Looking for Advice and Insight

No need to be alarmed. I truly believe that the body does as needed to care for the baby. I put on a lot of weight with my pregnancies as well. I would not be too worried about it.

Consider that this might be just water weight, either for baby or edema in the legs and feet. I'm sure it's fine, or else she shouldn't be going to that doctor in the first place :-)

Her doctor doesn't mention it because it is within a safe range. In the third trimester, she should be gaining 2 pounds per week...so 4 pounds is still OK. Also, delivery 2 weeks before or after 40 weeks is a normal delivery. She could deliver at any time and it wouldn't be considered early.

The only reason to worry (in my opinion since I am not a doctor) is if the weight gain is out of the ordinary for her. In my case I would gain anywhere from .5 lbs to 2 lbs a week and then I went in and had gained 8 lbs in a week so that was a red flag. I did end up having preeclampsia but my doctor didn't base it just on the weight gain. I had a 24 hour urine collection to check for protein. My doctor asked if I had done anything different before he was really concerned...like if I had eaten myself silly :)

My point is that if it isn't out of her normal pattern of weight gain then there is probably no need to be concerned.

There is no reason for concern. For one thing, she could have the baby any day--37 weeks is considered full term, and a "normal" pregnancy lasts anywhere from 37 to 42 weeks. A 45 pound weight gain is a little on the high side, but hey, that's life. ;-) It could also be water weight, too.

My son was born at 38 weeks and 2 days, and I gained somewhere around 35 pounds. I actually lost weight the last couple of weeks I was pregnant, but my midwife wasn't concerned, because my overall weight gain was normal.

Your sister will be fine. I put on 70 pounds when I was pregnant!!!! My doctor wasn't pleased with me, but it didn't cause any complications. I did breast feed for 6 months, which helped me loose most of the weight. But, I still have 10 pounds left to lose and my son is 3!!! The more weight put on, the harder it is to loose it all.

I gained a total of 55 lbs with my last pregnancy. And no, my baby was not a huge baby. And I'm not even 5 ft tall! And yeah, I was also capable of gaining that much in such a short amount of time.

I brought up my weight gain with seriousness with my first pregnancy (I gained about the same with both pregnancies), but they were not concerned at all! My blood pressure was perfect, they said. I had no complications of any kind, no high sugar levels, nothing.

So really, that's what you should wonder, if anything. Are there any complications? If not, then she's good.

And no, her weight gain in no way means she'll go into labor sooner... at least that's what they told me! :) Both my babies were full term babies. Like someone else said, it could very well be water gain. More bananas and less salt in her diet would help her with that. :)

Relax! If her doctor isn't concerned, you -or her- should not be concerned either!

Every pregnancy is different. Sounds normal enough to me :)

R.,

I agree with the last post. I gained 10 lb's in 3 weeks with my last pregnancy! I was shocked but my midwife just laughed at me. I was also 11 days past my due date when I delivered that baby - gained a total of 37 lb's... baby was 9 lb's 7 oz. :)

This time I've gained about 5 lb's less, but I'm guessing I'll still go past my due date on the 16th.

Good Luck to your sister!
J.

I think this is normal. However, sudden weight gain can mean eclampsia too. She should check with her doc. to be sure.