I’d try to find a second opinion. But my practice said they would not make delivery decisions based on size estimate alone since they are so inaccurate. They said the better indicator is amniotic fluid levels and that if they were high that would likely change things. Since everything is an estimate at this point hopefully your follow up scans are more reassuring. 36 weeks does seem early so ask a lot of questions and see about a second opinion.
I agree. My last baby, they told me she was HUGE, and tried to offer a c-section. This was my third baby so I’d gotten good at advocating for myself and taking some of this stuff with a grain of salt so I just replied, “I have my doubts that she’s actually that big, since I was told the same thing with previous babies and both were under 7lbs. But even if she is big, I have no reason to believe my body isn’t capable of birthing a large baby.” My obgyn laughed and agreed. So I got induced at 39 weeks, the ultrasound people trying to say my baby was gonna be 10.5lbs. Well she was born 7lbs10oz.
I don’t know. I’m pregnant with baby#4 now, and I can’t believe the amount of fear mongering, and guilt-tripping that goes on during pregnancy. It’s such a vulnerable time for us, we care about this baby so much. Sometimes that anxiety gets taken advantage of.
There’s nothing wrong with induction, and there’s nothing wrong with saying, “better safe than sorry” and just following recommendations even if you have doubts. birth at 36 weeks will likely mean a good 5-7 days in the NICU. If it was me, I would ask to wait one more week to get to 37. But in the end we all just need to make the decision we are most comfortable with.
I do think before I pull the trigger on anything I should get a second opinion. The issue I may face is baby is big and I do have excess amniotic fluid (no idea how much or what that means), but it may tip the scales
My friend was induced early due to high fluid because the risk of the cord prolapsing or coming first was so high. I mean they really MOVED on getting baby out and all when her water broke in the hospital because the cord slipped down and baby was on top of it. Now 36 weeks is kinda early so maybe a second opinion for sure. Push for early term (37wks) if you can!
I’m definitely more concerned about the amniotic fluid than size, it would be a more valid reason to induce early than size alone. I totally get that my doctor thinks that because I have a small frame and my hips are narrow that the bigger baby gets the less likely vaginal delivery will be successful but if it’s just about size I’d rather sacrifice the vaginal delivery and do a c-section so she can make it to early full term at least
I had GD and by 35 weeks my umbilical cord pressure was high. They told me at first the stream was going backwards instead of towards the baby. And at my 36 week ultrasound they said they were still high. At 37 weeks they said that the stream was getting to the baby but that my pressure was still high and they weren’t sure if he was getting enough nutrients/oxygen. My GD nutritionist said it had nothing to do with the GD and sometimes it just happens and my OB said it could have to do with the GD. When I went in at 36 weeks he was measuring at 6lbs 6oz. They said other than the high pressure everything else was normal. His abdomen was a little big too.
Well they decided to induce me at 37 + 2. I was a little worried/concerned but ultimately went through with it because I was scared my placenta would die early and then I’d be in a real emergency. I forgot to ask about what my placenta was like or whatever because they had told me it was aging faster than normal.
Well he is here and so far so good. He does have a little hemorrhage but they said that can happen and usually it goes away with time but that if it doesn’t they don’t usually do surgery until they’re 4-5 years old but they’ll be monitoring it. This was on Wednesday. I had to stay in the hospital two nights and just got home yesterday. I love my little baby. He was a itty bitty 5lbs 8.5 oz. Everyone thought he was going to be way bigger. His abdomen is a little bit big compared to the rest of him. Not like I said, other than the hemorrhage, he seems fine and it doesn’t seem to be affecting him. He’s been eating and peeing/pooping as he should. I had to go but him a pack of premie onesies because he doesn’t quite fit newborn yet and he’s a little small in his car seat.
I was able to deliver him vaginally. I was in labor for 24 hours but the actual pushing only took me 40 minutes. I wish I would’ve asked if we could wait til 38 weeks at least but he is here now but I would take the advice of those others said advocate waiting at least til 37 weeks.
I’m so glad everything went well for you and baby boy in the end after a lot of ups and downs in the final few weeks! It sounds like even though you didn’t ask for 38 weeks you definitely advocated for yourself and getting to 37 weeks was enough to get him delivered healthy. I will definitely be asking lots of questions on Thursday, I’d feel a lot better if I can make it to 37 weeks at a minimum
Just chiming in with the “ultrasound estimates are often inaccurate” reminder. My last ultrasound was three days before I was induced and the tech was *convinced* baby was 8 lb 14 oz. Baby was born three days later at 7 lb 11 oz.
36 weeks?!? Absolutely wild without immediate risk to either you or baby. A ‘big baby’ being induced is not even evidence based at term, let alone pre term. I agree with the others in getting another opinion. So for me I’d be disregarding the size comments, but the polyhydramios, if considerable, is more of a concern. Still not something you’d look at inducing that early for generally, without signs of it impacting the baby.
