I was just curious to know what is considered big in regards to a babies head circumference?
My DD's measurements were as follows:
Weight: 6.6 pounds
Length: 51cm
HC: 35.5cm
In regards to weight I know she was on the smaller side of average but I tend to think her head may have been on the bigger side? Am I correct? I also think she may have been a bit on the long side for her weight.
Any thoughts?
Not too sure but posting my DD stats so you can compare:
6lb4oz (2.82kg)
48cm length
33cm HC.
My daughter looked (and still does) long and skinny. Your dd was longer and lighter but with a bigger head so your idea does stand up to our measurements! Will be interesting to see what others say...
eta: I see now that she was actually slightly heavier than mine but you get what i'm saying
all 3 of mine were 'big'.
37 (8lbs 4oz, 53cm)
37.5 (9lbs 5oz, 55.5cm)
39 (11lbs, 55cm)
I was told I had a really long baby and my babies head was considered on the bigger side of things.
Her stats were:
Length- 52.5cm
Weight- 8pound 1ounce
HC- 36.5cm
Is your DH or are you tall?
well DD1 had a head circ of 38cm and it was not on the chart they give you with the percentiles on it. i would think 35cm is pretty average. DD1 was 55cm long too which was about 95th percentile from memory.
I *think* the average hc is 34 cm, so anything smaller than that would be below averge and anything larger is obviously above average. I think it's just a mind over matter thing - I have had 34 cm up to 37 and there was absolutely no difference to me in how much it hurt, but no estimates were ever made on how big they would be. Maybe if I had of been told "oh this head is quite large" before they were born, then I think I would have gone into that birth with reservations about my ability to get them out. A lot of people have said 'OMG' to me when they knew how big my last baby's head was but it didn't make much difference to me at all.
I am 5'3 and he is maybe 5'11ish (just under 6' ) so nothing special. I do not know where she got her length. Considering she was long and light she had and still does have a lot of chub on her. Her head has never looked big but I think it sounds big for her weight.
36cm head is generally considered avg.
DS was 38cm head, 3995grams and 53cm long at 38 weeks!!!
DS had a 38cm head, 4640g but he was 41+3
Nice to know! When I was pg with DD I was always told head head was spot but she was small weight wise, I was never to concerned and ended up with a CS so have no idea if it 'felt' big. When she was born people commented how she was small but it is the head size that counts when 'giving birth'.:
I am hoping for a VBAC next time and these silly comments have got me thinking. Although I think that my next bub might be bigger all over as Matilda was born at 38+2 weeks via CS with no indication from her that she was planning to evacuate any time soon and also as she has a chromosome deletion which leads to low birth weight.
I am putting silly things in my head I think.
When I was pg with Matilda I had no doubt in my mind that I could birth her naturally, my fear was CS, now that I have had a CS and for me it was such a breeze (CS and recovery) I am kind of telling myself how hard it is going to be to go natural after this experience. I want a natural birth more than anything and I know that I can do it. I am just like anyone I suppose, I overthink things.
Thankyou for your responces. I think that 35.5cm seems ok, not small but definatly not large ;).
So true!:clap::
Oh, and don't forget that their head will mould to fit through your vagina too, so the actual circumference afterwards is irrelevant really. If you are given all the time you need to push them out then there is no reason why you can't get a baby out with a 40+cm head. My first baby had a hc of 35, which is not over large, and the shape of his head was amazing! I pushed for nearly 1.5hrs and he had this huge conehead - I even asked if it would stay like that ROFL! I was devastated to think that his head would stay like that, but that's just how much it needed to mould to be able to fit through.
Its amazing really isn't it, that our bodies and our babies know exactally what to do if they are just left to do it. I want minimal intervention with my next pregnancy/birth so I hope that my body can be left to do what is so natural.
I remember asking the midwife at an antenatal appointment if my baby was big and she said to me "it is just the right size for you". That was so comforting to hear and put a very positive thought and attitude in my head.
at one point i watched DD2's head emerging in the mirror and was amazed just how much it mouled to fit out, i actually thought something was wrong with her head due to the shape :lol: it was squished but was perfectly rounded as soon as she was born.
DD2 was
8lb 1.5oz
33.5cm
49.5cm long.
DD1 was
7lb 5oz
35cm
50cm
My dd was born @35+ weeks and her head was 34cm (she was 3.15kg and 48.5cm long)
Her head did make her look bigger than other babies. It's still big (in the 97th percentile while height & weight is 50&75th percentile). But it would look massive if she had hair.
Her head measured 2wks a head at 18wk ultrasound.
I had to respond after reading your post Maybebabie :)
My DS was born at 35 weeks, and he was
2.325kg (5lbs 1oz)
44cm long
34cm HC
His head was, and is, enormous. He was such a skinny little thing as nb, but if I wrapped him all up in a blanket with just his head poking out he looked like a full-termer! LOL. His head has never been on the charts, ever. At his 18 month check it was the size of a 3 year olds :lol:. I just say it's to fit all his brains in ;). So MB, I hear you on the big head thing! Our scans always showed that he had a big head too.
Sorry DD, I know that doesn't help you much!
babies put all their effort into making sure the most important thing is well developed, the head, which is why babies heads are generally normal size even if early
All is welcome Janie... it is great to get all extremes (hmm not quite the word but you know what I mean).
This is great info Jols, exactly what I wanted to hear, makes sense :D.:
I know Jols ;) it's just that they look so funny with their skinny little bodies and their big heads! Well, I thought DS did ;)
Charlie's head circumference was 39cm, and my Dr and midwives all commented about how his head didn't go all conical despite a vaginal birth. He definitely felt bigger as far as pushing him out was concerned, but I still managed to, with only the slightest of tears.
