Paxil and Pregnancy??

I took Cymbalta during the first half of my pregnancy. It made me violently ill to the point that I doubt very much of it even got into my system. What I learned, though, was that generally the older the antidepressant (and Paxil has been out quite awhile) the better off you are, because there's been more time for side effects to surface and be investigated. I don't think it was wise for me to go without antidepressants for the second half of my pregnancy. I began taking Zoloft the day I gave birth, and nursed my daughter for a year while taking it. (My doctor told me that Zoloft is one of the safest for pregnancy and nursing.)

Getting an OB/GYN who takes treating your depression seriously is important. I go to Dr. Mark Pelikan in Overland, who is a family practice physician who treats our entire family. He has been very good at working with me on my depression. Keep looking, and find someone who takes you and your concerns seriously. Hang in there!
T.

I took 20-30mg of Paxil through both of my pregnancies and I have two perfect boys. Eric is almost 3 1/2 and Jacob is 8 months.

I was told that I should weigh the effects of staying on the Paxil through the pregnancies against going off of them through the pregnancies. Like you, I KNEW I could not function at all without the meds.

A few studies came out during my first pregnancy and I freaked out thinking I had done something to my baby by staying on the Paxil. He was born via C-section because he was breech. (My fluid was a little down around him and he was unable to turn.)

For my second pregnancy I took 30mg every morning with my prenatal med. The worry was in the back of my head but I knew it was the best thing for me. Jacob was born via elective C-section because I chose not to do a V-bac and I knew I was getting my tubes tied with his birth.

I had wonderful and fairly normal pregnancies with Dr. Beth Gearhart. Love her and would recommend her to anyone! :)

Would love to chat more if you want to send me a message. :)

Good luck!

When I was thinking about getting pregnant I was on Zoloft and my Dr recommended I stay on it. My sister told me that with pregnancy her hormones had really helped her and she had gone off of it b/c of fertility treatments she had to take. I was on a very low dose and chose to try to go off of it and I ended up being fine.

I am not sure what your whole situation is, but I have been told by several people that they stayed on their Xanax or antidepressant without any problems. I do not think they required fertility, though.

I guess my advice is to go back to your OB and find out what her concerns are....if she cannot give you a straight answer and adverse effects then go to a different OB for another opinion. There are people in this world that do not understand mental illness and hormonal imbalances that cause mental illness. Make sure when you make the appointment that the receptionist knows you want a block of time that is enough to discuss this issue with the OB....so they do not give you 15 minutes and then your Dr. is not prepared or clock watching.

I would call Dr. Baumann at SSM Women's Center. He delivers at Saint Mary's and the new St. Clare Hospital. I don't know how he would be about depression meds during pregnancy, but he was very open to working with me in general and I felt like he listened and was then pretty rational. He was a serious OB, but laid back too.

I googled this topic and this is one of the first web sites that came up. It said that Paxil was the only SSRI that should not be taken at all during pregnancy due to a higher risk of birth defects. www.babycenter.com/404_is-it-safe-to-take-antidepressants... (I am guessing this is why your doctor reacted the way that she did, as she is worried about her liability.) It recommended Zoloft as an alternative, but sounds like you have not had good luck with other antidepressants so far. I would find an OB/GYN that is willing to support your mental health first, as well you having a healthy baby. Maybe there is an SSRI that would be safer that you have not tried yet?

Good-luck. I am glad you are taking this seriously, as a mother's well being must always come first so that she can be the best loving mother possible!

G.,
What finally happened? Did you have another baby while taking Paxil? I am currently in the same situation. I want to have a baby, but in the next couple of years and have been taking Paxil since 2001 but have tried to wean myself off Paxil a couple of times, but both times relapsed and tried other meds, but they didn't work and had horrible side effects from them....and went right back on the Paxil.
The most recent experience was earlier this year. I went from 20mg to nothing in 6 months, but my anxiety returned (didn't think I needed the med b/c I thought I "worked through" whatever problems I had before), but I relapsed about a month after my last pill. For now, I went back on 10mg of Paxil and feel ok...I plan to see if I can stay at this dosage for a while and see if I can lower in the next year or so to 5 mg with therapy also, while also checking w/ my doc to find alternatives.
Paxil is Category D and shouldn't be taken while pregnant...so I feel "stuck" at the moment. I too am planning to work with a psychologist and doctor to help me through this situation.
I wish you lots of luck and am curious to know what happened. Do you have any advice in regards to whatever has happened since you last posted?
thanks!