Can you be too small to give birth naturally?

[Lil_amz99]

People keep telling me I am too small to be able to give birth naturally and I probably won't be allowed and will have to have a c section.

My mum had me naturally and had such as awful time and I didnt really fit very well that when she had my sister they would let her give birth naturally and that scares me more that they will make me try and what i can't do it!!

I am 5foot nothing and a size 8/10 and I was 6lb when I was born. My other half is 6'2" tall and about 4' wide lol and he was a 10lb baby!!

Does any one know how midwives or docs will determine whether or not I can go ahead with a natural birth or if I will need to have a c section??

I asked at my last appointment but she just Said it was too early to talk about the birth yet!

Thanks in advance for any advice xxx

 

[ZoeZo]

It's meant to be quite rare this day and age to have pelvic abnormalities that really do stop us being able to birth our babies (apparently in the days of rickets women would get abnormalities)

Generally our bodies don't make babies that wont fit, try changing position during labour, and use gravity to help,

https://mamabirth.blogspot.com/2012/01/obstetric-lie-84-cpd-or-your-baby.html

Sure it all be ok, you just have to try not to be scared (easy to say eh!)

 

[Cordelia Lynn]

You can do it!!!!! I am 5'2" and my hub is 6'8"
Our 1st born was via "emergency c-section" due to "probable CPD" (not fitting through my small pelvis.) Dr. told me that I would die (and baby would die too) if I ever attempted a vaginal delivery in the future. (baby was 6 pounds 4 oz, head circumference less than 5th percentile.)
Just recently I gave birth naturally to an 8 pound 14 oz baby at home...head circumference in the 45th percentile. I was told that I would die, but I didn't.
Believe in yourself. Our bodies were made to birth.

 

[Kat541]

I was told pelvis size matters. A midwife pushed her finger around in my vagina and said it felt like I have plenty of room in my pelvis (not the vagina itself).

 

[shortymama]

I'm 4ft 11in and had my daughter vaginally, she was just shy of 6 pounds. I agree with previous posters, supposedly pelvis size is what counts.

 

[Irish Eyes]

I'm only 5'2'' and my baby was 8lb 4oz and has a pretty big head! It's very rare that you'll make a baby that you can not give birth to. I had to have 2 stitches but that's it.

 

[Jem88]

I'm 5 foot and when i was pregnant with my daughter the midwifes kept saying "oh she's a big baby she'll be between 9-10lb" I even had 1 midwife tell me i was a "walking c-section"

I went into labour and everything was fine, LO came out but her shoulders got stuck, luckily the midwife's we're prepared as i got this this might happen, i had around 6 people in the room and all they did was lay me on my back and push my legs up and open as wide as possible to open my pelvis as much as they could.

LO was blue and floppy and got wisked away for 5mins for oxygen but she came back and was totally fine. LO was 9lb 3oz. x

 

[Ceejay123]

I'm 5ft 2, I weigh 8st 4lbs now.. Weighed 9 1/2 st before my pregnancy. If youre worried about it babe, just beg for a growth scan around 34-36 weeks... If they think you can't give birth naturally they wont let you. I know a 8st woman that had a 9lb baby.. x

 

[HollySSmith]

No. That's a myth that is often supported by the medical community when they simply don't feel like doing their job. I specifically studied human skeletal biology, from the biomechanics of walking to giving birth. Your pelvis is NOT a solid ring of bone, it shifts and expands with the release of Relaxin (a pregnancy hormone). Like pp said, it is very rare to have
a pelvis too small to birth naturally (often cause by skeletal abnormalities found with rickets). NOW, it isn't to say the baby can't be in a bad position (we all know that can and does happen) but very rarely is the issue to do with the mother.
I hear so many women saying they are too small, and it's simply not true. Only a very few percentage of the global population would have that particular issue, so obviously some doctors, nurses and midwives need to brush up on their anatomy and physiology. It's kinda scary actually.
If I had someone say that to me (a professional) I honestly would laugh in their face and ask them what online school they got their md!

 

[NaturalMomma]

It is very rare for you to make a baby too big to fit through your birth canal. Doctors/MWs cannot determine how big your baby is in utero, eventhough many will say they can, they actually can't. If a baby truly can't fit there will be signs of it during labor. But again, it is very rare. There are many women who are tiny and have big babies. My friend is 5 feet exactly and had an 11 lber at home, no tears or anything. And there are many more stories out there. You can be small, but that doesn't mean your pelvis is smaller than average. I'm short and petite, but my pelvis is actually the same size as other women taller/bigger than I am. Also having a tall DH doesn't mean you'll have a big baby. Your DH may be 6'4'' but your baby will still most likely weigh the average 7-8 lbs (usually tall people have a big growth spurt, they aren't born bigger).

 

[skc22]

I have an abnormal pelvis shape and I am 5'10. I was told as a teen after pelvic surgery that I wouldn't be able to have a vaginal delivery due to the shape of my pelvis, but I gave it a go anyway. And after a 5 day induced labour, 6 hours of pushing and failed forceps, seems I can't have a baby vaginally.
It doesn't have anything to do with your height, but the actual shape of your pelvis, and it is fairly uncommon to have an abnormal pelvic shape. The only way you can find out is to try giving birth really

 

[Housewife83]

I am shorter then you and my LO was nearly 8 pounds. I gave birth vaginally with no unusual complications.

 

[AmandaC]

My grandmother was 5 feet tall and 90 lbs, a size 2, and gave birth to a 12 lb baby vaginally with no problems. My Dr actually told me that its more common for obese women to have problems fitting baby through the birth canal than very small women.

 

[CatandKitten]

Yes, you cant tell by looking at someone. I have very slender boyish hips and before I got pregnant I had my Dr feel inside and he said it was fine and it was. The inner dimensions and ability to expand are the most important.

 

[hubblybubbly]

I'm 5 ft nothing, with a small bone structure...foot size 2, had a 7lb baby with a head circumference on the 75th centile and delivered vaginally with no problems.

 

[MissyMojo]

im only 4ft9 and size3/4 shoe(uk) aparently that matters? accordng to docs in cyprus.....
had no problems with normal delivery even with an added disability.

this is a slighty old article but its interesting and informative
https://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/pelvis.asp