Anti-depressants and Pregnancy...

If you're just taking it to get through a hard time and that time is over, you may not need it still. If you really need it, stay on it. It's more healthy for you and the baby to be healthy on these meds than depressed off of them.
When I got pregnant I was less depressed than usual, and was able to get off one of my meds. But I also took Effexor all the way through my pregnancy, and I breastfeed my 11 month old on it still. She is perfect.

My doctor put me on Wellbutrin XL and let me just say DO NOT TAKE THIS MEDICATION. I was 3 months pregnant with my daughter and the side effects from it made it so I couldn't eat. I had no appetite and when I would try to eat I would throw up any food I put in my stomache. It also made my hands... restless. I'm not sure how to describe it. I HAD to have something (usually a wadded up section of blanket) in my hands so I could sleep at nite. Because of that medication I lost 25 pounds in a week and a half while I was pregnant!! I was very lucky in not having any side effects to my daughter, but I strongly recommend NOT taking this. Talk to your doctor before you decide anything.

be careful if you try anything natural, just b/c it's natural does not mean it will be good for you. could be why it isn't FDA approved. ok, sorry, i had to comment about what that last oerson wrote..... but taking zoloft is absolutely safe in preg and nursing. go to kellymom.com

J., my ob/gyn started me on Zoloft during my pregnancy. I was almost 8 months when my husband decided he wanted out of our marriage...lousy timing!...and I was unable to eat and lost 8 lbs in one week. I stayed on the medicine through the remainder of the pregnancy and the divorce, about a year and a half. He said it was safe for me and my son, who was exclusively breastfed.

My son does have Sensory Processing disorder, but they don't really know what causes it. One seminar I went to said they do feel stress has something to do with it...so that could be attributed to the breakup of my marriage and the divorce process. And if anything, the Zoloft helped me deal with the stress, so I imagine it his sensory issues could have been worse! He's 9 now, and you'd never know there were any issues at all, since he and I have learned how to deal with the things that bother him.

Was it your ob/gyn who prescribed the Prozac? You need to talk to him. Like any medicines, sometimes you just have to take them. All drugs have risks, you just have to decide if the benefits are greater than any potential side effects.

Hi J.!
Choosing to be on an anti-depressant is a weighty decision, but ultimately you and your doctor can decide what is best for you. I am currently in my second pregnancy, and I was on Prozac for part of the first trimester...I had switched from Paxil to Prozac because my doctor said that was safer...pregnancy is a very difficult time with hormonal changes and some people who are prone to depression might experience it more strongly, so don't feel bad if you think you need it. The most important thing is to discuss it with your psychiatrist and your ob-gyn, because like I said, some medications are safer than others. Good luck to you and hopefully everything will work itself out.

J.,

This is a discussion that you should be having with your doctor. You should weigh out your symptoms carefully with the specific risks for the medication that you are taking. I used prozac late in one of my pregnancies, and I had a long discussion with my OBGYN prior to becoming pregnant about a plan to discontinue the prozac until the third trimester and reconisder how I felt then. I needed to go back on, and I delivered my baby easily and she was healthy (and I was too!)

M.

You need to speak to your doctor about this. If the risk of going off is high for you, then most likely they will have you stay on it, if it isn't then they should recommend going off. Do you really truly need an antidepressant if it was over one incident or have you had ongoing problems? These are all things that your doctor should weigh.

I was on zoloft with both and stayed on it till Dr switched me to something for seizures and mood stabilizer. Lord it was awful SO going back on Zoloft and so ready to get back to my nice self. Anyway I think u will do fine on something just make sure it is the right med for you.

Different medications are better than others during pregnancy. You need to ask yur Doc about prozac specifically and if they feel it would be harmful, ask if they can prescribe something else that is safer. If you ever feel as though yourDoc is unsure, you should always get a second opinion. Pregnancy can be a rough time for being dealing with anxiety and depression, but sometimes they also feel a relief from symptoms because of the fluxuation in hormones. I take a antidepressant, anxiety meds, and a mood stablizer and choose to stop all of them during my pregnancy. I was fine until the end and then i resumed my meds. Usually it is most harmful to take meds during the first and second trimester. During the first trimester is when the neurological system and brain are developing the most.

I'm going to be honest, with taking meds during pregnancy and during nursing there is no clear cut answer. It is usually talking with your Doc about the pro's and con's and trying to decide what is best for you.

I have had many close friends who have taken Zoloft during pregnancy and they all had perfect, healthy babies. My one friend also breastfed while on Zoloft. I am not sure about Prozac? I would talk to your doctor about your best option. Best wishes!!!

As long as its an SSRI (Zofoft, Celexa, etc. - something that works on making sure one of the "happy chemicals" is actually being processed by your brain), I'm pretty sure it is okay during the last 2 trimesters (or I did anyway and we were both ok) - you and your doc know more about your situation than we do to decide if taking them the entire pregnancy is needed for you.

Hope this helps!

Have you thought of natural solutions to help with your anxiety? There are so many side effects to anti-depressants. Think about it. My email is ____@____.com

A.

J.,
Prozac is a very potent anti depressant, do you really need it now ? Any drug in your body can effect a developing child.personally I would talk to your Dr. about weaning off of the Prozac and finding something better to help you cope.Your body goes through so many changes during pregnacy why complicate it with drugs. A friend of mine was given Zoloft during her pregnancy and her baby was perfect but she had to quit it before delivery because she wanted to breast feed and it takes awhile to get out of your system. I wish you luck.

You just need to talk to you doc about what is safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding. You do have safe choices.

I was on Paxil during my first pregnancy, but not until my third trimester. No problems at all; had a healthy 8 pound baby boy!
I eventually went off of the paxil, due to weight gain. I then started on Zoloft. When I got pregnant with my daughter, I stopped the med for the first trimester but started it back up in the middle of my second trimester. Again, no problems. Another healthy 8 pounder! Both kids are (7 & 5 now!) doing great.
Having the medication in my system before I delivered definitely helped with any post-partum blues afterward! We all did great! Good luck!

Usually you have to come off anti-depressants during pregnancy. It's something you have to weigh when becoming pregnant. You might consider talking to a psychiatrist to see what options you have. They have more knowledge, experience and options available that an OBGYN, counselor or family practioner.