25 Weeks Pregnant and Measuring at 31 Weeks Pregnant

See, my OB doesn't even do 'measuring'. There are so many things that can affect the measurement. Retaining water, weight, amniotic fluid level, position of the uterus, etc. 6 weeks is an awful lot to be 'off'. Only the ultra-sound will really be able to tell you how the baby is progressing, so until then, don't worry.

FYI, with my first pregnancy, my OB was also 'shocked' about how big I was measuring. So they did a sonogram that day and baby was fine. She was measuring bigger than average, but... oh well. She was 8lbs 10 oz when she was born, and according to the measurements, he was estimating her to be over 10 pounds. So... again... doesn't mean much.

Was this an ultrasound measure or a belly measure?

I grow REALLY big placentas.

Typical placentas are 3-5lbs. Mine was over 20. Between 10lb baby, 20+ pound placenta, and amniotic fluid... I was carrying over 40 pounds in my uterus. I was a whale. Or a kangaroo. Or whatever. Freaking huge.

I also had a month long 'due date', that actually got schlepped around quite a lot. There are some golden times to 'see' gestational age, but outside of those there is a couple week margin of error. So if you don't know date of conception, you may be quite a bit further along than you thought.

While there are always "yikes" reasons to fret about, it's probably a common one:

A) big placentas, lots of fluid, baby chilling out in a wacky position that minute making you measure big, etc.) if it was external, or

B) if internal/ultrasound then most commonly you got your dates mixed up. SUPER common as many women still have a "period" (that isn't actually a period) their first month. Meaning you may have a whole month knocked off your sentence!!! (Okay, I hate being pregnant, so i do realize that might not be good news for everyone.)

So at 21 weeks, you measured 3 weeks 'ahead'... Give or take 2 weeks not in a golden zone may very well be you were actually 5 weeks ahead from that point. Or conversely, this measure may be off 2 weeks, and you're actually only 29 / still just 3 weeks off.

Go in for the US (or next one) before fretting.

Not an exacting science. Get 3 different ultrasound techs, you'll get three different measurements.

Just a rough measurement.

:)

All of these measurements are notoriously unreliable. I think you're right to get another ultrasound and keep monitoring things, but 25 weeks is dangerously early to start thinking about an induction and a c-section.

Oh, and I'm assuming you're monitoring your blood sugar? This could be an early indicator of gestational diabetes, among other things. Or it could be nothing whatsoever -- it's a very unreliable measure.

Yeah, I measured big too. I felt bigger once they told me that. My baby was on time (1 week early) based on their original date. Just wait and see what they decide next and what shows up on the next ultrasound. Maybe they predicted the due date wrong!!

He may not have measured your belly accurately. Measuring the belly isn't really an accurate indicator of, well, anything and it's nothing to worry about. Even ultra-sound measurements can't be relied upon.

You probably will not have to have a c-section or be induced simply because of a belly measurement. You would need to have some actual complications for those to occur.

I'm 34 wks & been measuring 2-3 wks ahead since May. I've been told it could be due to big baby, malpositioning, excess amniotic fluid, carrying high, etc. They are waiting to give me another US at 36 wks. Your due date could also be wrong, or the baby could be sideways or head up, which totally throw off the fundal measure (which is not too accurate anyway). Dr. just told me that most babies are about the same at 20 wk US and all the way up to 30 wk when the bell curve of small-large starts to differentiate. You've prob got one of these other things going on.

I was going to say most of what Riley said, so ditto to that. Both of my babies measured ahead, or big, and they had to do ultrasounds to date the pregnancy to get my due dates because I didn't know when conception was. Anyway, my DD was due on Nov 9th and I went into labor on Oct 25 and she was too big for ME, so I had a c-section after 14 hours of labor and no dilation. She was born at 8 pounds and 22.5 inches. My son was scheduled 18 months later for 6 days before his due date and he was 10 pounds 1 oz and 21 inches long. I lost over 50 pounds in 2 weeks after delivering him.

So, measuring big matters, but not really. I had no complication or problems that had to be managed. Well, other than throwing up from conception to delivery, but that was it. No diabetes or anything. So, don't worry too much, and you'll be fine in most cases.

PS, I was never measured on the outside because I am plus size so it didn't really work, so we never had that to go by.

I had too much fluid for my entire pregnancy with my second.
At 19 weeks, I was measuring at 30. That pace kept up until the very end.

Too much fluid - most of the time - means nothing. They don't know why it happens. Aboutn 5% of the time, I can indicate a birth defect with the baby's ability to swallow and kidney function. Both are resolved with a quick surgery after birth.

For me, it had no impact on delivery date.

It was nothing to worry about, and DD is a healthy little trouble maker today!

MY OB was lousy at measuring me, my midwife was always much better! The midwife measured a bit differently to account for the extra "fluff" that my first baby left behind (just a bit, I am a size 10 when not preggo, but definitely there). I did have quite a bit of amniotic fluid. If you are "diagnosed" with too much fluid, pm me and I canm tell you all about it :) Don't worry about your delivery now, you have a long way to go. For the vast, vast majority of women, unless there is a medical complication like gestational diabetes, previously fractured or deformed pelvis, or similar, you do not grow a baby that you cannot birth. You are a long, long way from signing up for a c-section!

Could you have miscalculated? I know you probably thought that yourself. My babies were really big- 9lbs, 5 oz and 10 lbs, 14 oz. But they always measured correct for their age in utero. As for whether a c-section or an induction, I really couldn't say, but my big-headed babies couldn't fit between my big hips, so I needed a c-section both times.
I hope everything goes as well with your delivery as it did with mine!
hth
p.s. if you want more info on my c-section experience, now or later, feel free to p.m. me.