My Ob laughingly told me later that birthing a baby with a HC of 39cm was like birthing a 10lb baby. And all I thought in response to that was that it didn't matter, all I cared about what that I still managed to get him out. Lol!
Yes, it's funny, my head didn't mold when I was being born. Mum said that all the staff couldn't stop staring at my perfectly round head as it came out! As a first baby, mum had no idea because there was no another birth to compare it to, but she says delivering my younger brother who was footling breech was HEAPS easier!
35-37cm is 'average'
the more important measurements are your pelvic brim, pelvic cavity and pelvic outlet
I have to say, reading back over these replies, I am envious to those who had big heads and felt it was no different.
Ashton was 39, his head didn't cone, I wish it had. He was the HARDEST birth of all 3. I almost gave up a couple of times and refused to push. I actually didn't feel like I would get him out. Yes we all get like that, I remember that point with both the other boys, but with Ash it was physically harder and I needed to push a lot more. He was also 11 pounds so that didn't help. And his shoulders got stuck for a minute which tore me, but only a little.
I was so relieved when I got him out. My mum commented that she couldn't believe the screaming that I did. I believe the word the doctor used was 'primal' :rofl:
DD was born at 39+3, weighing 3.895 kg (I think that's about 8lb 9 oz), 52cm long and head circ was 34.5. I was told that she was long-ish for her weight, but head was only average.
I did tear (not badly), but that was probably only because I got impatient and just pushed really hard, maybe a little too hard.
Heads can mold, pelvises stretch, the position of the mother (ie. squatting, lying on back) and the presentation of the baby's head have a lot to do with it, too. So I guess just comparing head sizes is not very representative of hoiw hard or easy a birth will be. Your attitude is the most important factor, I believe.
Some people believe in massaging the perineum during pregnancy to soften it. Others like to apply warm oil during crowning. Breathing the head out is said to help, too, as it gives the perineum time to stretch.
Water birth is said to have a lower incidence of tearing, too. Some think this is because the skin is more pliable in the warm water, others think it is because the mother is more relaxed and not lying back. Still others think it is because of a lack of "coaching" and interventions by care providers and a more natural approach.
I firmly believe that the healthy female body is not in the habit of growing babies that are too big for this body to birth. Kelly has posted a link somewhere to a site where you can see tiny little Mexican women give birth to babies with heads that look huge for them. I'll have a look if I cann find it for you. It's amazing. All homebirths, too.
ETA link: https://www.bellybelly.com.au/forums...es-nudity.html
All the best,
Sasa
I think both mine were around 34cm.. and dd was a prem too.
WRT the charts.. I wonder if c/s bubs 'skew' the average, seeing as they are born with nice round heads which didn't need to be squished?
DS1 was born at 38 weeks, was 6lb 15oz, 51 cm long with a 31cm head. He was definitely long and skinny! His head was only at the 5th percentile but was up at the 50th 2 weeks later. He was a c/s too so wasn't even squished, I joked at the time that he would have been 'easy' to push out.
DS2 is due today. I have no idea how big he will be as I haven't had any sizing scans. Am very pleased about it as I haven't gotten myself scared about pushing out a giant baby! I am secretly hoping for a smallish head again though. :D
I completely agree that you have a lot of factors to consider and that a mother knowledge and confidence in their body plays a major part, just consider this one of my factors ;), I am trying to get all of the knowledge and understanding possible to acheieve my dream VBAC. Thankyou for all of the information you have given :D.:
Interesting point, I wonder :think:.:
berrme - Best of luck with the birth of your DS2, I hope you get the VBAC of your dreams.
blue daisy - Was that you that wrote the thread about understand the pain of childbirth? I read and printed and re-read this thread when I was pg with DD and it gave me the confidence and understanding that I needed and I had no fears or questions that I could birth my DD naturally. Unfortunatly due to medical reasons I had a labour free CS.
I think I have to hunt that thread down and read again.
I also have nice size hips, as people say mother bearing hips, is that a good sign of pelvis size or an old wives tale?
Most women have child bearing hips regardless of the size :) And it all happens during labour when the hormones relax everything, and getting in a good squatting position to open it right up. Nothing to do with what the hips are like any other time.
Mind you... my hips are a completely different shape now to what they used to be... NOW i have childbearing hips LOL.
Argh, don't say that, mine are big enough for me as it is, I don't want any more :lol:, although I must say I have always loved you avvy because of your curvy hips :D.:
LOL - I hadn't noticed my curvy child bearing hips in my av! How appropriate! hehehehe
Lachie was :-
10.5lb or 4.80kg
54cm long
37.5 head circumfrance
I'm 5'2 and DF is 6'5 ...lol
Lachie was :-
10.5lb or 4.8kg
54cm
37.5cm head circumfrance
I'm 5'2 and DF is 6'5 ....hmmmm maybe I should have known better ....LOL
Claires head was 33.5cm. I pushed for like 2 hours but that was because of her dodgy position making it harder, not to do with her head size. She did come out with a bit of a cone head, but not as coney as other newborns I've seen. She was 48cm and 6lb 7oz. Everyone told me she was just all head, and a tiny body. But I dont think her head was particularly large, especially going by the sizes of some of the other babies heads you ladies have.
Oh my God! I am crossing my legs looking at those numbers:D:
I think we should all keep in mind that a couple of cm extra circumference makes very little difference to the diameter of the head. Babies heads should all be around 10cm across, making them around the same size as a dilated cervix.
Hi DaintreeDream
yep that was me about that wrote the why we feel pain thread
thanks for your positive feedback :D
Not a problem, it was great, I even read it to DH and he aggreed that it was fantastic and how it all made so much sense. Thank you for posting it :D. I am sure when I read it again it will give me the confidence and understanding I need to birth my next baby naturally.