Informaton About Being on Anti Drepression Meds During Pregancy

I was on Zoloft for my entire pregnancy, and continue to be while I am breast feeding. I even had to increase my dose to contend with the hormones. My doc approved it, and my son is just fine! Good luck, and no you are not selfish in wanting a baby.

This is something that you really need to discuss with your doctor. My best friend (who is pregnant with her second) has been on anti-depression meds for years as well, although, she was able to be off them during her pregnancy. Docs have ALL the information as to what is safe to take during pregnancy. There may be something that is right for you. :-) But you NEED to talk to your doc about this instead of getting advise from a message board. You are NOT being selfish to want a baby. Good luck!!!

J.,
I was also on medication during my pregnancy. 10 mg Celexa, 1 mg haloperidol, 75 mg doxepin. These, I am told, are the safest meds at the safest dosages during pregnancy. I stayed stable throughout my pregnancy and an added bonus was the doxepin really served as a sleep aid in the evenings as well as an antidepressant. I dropped the doxepin after delivery because it made me too drowsy to properly care for my newborn.

About being selfish, I would say no, not for wanting to have a child HOWEVER you have a very dire responsibility to that child that requires a LIFELONG COMMITMENT. My pregnancy was not planned but as soon as I found out that I had become pregnant I not only changed my psyche meds but I picked up several counseling and therapy sessions. I suggest that you do the same. A child deserves a mother who is STABLE, HAPPY and ALERT. You know yourself, maybe you don't need to do what I did but what I did was for my darling daughter. While in therapy I took the opportunity to discuss safety plans for those down days and possible mood swings. I have an illness and many women have been negatively affected by just this such an illness, I was NOT going to be one of them. Remember that your hormones will be raging in addition to the chemical imbalances you will be dealing with both before and AFTER delivery. I ask you humbly to consider taking the time to seek out 4-6 sessions at least. I did 18 sessions both in a group setting and individually. Check your local MHMR or call your insurance provider to see what therapists/counselors are close and available to you. Once you get an appointment simply state that you are pregnant and have __________ issues (whatever they are). A bi-polar group, a lifeskills group even a parenting group will do. (Maybe all three)d Being able to talk about your thoughts, fears,hopes,dreams, and needs will help your brain and body prepare for the coming child, organize your priorities and decompress.

My best to you, J., and good luck.

Hi J., you have to what is best for yourself and your husband. I was on 50 mg of zoloft during my entire pregnancy and I am still on it while breastfeeding. My little girl is perfectly normal in fact she is advanced. The stress is far worse for you and your baby. Antepartum and postpartum depression are not something to mess with. The hormones your body is going to be producing are a lot for the woman's body to deal with as well as everyone else around her. There is nothing wrong with taking zoloft. I do know that if you are on a higher dose than that then you want to lower down to 50mg during your third trimester because it can cause some pulmonary hypertension in the baby. by the way I am also an older mom. I just turned 35.

Hello J.,

I know that you want a baby, but I also know that you want a healthy baby. Please keep in touch with your doctor and maybe there is some type of meds that you could take and have a healthy baby. And to answer your question, you are not being selfish to want a baby.

I agree with most of the posters- it is more dangerous to the baby to be depressed and unmedicated than it is to use some antidepressants during pregnancy. You do need to check with doctors, they should know. You are not unusual, lots of moms need to be on anti-depressants while pregnant.

I know that Zoloft is generally considered safe. There are some specific risks associated with anti-depressants, but the risk is very low and you can be screened with ultrasounds. In general the risks are associated with second trimester use.

Do discuss this with your doctor. If necessary, an Ob/Gyn would know what is safe and how much.

Good luck.

I stopped taking my meds while pregnant. Doc said to ...I had a very very rough time without them. I wish I had probed more into WHAT I could have taken. while nursing I finally had to take a very low low dose of paxil just to be sane! and it worked out just fine. I have a very strong healthy 2 year old now! but those times were a bit dark for me...definitely sit down with your doc's and find out more about what you can take! have a Plan!

i was on antidepressants before i was prego. my 1st pregancy i didn't take them and it was awful with out them my 2nd pregnancy i had my meds changed so incase i got prego i would not harm the baby. i got on lexapro and have been on it ever since. my daughter is fine and had no probs.

My doctor placed me on Zoloft when I was first diagnosed with depression because she knew that we were planning on starting a family. She said Zoloft was the only med that I could take while pregnant, but your doctor should be able to be able to give you all your options.