I know, I was pretty shocked when that recommendation was floated and agree if big baby alone is the sole reason I’d rather sacrifice a vaginal birth and wait a couple more weeks for a c-section. I’m keen on vaginal delivery but it seems costs outweighs the benefits here if my option is to deliver preterm. If the amniotic fluid is the main concern that’s a totally different conversation to be had
36w seems ridiculous without some element of imminent danger to you and baby. I'd definitely ask for a second opinion and used the BRAIN analysis.
What does B.R.A.I.N stands for?
Benefits - What are the benefits of making this decision?
Risks - What are the risks associated with this decision?
Alternatives - Are there any alternatives?
Intuition - How do I feel? What does my ‘gut’ tell me?
Nothing - What if I decide to do nothing/wait and see? What happens next?
I would DEFINITELY ask what a 36w delivery looks like for your baby and their likelihood of needing special care etc.
I’m in the same situation, my 36 week scan showed more fluid and baby is big but on 50th centile average. I’ve feel very anxious, my doctor has made me do bloods, put me on iron tablets but I don’t have low iron and told me induction at 38 weeks.
I have no symptoms for having excess fluid and my belly measuring 33cm not 36. I’m waiting to see my midwife tomorrow to hopefully get answers she’s the only person I have seen consistently.
My sugar levels have all been fine but the doctor basically called me out lying and saying I’ve been exercising to get my numbers down when I haven’t, I don’t have time for going out walking etc after every meal this is my 4th child.
Who cares how you are keeping your numbers down, as long as they are down. Exercising and diet are the two ways they suggest to help with your levels so you don't need metformin or insulin. I'm so confused by your doctor's reaction here.
Ah my baby is higher on the overall percentile, I think 70s. Waiting to get my blood work back as well, and hoping they’ll let me keep the baby in until 38 weeks when she’s at least full term. I hope the conversation with your midwife gives you more confidence on your options!
I didn’t have excess amniotic fluid but I did have a big baby. She was projected around 7lbs and 75th percentile at 36+4, and was born at 40+1 at 10lbs 2oz and 99th percentile. I pushed her out in 23 minutes and with zero issues. I started my induction on 39+4 but my OB would have let me go longer since I was diet controlled and my baby didn’t look very big on ultrasounds. If everything was the same but I was on medication they would have wanted to induce me at 39 weeks.
Though at my 6 week pp check up she said if we had known how big my baby was truly going to be she would have discussed a c section with me but in hindsight I’m glad they didn’t know, and personally I won’t elect for one with my next if the only reason they’re recommending it is size!
I know someone who had excess amniotic fluid that went undetected. She lost her son to stillbirth at 38 weeks. So honestly I've been paranoid about my fluid levels. I wouldn't worry so much about the size but if the fluid is still high on your next checkup I'd take medical advice.
Honestly, I'd follow doctor's recommendations. This is the type of thing I wouldn't want to regret later. There's no reason they would advise for an early induction if it wasn't absolutely necessary.
I would get a second opinion on that. Usual cutoff for preterm is 37 weeks. I would question an induction before that point without a good medical reason (placenta failing, blood pressure severe, decreased movement...).
Also, isn't one of the main risks of high amniotic fluid preterm labor anyway?
I guess if my water breaks quite early because of the extra amniotic fluid you risk cord prolapse which would be a big problem, but definitely want a much deeper conversation about likelihood of that happening and what the risks are before I just go ahead and induce preterm
Ask if this is medically necessary for you or baby. Those percentiles are not accurate from the monitors. Ask if any other interventions can be tried first. I’ve seen prenatal care be sooo conservative, and it makes sense, but you should advocate for yourself and go with your gut and ask the right questions. I recently advocated for less monitoring (I was getting weekly NSTs for basically no reason) and I’m so happy about it.
It’s not “for no reason.” It’s because in high risk pregnancies (and if you have GD you’re high risk) things can go from fine to not fine overnight and it’s easy to miss. Speaking from personal experience.
Is this why I’m getting downvoted? I was having NSTs unrelated to GD but because I had food poisoning and baby had late decels when I was dehydrated and feverish. I consulted with many doctors before advocating to cancel these NSTs and had many perfectly normal NSTs before stopping.
It's because you used critical thinking and reached your own decision rather than blindly following medical advice. It's not particularly encouraged on this sub.
