# Anti-Depressant While Pregnant?



## karole (Jun 30, 2010)

Was just curious if any of you ladies took or know of anyone that stayed on an anti-depressant while pregnant? My daughter is pregnant and her primary care doctor told her that the Zoloft she was on was safe to take during pregnancy; however, when she saw her OB, he told her to stop taking it. She is having a horrible time off of it. She can't function. I know that the state she is in now cannot be good for the baby either. What to do?


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## Necronomicon (Mar 20, 2014)

Hi Karole,

Not a woman but have lived through the stuff associated with this in my marriage. 

My wife is on anti-depressants (Paxil) and stayed on them during both of her pregnancies. As it's a different drug there's probably not a direct correlation with the side effects as I don't know those associated with Zoloft. With Paxil there is the potential for heart development problems during the pregnancy so it had us concerned. 

The OB had no worries in our case, he had seen many women go through pregnancy on the drug and had not seen the side effects emerge though he admitted they could happen. He did, however, request a couple of extra tests to keep an eye out for issues if they developed.

The Psychiatrist wanted her to absolutely stay on the medication. His point was that the pregnancy itself would be hard enough to deal with due to the changing hormones and all and that the side effects of withdrawal and the emotional toil would cause more harm than good. Specifically in our case he was quite concerned about suicide as this is where she would go when off of the medication. And that just wouldn't be a good outcome to say the least.

The truth here is that we had decided on no biological children due to this stuff however where we live there is a 10 year wait list for adoption due to the lack of resources. On top of that we applied when I was 32 and she 30 and there is ageism here within the system where they don't like to place young children with families above the age of 40. So, we rolled the dice.

Even still, the emotional toll during the pregnancies was crazy and the postpartum depression came after, there was a lot to deal with and medications had to be tweaked to try and get on top of that so it wasn't an easy road. My only advice is to make sure everyone involved is watching out for bad signs and keep on top of them with the professionals.

In the end everything worked out, we have two beautiful thriving boys. I hope the same works out for your daughter (not necessarily boys but a thriving child :grin2: ).


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## GuyInColorado (Dec 26, 2015)

A quick google search shows it's safe and many women do it. I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express a month ago.


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## browser (Oct 26, 2016)

As far as these mood stabilizers go, you just never know, they can affect not only the person taking it but the unborn child. Data is sketchy, you might read that the overwhelming amount of evidence says it's ok but you can never be sure. Obviously at least one of your daughter's doctors feels it's unsafe.

I know it's too late now but these things really need to be considered beforehand, as in.. "I'm thinking about getting pregnant, what affect will my medications possibly have and can I deal with being off of them for any length of time" as compared to "I'm pregnant, I'm unmedicated, and I'm in a bad place mentally". Just not the way to go, no way to be when you're about to bring a child into the world. Just say'en.


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## ShatteredStill (Dec 20, 2016)

Ugh! It's best to prepare (about a year in advance) for pregnancy when your medication reliant. Anyway, these things happen. I'd research diet, or see a nutritionist, I'm NOT a hippy quack in anyway. I KNOW from experience that diet & supplements can make a HUGE difference. Logically, many ailments were effectively managed before medications. I'm NOT saying it's just as good but it can make a huge difference.

I suffer from chronic pain (degenerative spine. Lots of nerve impingement) but I desperately wanted a second child. I found many 'natural' ways to manage my pain. Diet, supplements, massage, aromatherapy, meditation, visualization, gentle SPECIALIST yoga etc. I truly believed I could do it!! I slowly titrated off of my meds before I became pregnant.

At about 7 months a doctor 'adjusted' me (chiropractic) I was stupid!! It's a long story but it happened before I realized what he was doing! I only went for a flu shot!! Ugh! He crippled me. After a while I had a 'regular' OBGYN Appointment & to my horror he had organized a 'reverse intervention' of sorts. I was faced with a room of 4 specialists who lectured me on pain & stress & its effects on unborn babies. They absolutely convinced me to start taking pain meds again. It was terrifying!!! I had no idea how the 'right thing' was adversely effecting my baby. 

I followed their advise & gave birth to a full term, perfectly healthy little girl. :smthumbup:

I KNOW how the world demonizes Mothers who take 'hard' medications whilst pregnant. Uninformed people guilt you into keeping your body 'clean' of all chemicals. Sometimes this is good. I learnt that if you REALLY need meds it can be so so so much more dangerous to your baby to stop taking them. 

She needs to educate herself & seek the advise of REAL specialists on her condition. Your standard doctor might not be aware of all the possible complications of taking medications or NOT TAKING them.

Best wishes.


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