I'm 5'5" but with a longer torso and (apparently) a well shaped pelvis. I didn't show for a long time, never got huge despite gaining 30+ pounds, minimal discomfort, and the baby just about fell out -- less than 4 hours from water breaking to delivery. Probably also helped that baby was small (long but skinny).

I'm 5'11" and so far all three of my pregnancies have been super easy compared to other women I know. I am carrying a lot higher this time and I am starting to get that top of the belly/rib pain much earlier. My first daughter was 2 weeks early and 7.5 pounds my second was overdue and close to 10. Both deliveries were uncomplicated and I had no tearing etc.
My sister, who has a very similar build is having all sorts of problems with her back. She has always had poor posture so my guess is that some of the pain can be attributed to that.

So, I don't know if tall vs short has anything to do with it. I think some women are just lucky and some have a harder time of it.

Anonymous wrote:I'm 5-11 and had a super long baby. Big suprise...he's tall like us. So even though he had more room because I am tall, he took it all up and then some. So I guess I think that you have the baby that fills up the space you have, if that makes any sense? I don't imagine a lot of 5-2 women are having super long babies.

I'm 5'4" and I had two super-long and pretty high weight (8 and 9lb) babies, thanks to my 6'3", broad-shouldered DH. Long but uncomplicated labor and deliveries. I have no idea where my organs went towards the end, there was so much damn baby in there! Pretty sure at one point I heard my stomach growl under my armpit.

Anecdotally, it seems to me as though tall women had less back pain (baby doesn't stick out as far), and short women have less rib pain.

I never had trouble with my babies getting wedged under my ribs or crushing my lungs. But oh the back pain. Having a bowling ball extended entirely in front of me was excruciating.

My mom is 5'11'' and carried a twin pregnancy (me and my sister) to 42 weeks. She didn't know she was having twins though that was over 30 years ago and while she had great prenatal care her PCP did not have an ultrasound machine.

Anonymous wrote:I think they're less likely to have issues with shortness of breath.

Shortness of breath is primarily hormonal. I am 5'11" and did not have comfortable pregnancies and did have shortness of breath. My youngest kicked me in the ribs and the pelvis at the same time near the end. However, that may have been because like his parents he was exceptionally tall (23" at birth).

I'm 5'2 and have never had a single pregnancy symptom (not one moment of morning sickness), gain a perfect amount of weight, and have long but doable natural births with no tearing. Oh and 8.5 pound babies.