Go you for advocating for less NSTs! I agree if on Thursday she is still saying the same thing I really do need to advocate for myself and ask if it’s medically necessary. I really do want to deliver vaginally but I feel like I’d rather get an elective c-section and let baby cook properly for a few more weeks rather than give the baby steroids, induce at 36 weeks, risk NICU and other complications etc
I’d try to find a second opinion. But my practice said they would not make delivery decisions based on size estimate alone since they are so inaccurate. They said the better indicator is amniotic fluid levels and that if they were high that would likely change things. Since everything is an estimate at this point hopefully your follow up scans are more reassuring. 36 weeks does seem early so ask a lot of questions and see about a second opinion.
I agree. My last baby, they told me she was HUGE, and tried to offer a c-section. This was my third baby so I’d gotten good at advocating for myself and taking some of this stuff with a grain of salt so I just replied, “I have my doubts that she’s actually that big, since I was told the same thing with previous babies and both were under 7lbs. But even if she is big, I have no reason to believe my body isn’t capable of birthing a large baby.” My obgyn laughed and agreed. So I got induced at 39 weeks, the ultrasound people trying to say my baby was gonna be 10.5lbs. Well she was born 7lbs10oz. I don’t know. I’m pregnant with baby#4 now, and I can’t believe the amount of fear mongering, and guilt-tripping that goes on during pregnancy. It’s such a vulnerable time for us, we care about this baby so much. Sometimes that anxiety gets taken advantage of. There’s nothing wrong with induction, and there’s nothing wrong with saying, “better safe than sorry” and just following recommendations even if you have doubts. birth at 36 weeks will likely mean a good 5-7 days in the NICU. If it was me, I would ask to wait one more week to get to 37. But in the end we all just need to make the decision we are most comfortable with.
I do think before I pull the trigger on anything I should get a second opinion. The issue I may face is baby is big and I do have excess amniotic fluid (no idea how much or what that means), but it may tip the scales
My friend was induced early due to high fluid because the risk of the cord prolapsing or coming first was so high. I mean they really MOVED on getting baby out and all when her water broke in the hospital because the cord slipped down and baby was on top of it. Now 36 weeks is kinda early so maybe a second opinion for sure. Push for early term (37wks) if you can!
I’m definitely more concerned about the amniotic fluid than size, it would be a more valid reason to induce early than size alone. I totally get that my doctor thinks that because I have a small frame and my hips are narrow that the bigger baby gets the less likely vaginal delivery will be successful but if it’s just about size I’d rather sacrifice the vaginal delivery and do a c-section so she can make it to early full term at least
I had GD and by 35 weeks my umbilical cord pressure was high. They told me at first the stream was going backwards instead of towards the baby. And at my 36 week ultrasound they said they were still high. At 37 weeks they said that the stream was getting to the baby but that my pressure was still high and they weren’t sure if he was getting enough nutrients/oxygen. My GD nutritionist said it had nothing to do with the GD and sometimes it just happens and my OB said it could have to do with the GD. When I went in at 36 weeks he was measuring at 6lbs 6oz. They said other than the high pressure everything else was normal. His abdomen was a little big too. Well they decided to induce me at 37 + 2. I was a little worried/concerned but ultimately went through with it because I was scared my placenta would die early and then I’d be in a real emergency. I forgot to ask about what my placenta was like or whatever because they had told me it was aging faster than normal. Well he is here and so far so good. He does have a little hemorrhage but they said that can happen and usually it goes away with time but that if it doesn’t they don’t usually do surgery until they’re 4-5 years old but they’ll be monitoring it. This was on Wednesday. I had to stay in the hospital two nights and just got home yesterday. I love my little baby. He was a itty bitty 5lbs 8.5 oz. Everyone thought he was going to be way bigger. His abdomen is a little bit big compared to the rest of him. Not like I said, other than the hemorrhage, he seems fine and it doesn’t seem to be affecting him. He’s been eating and peeing/pooping as he should. I had to go but him a pack of premie onesies because he doesn’t quite fit newborn yet and he’s a little small in his car seat. I was able to deliver him vaginally. I was in labor for 24 hours but the actual pushing only took me 40 minutes. I wish I would’ve asked if we could wait til 38 weeks at least but he is here now but I would take the advice of those others said advocate waiting at least til 37 weeks.
I’m so glad everything went well for you and baby boy in the end after a lot of ups and downs in the final few weeks! It sounds like even though you didn’t ask for 38 weeks you definitely advocated for yourself and getting to 37 weeks was enough to get him delivered healthy. I will definitely be asking lots of questions on Thursday, I’d feel a lot better if I can make it to 37 weeks at a minimum
Just chiming in with the “ultrasound estimates are often inaccurate” reminder. My last ultrasound was three days before I was induced and the tech was *convinced* baby was 8 lb 14 oz. Baby was born three days later at 7 lb 11 oz.
36 weeks?!? Absolutely wild without immediate risk to either you or baby. A ‘big baby’ being induced is not even evidence based at term, let alone pre term. I agree with the others in getting another opinion. So for me I’d be disregarding the size comments, but the polyhydramios, if considerable, is more of a concern. Still not something you’d look at inducing that early for generally, without signs of it impacting the baby.