I was on Zoloft my entire 2nd pregnancy, and it was much better than my 1st, when I took nothing. There are no definitive tests on the effects of any depression medication on a baby, because the studies have been done only by those willing to participate, and not a broad range as preferred in most studies. It is believed that Zoloft (and I believe there are a couple others) is ok to take during pregnancy if the mother will benefit and have a happier healthier pregnancy because of it. Ask your OB/GYN and regular Dr. which ones you can take, and get yourself switched over now.

This is do-able, but you need to educate yourself, and you need to have a support network in place. Taking antidepressants during pregnancy is very safe--for certain medications. You need a good psychiatrist in addition to your ob-gyn, and those two doctors need to be talking to each other. Depression during pregnancy is often a precursor to post-partum depression, which is a special kind of hell; in addition, there is a growing body of research which shows that depression during pregnancy can be bad for your baby (has to do with elevated levels of cortisol, the body's "stress hormone"). That being said, there's much you can do besides medication to manage your depression: meditation, exercise, cognitive behavioral therapy, diet. People who suffer depression are vulnerable to stress, and a baby is a life-changing event--so get a good handle on things. And then: go for it. All the best.

I was on low dose of prozac through out my entire pregnancy. I have been mostly on antidepressants for the last 8 years and if I tried to go off would realize that I needed to be back on them. My son is now 16 months and perfectly healthy. I know I would have had REALLY REALLY REALLY bad post partum depression if I had not stayed on my meds, almost needed to up my meds during the first 6 months of my son's life. I am currently off of them and just found out i am pregnant again. If I stay feeling good then we are just going to put me back on my meds around the 8th month of the pregnancy so I dont go off the deep end when the kid is born. I will say that I did breastfeed my son, so he got some antidepressant in the womb, some through my breast milk and then had the antidepressants weaned out of his system as he was weaned from nursing. I think that is partly why it went well. I think it would have been a lot harder if I was bottle feeding him and he was going cold turkey off the meds that were in his little system. I dont know for sure that is just my feeling.

Hi J.,

THE leading expert on meds in prego and nursing women is Thomas Hale, PHD, he's done some GREAT work. You can look him up online, he works out of some TX university.

Good luck!
S.

J., You can do it!!! Don't take the pills, it is not worth it, Turn on some music, comedy, a funny friend. Your pregnacy will be over before you know it. If you have to wait until you know the baby is developed then take just the bare minimum. You are the mom, you are the one person in charge of protecting the baby. If you can't then maybe you shouldn't have a baby at this time. You can do it. It will be well worth it and over before you know it. Leave signs all around your house, look in the mirror. YOU CAN DO IT!! I LOVE YOU BABY!! THIS IS FOR MY BABY!! Good luck and god bless you!! L. Z.

Okay after reading some of the other responses, I guess if you really need something, then take it.

Good Question. I found there is no BEST answer. I was on Prozac 60mg (my full dose) for my third child. She was the calmest, happiest baby of the three. The first one I quit all my meds, and he's having the hardest time of all. Being stressed out with a baby inside does not help the baby. Ups and downs of life are fine, but if a chemical imbalance antagonizes your response to life, the child might be affected by that more so. With my middle child I was on a half dose and she operates a lot on the extreme ends of the behavior spectrum. With three children, and three temperaments, and three medication levels, all born into three separate stages in our life (including three different homes). My first was born when I was 37, second at 41, third at 44- all planned. Remember, each child is expected to be different than another. What I derived from my experience is, Use safe chemicals, go to high risk trained obstetricians, talk to the obstetrician who's focus is on medicines and pregnancy (I think every Hospital has one); and you make sure YOU can function responsibly (that means you can respond appropriately to your current and future situation- even if that means hiring a nurse when you can't respond by yourself... just an extreme example), then you have given your self and baby the best you can. When I had my third and talked to the dr. about a fourth, the doctor told me the drugs I had used were no longer safe, and described my first son's issues as the results. Yet, I carried my first son with no drugs... And, my "easiest, most adjusted" child had been born with those same drugs- at the highest dose I'd used. Three years later, I'm told the same drugs are perfectly fine...
My conclusion, If you can have a child, love and care and help it grow and develop to be a contribution to his/her world, and you want to do it, then do it in the healthiest way you and the doctors know how. the rest is out of your hands, embrace it.

Hi J.,
I just wanted to let you know that I was on a low dose of Zoloft once a day while pregnant with my youngest. It was better for her, because without it, I had no apatite and was not sleeping. She turned out just fine. I think I was on 10mg throughout my pregnancy (I started it at about 12 weeks when my ex husband walked out on us and left us with nothing and no where to live). I have no other experience with this, but just wanted to share and let you know that my little one turned out just fine.
I hope everything works out for you, I do not feel you are being selfish to want a child!
T.