, though (I only had an ultrasound with #1 and #4). She was 8 lbs 12 oz!

Anyway, the second baby had the shortest delivery! I didn't really realize I was in labor (I thought it was a backache from cleaning house), and went to sleep... I woke up and the contractions were probably 6 minutes apart. Went to the hospital a bit later, got there at about 2:40 am (I think), and was already 7-8 cm dilated. She arrived at 3:23 am.

Numbers 3 and 4 were 7 lbs 8 1/2 oz and 7 lbs 9 oz, but each were maybe a week early. (Delivery date was always hard to predict with me... my cycle wasn't the nice 28 day cycle, but often varied to 5 weeks.)

My first child was 7# 8 oz, my 2nd was 10#. No one warned me he may be big, and I did not notice a big difference in the delivery. I was surprised when they handed him to me, and he was so big. Of course I have been lucky to have quick labors with relatively easy deliveries (4 hours from first contraction to first baby, and 2 hours from water breaking to 2nd baby). I'm also thankful my bigger baby was the 2nd one. I think it may have been more noticeable to me if he had been the first.

Don't worry about it! My first was 9.2 and his estimated weight was 6.5-7.0 (delivery was fine). My second was 8.12, delivery was also fine. A friend had a c-section early due to estimated size and the poor kid was only 6.5. The estimates are just estimates and can be way off in either direction. Trust your body to do what it was designed to do and take comfort in knowing that if labor truly stops progressing, there are interventions that can be taken in the moment. Really, you have nothing to worry about!

My first son was 9 pounds and he arrived easily and I did not tear. It was a perfect home birth. Unmedicated of course.

Ultrasounds are VERY inaccurate predictors of the baby's size. Rarely do babies grow bigger than your body can handle. Relax and have faith in your body's ability to do what it's supposed to do.

Ultrasound Techs usually lean towards the larger measurements of a baby. My sister was geared up for a 9 pound baby with a giant head based on the technicians measurements. The girl that was training to be a technician always measured the baby first for practice and had more conservative measurements. She was right on the money too!

Don't forget, you can always get a epidural and you won't even notice how big the baby is!

Nurses checked my stomach while in labor and estimated my son would be about 6 lbs. After my son was born, they said he was about 6 1/2 - 7 lbs. When they took him to weigh him, he was almost NINE POUNDS! I was in full belief that these women did this all day, every day so I should trust them but then I realized that every baby is different and the nurses are human.

Don't stress it too much.

my first baby i was told i was going to have a 8 lbs baby or bigger she came out at 6lbs 6.4 oz. my third was suppose to be 8 in half came out a 7lbs 12oz. my 3rsd was 7lbs 14oz and my last little lady was 6lbs 13 oz. i am registering a boy right now and my boy was 7 14oz at his birth. the one im delivering in 7 weeks is registering at 4lbs 8 oz. at 32 weeks don't believe everything wait till baby comes out.

I've had 4...all were in or above the 75% at all u/s.

8 lbs, 10 oz
8 lbs, 13 oz
8 lbs, 15 oz
9 lbs, 2 oz

My fourth was born at 41.2 weeks and we had an u/s on what turned out to be his birth day. At the u/s (about 9 hours before he was born) he was estimated to weigh 9 lbs 8 oz - he was born at 9 lbs 2 oz.

Yes, it's painful....but your body was made for your babies! My last two were VBACs without any interventions (i.e. pain meds, IV access, etc).
I've have a petite friend (size 4) who birthed a 10+ lber vaginally.

You can do it!

The weight isn't necessarily the indicator of a hard time pushing them out. It often has more to do with the head size/shape. My first had a very round head, she was 7lb. 9oz. and I pushed for 3.5 hours (my choice to not do an intervention sooner) and finally needed a vacuum assist.

Ultra sounds are good at guessing, but they are not for sure. Don't freak out, if it said your baby was in the 14lb.+ range, then I'd freak out. ;)

Best wishes!

The guesses...are just guesses! Besides, I know a lot of average-sized women who have given birth to babies 9 lbs and bigger, quite a bit bigger. One friend of mine has had three babies all over 10 lbs. Head size can matter more than total weight.

I had a midwife and doula (no US) guess that my daughter would be small, maybe 6 or 6.5 lbs. She was born 10 days before her due date (due date is another guess, of course) at 7 lbs 8 oz.

I was told my middle child, a boy 'looked big' and they estimated anywhere from 8lbs 12oz..to 9lbs+.

I was a nervous wreck as well!

My baby boy showed up weighing in at 7lbs 8oz!

~Sometimes those ultrasound techs get it wrong...here's to hoping that is the case for you!

Congrats on the baby!

My final ultra sound on my second said he was close to 10 lbs. He was born a few days later at 8 lbs. 14 ozs.
I had a c-section, but not b/c of his size.

My daughter was 8 lbs 7 oz, and my cousin's wife son 8lbs 8 oz. I am rather hippy and of average build, she was little bitty with no curves. She had a much easier delivery than I did! My issues were due to dilation issues not size though. Both of us delivered out babies just fine. My husbands cousin had a whopping 10 lb 6 oz baby and there were no issues with that either.

My MIL delivered my husband who was 11 lbs 14 oz without medication!!! It was painful of course, but she was physically fine from the delivery. Had she opted for a epidural, it would've been easier, but she was able to deliver him and went on to have another baby.

Mine was forecast as big, but ended up at 6lbs, 13oz. Don't fret.

All my kids where 8 lbs my son was 81/2 lbs i'm small short & delivered vaginally it was fine just suffer now from have 3 vaginally births,but I still wouldn't change it.
Now my 3rd the techs were saying she is on the smaller side thinking that my lmp was wrong but it wasn't the doc thought that I needed to gain weight I think not.She was 8 7 ozs

At 37 weeks, I was told I had a "very large 9+ pound baby with a huge head....4 days later, she was 7 pounds and had the most perfect small head!

Don't worry about it. My ultrasounds always measured my babies at 8 pounds plus at 38 weeks. My kids were 22 inches, 21 inches, 19 inches and only 6lbs5oz, 6bs 1oz, and 6lbs6oz respectively. So in my experience YES there is a margin of error especially if you have a long baby.

I had been told my daughter would be big because I was gestational diabetic. My measurements never indicated one way or another and I have her full term at under 7 lbs (and everyone said "Oh, she's so small!").

My son, the measurements didn't indicated one way or another. A mid-wife said "You'll be lucky if your baby is 6 lbs". She was a bigger lady who seemed to not like young, small moms. I had been 95 lbs pre-pregnancy and was ALL baby. He was 7 lb 15 1/2 oz which was just 3 oz more than a different mid-wife estimated just by feeling my belly when I first went in labor.

All these measurements and due dates are just educated guesses but not definative. Relax. Follow doctors orders and take care of yourself and the baby.