I know, I was pretty shocked when that recommendation was floated and agree if big baby alone is the sole reason I’d rather sacrifice a vaginal birth and wait a couple more weeks for a c-section. I’m keen on vaginal delivery but it seems costs outweighs the benefits here if my option is to deliver preterm. If the amniotic fluid is the main concern that’s a totally different conversation to be had
36w seems ridiculous without some element of imminent danger to you and baby. I'd definitely ask for a second opinion and used the BRAIN analysis. What does B.R.A.I.N stands for? Benefits - What are the benefits of making this decision? Risks - What are the risks associated with this decision? Alternatives - Are there any alternatives? Intuition - How do I feel? What does my ‘gut’ tell me? Nothing - What if I decide to do nothing/wait and see? What happens next? I would DEFINITELY ask what a 36w delivery looks like for your baby and their likelihood of needing special care etc.
Thank you this framework is super helpful!
I’m in the same situation, my 36 week scan showed more fluid and baby is big but on 50th centile average. I’ve feel very anxious, my doctor has made me do bloods, put me on iron tablets but I don’t have low iron and told me induction at 38 weeks. I have no symptoms for having excess fluid and my belly measuring 33cm not 36. I’m waiting to see my midwife tomorrow to hopefully get answers she’s the only person I have seen consistently. My sugar levels have all been fine but the doctor basically called me out lying and saying I’ve been exercising to get my numbers down when I haven’t, I don’t have time for going out walking etc after every meal this is my 4th child.
Who cares how you are keeping your numbers down, as long as they are down. Exercising and diet are the two ways they suggest to help with your levels so you don't need metformin or insulin. I'm so confused by your doctor's reaction here.
Ah my baby is higher on the overall percentile, I think 70s. Waiting to get my blood work back as well, and hoping they’ll let me keep the baby in until 38 weeks when she’s at least full term. I hope the conversation with your midwife gives you more confidence on your options!
I didn’t have excess amniotic fluid but I did have a big baby. She was projected around 7lbs and 75th percentile at 36+4, and was born at 40+1 at 10lbs 2oz and 99th percentile. I pushed her out in 23 minutes and with zero issues. I started my induction on 39+4 but my OB would have let me go longer since I was diet controlled and my baby didn’t look very big on ultrasounds. If everything was the same but I was on medication they would have wanted to induce me at 39 weeks. Though at my 6 week pp check up she said if we had known how big my baby was truly going to be she would have discussed a c section with me but in hindsight I’m glad they didn’t know, and personally I won’t elect for one with my next if the only reason they’re recommending it is size!
I know someone who had excess amniotic fluid that went undetected. She lost her son to stillbirth at 38 weeks. So honestly I've been paranoid about my fluid levels. I wouldn't worry so much about the size but if the fluid is still high on your next checkup I'd take medical advice.
Honestly, I'd follow doctor's recommendations. This is the type of thing I wouldn't want to regret later. There's no reason they would advise for an early induction if it wasn't absolutely necessary.
I would get a second opinion on that. Usual cutoff for preterm is 37 weeks. I would question an induction before that point without a good medical reason (placenta failing, blood pressure severe, decreased movement...). Also, isn't one of the main risks of high amniotic fluid preterm labor anyway?
I guess if my water breaks quite early because of the extra amniotic fluid you risk cord prolapse which would be a big problem, but definitely want a much deeper conversation about likelihood of that happening and what the risks are before I just go ahead and induce preterm
Ask if this is medically necessary for you or baby. Those percentiles are not accurate from the monitors. Ask if any other interventions can be tried first. I’ve seen prenatal care be sooo conservative, and it makes sense, but you should advocate for yourself and go with your gut and ask the right questions. I recently advocated for less monitoring (I was getting weekly NSTs for basically no reason) and I’m so happy about it.
It’s not “for no reason.” It’s because in high risk pregnancies (and if you have GD you’re high risk) things can go from fine to not fine overnight and it’s easy to miss. Speaking from personal experience.
Is this why I’m getting downvoted? I was having NSTs unrelated to GD but because I had food poisoning and baby had late decels when I was dehydrated and feverish. I consulted with many doctors before advocating to cancel these NSTs and had many perfectly normal NSTs before stopping.
It's because you used critical thinking and reached your own decision rather than blindly following medical advice. It's not particularly encouraged on this sub.
Go you for advocating for less NSTs! I agree if on Thursday she is still saying the same thing I really do need to advocate for myself and ask if it’s medically necessary. I really do want to deliver vaginally but I feel like I’d rather get an elective c-section and let baby cook properly for a few more weeks rather than give the baby steroids, induce at 36 weeks, risk NICU and other complications etc