I just have to say that being small is not really a medical reason to not be able to give birth vaginally.
I am 5 foot nothing and am a tiny frame and I had no trouble birthing my baby, my body knew exactly what it needed to do and it did it!
Women's bodies are designed to give birth this way (with some very rare exceptions).
Also, with the growth scans, I would take that with a grain of salt too, there are many threads around here about how far off the ultrasounds were.
Just my opinion and hope it helps you guys to have confidence in your bodies... you can do it!
Just remember that female pelvises are designed very differently to those of men, purely to enable the passage of a baby during the birth process. Our bodies are designed to give birth. The female pelvis is wider, shallower, lighter and rounder than that of a male. It is built to accommodate a growing baby and it is able to stretch during pregnancy and childbirth. Our body size or shape is not an accurate representation of the size and shape of our pelvis, or its ability to fulfil its function.
FWIW my ob always said the only sure way to find out if a baby was too big was to give labour a go!
Don't worry too much about fundus measurements...this time around at 28 weeks I was measuring 2 weeks ahead of dates but that came back into line as bub moved down.
I would be more worried about having that "seed" of an idea planted in your mind that you won't be able to give birth vaginally. Family history is certainly something to take into account but that combined with you having been told that you will be unable to give birth vaginally is going to take a very powerful mindset to overcome (if that is of course what you want).
I would be doing some research on caesarians vs vaginal birth and deciding what you would like "in a perfect world." If you do decide that you want a vaginal birth I would be looking into Calmbirthing/Hypnobirthing and just generally educating and physically preparing yourself as much as possible because you will need that extra mental strength if you start getting nervous. And by the same token, if you decide you want an elective C-section then push for it. It is your birth, after all. Just do your research first.
beau - i too lost a hell of alot of blood and also had to have a transfusion.... i am DEFINITELY 200% opting for hypnobirthing next time.... i am 5 foot 2, but my mum is barely 5 foot and birthed us three kids with no issues...
just my opinion but i would be very wary of anyone, ob or not, doubting your ability to birth your baby based on how petite you are and a scan... scans are notorious for being wrong, actually in my experience are completely unreliable in that sense... my doctor was the same, doubted my ability to birth what he called my 'big' baby (she ended up being 8 pounds 7, not that big at all really) and i was booked in to have a c-section, just happened to go into labour before the date.... it was HIM who planted the seed of doubt in my mind which was the catalyst in my awful traumatic experience...
just my opinion but if i had of trusted my body more, and listened to my doctor less, i am sure i would have had a much better outcome... the thing about birth is, no two births are alike, there are all sorts of variables that impact on how things go, so i fail to see how anyone can predict the future, no matter how many births they have seen.... its just not something that is black and white like that.
The human body is an amazing thing, and as previous posters have said, we are designed to give birth, and with the right positioning, the pelvis opens right up to let the baby out. Have you considered a doula or your own midwife? They can give you ongoing support and help you with positioning during the birth.
Keep in mind that any amount of spontaneous labour is good for the baby. It assists with their breathing, helps with breastfeeding etc etc.
It's great to hear that your OB is encouraging a vaginal birth, but he still needs to hear you out on your concerns. Change if you're not comfortable with how he listens.
You've already had some great responses here, but i'll toss my 2c in anyway
1) The female pelvis is NOT fully formed at 16, it often isn't fully formed until 20 or 21! Even once it is fully formed, unless a woman is in labour and in the best possible birthing position (deep squat or hands and knees) it's impossible to see how much room she has for a baby to pass through. If the x-ray had been taken while you were IN labour and the baby's head was as descended as it could get, i can imagine that one x-ray might be able to reveal if/why you couldn't birth that specific baby in the positions you were both in. But that's it. It can't tell you anything unless you're in labour, and if you are in labour it can only tell you something about THAT labour, not any potential future ones.
2) there ARE pelvises which make birth more drawn-out and posterior presentation of the babe more likely (grab a pink kit for more info on that, it's related to the angle of the front pubic arch) BUT and it's a huge BUT, those women can ABSOLUTELY give birth vaginally. Their labours might not look "textbook" but they are perfectly normal, healthy effective labours and they get the baby out just fine in the end.
3) looking at family history can be helpful, but fear is contagious, more contagious than anything else that will affect your ability to birth. If the women of your family couldn't give birth to their babies you'd have died out about 150 years ago when sections weren't available/safe. It is VERY possible that your family have the shape of pelvis mentioned in the pink kit which can slightly more often mean a longer labour and posterior presentation (and as someone above said, it's not something you can see by looking at your bodyshape), but it is the Ob panicking and prescribing a section which prevented vaginal birth, NOT the pelvis. On the whole 13 hours isn't at all long for a first labour. Up to 24 hours is totally normal.
Obviously i'm not a birth psychic, and some women DO need a section, but less than half of the women who are currently having them ACTUALLY need them. Without knowing about your mum's first and your sis's only labours it's hard to say for sure, but i'd be willing to bet intervention made some difference in those situations. Were they moving freely and upright during labour, or were they made to lie on the bed most of the time? Did they manage to avoid epidural anaesthesia and stay as drug free as possible? Were either of them given induction drugs or was their labour un-augmented and totally natural? There are SO many factors in birthing a baby, and the shape of the bones is realy, truly, very rarely a major one. Look at it rationally - your guts would easily fit through your pelvis, but they don't fall out because your pelvic floor holds them in place, that same pelvic floor holds the weight of your baby as it grows, bounces, wriggles and squirms and then one fine day it doesn't anymore, instead it completely reverses its normal function in order to let your baby out, and right away afterwards it reverts to its normal form and even though a giant baby fit through there, your guts STILL don't fall out! - the female anatomy is a many-wondrous thing hun, the more i learn about it the more astounded i am by it.
If i were you i'd perhaps seek a different opinion from a MIDWIFE. They see every size and shape of woman and they are very in touch with what is normal and possible, and will be able to offer you a realistic viewpoint and give you more confidence in making your decision. You might also want to consider a different Ob if you feel yours doesn't listen to your concerns - however you birth you need to be able to trust your care-givers and putting yourself and your baby into the hands of someone you already find to be ignorant of your concerns and needs.
Hoobley every time i read one of your birthing posts i feel so reassured and positve about the whole birth body working together....your a champ
Some of the smallest women i have ever come across, friends...friends of friends etc have had some of the bigger babies amongst us all, so just because you are smaller framed and a little more petite don't think you can't birth your baby or a bigger baby. As some of the other ladies have said try to stay mobile/active as possible and positions during birthing are real important too. I can vouch for the positions personally as my DS didn't want to budge when i was on my back and it felt really unnatural as well but as soon as i was on all fours, that was it he was out probably in 10-15 minutes without any tearing.
I agree - gravity really helps. I was watching a tv show on fox about pregnancy and births - an american show - and I can't understand why every doctor has the woman lie down practically flat on her back to give birth, legs high up in the air in stirrups. When I had DS (my first), I had an epidural due to my blood pressure being very high, and when it came time to push (they had to tell me cause I couldn't feel a thing), nothing was happening for ages. Then they started worrying about him being obstructed, so they decided to get forceps ready. To make using the forceps easier, they had me sit up straighter and move my legs further apart - and lo and behold, with the change of position, DS moved down and was born within a few minutes, without the need for the forceps. I can't believe that nobody had suggested before that changing position might help - I almost ended up with another intervention unnecessarily! With my last birth, I did it upright - kneeling on the bed facing away from everyone with the head of the bed for support. I firmly believe that this is what helped me give birth to a 9lb 9oz bubba girl with no complications, or interventions.
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