stopping anti-depressants while pregnant

[Kat91]

Hello mummies and mummies-to-be! I have a bit of a dilemma...

I've been taking Sertraline (zoloft) for nearly 2 years now, a bit under, and now that I founda out I'm pregnant I want to stop them completely and suddenly because im so worried about them harming my baby....I am confident I don't need them anymore, and would have come off them sooner if i had stuck to it, well i got withdrawal symptoms so i've been trying to slowly wean off for about 2-3 months now but now i just want them gone full stop.

Have any of you had similar experiences? with antidepressants while pregnant? what did you do? my drugs are classed as 'C' which means they dont know what kind of complications they may or may not cause for my baby and i dont want to risk it please help, any answers are appreciated x

 

[cosmicgirl]

I took sertraline for over a year and stopped completely once I discovered I was pregnant. I didnt wean myself as I should (that was silly), and I had lots of nausea, dizziness and eye disturbance. Please wean yourself off as per dr's orders xx

 

[pinkymum]

I took sertraline for over a year and stopped completely once I discovered I was pregnant. I didnt wean myself as I should (that was silly), and I had lots of nausea, dizziness and eye disturbance. Please wean yourself off as per dr's orders xx

yep agree with cosmic, you shouldn't come off any medication suddenly without talking to your doc and having a weaning plan

x

 

[Kat91]

I took sertraline for over a year and stopped completely once I discovered I was pregnant. I didnt wean myself as I should (that was silly), and I had lots of nausea, dizziness and eye disturbance. Please wean yourself off as per dr's orders xx

I took sertraline for over a year and stopped completely once I discovered I was pregnant. I didnt wean myself as I should (that was silly), and I had lots of nausea, dizziness and eye disturbance. Please wean yourself off as per dr's orders xx

yep agree with cosmic, you shouldn't come off any medication suddenly without talking to your doc and having a weaning plan

x

but will it harm my baby??? that's all i care about, even if i have to feel like utter poop as long as my baby is safe and sound. x

 

[cosmicgirl]

I cant answer that hun, only your dr can answer that xx

 

[pinkymum]

Yep none of us can answer that. Sorry x

 

[Kat91]

well doctor said its unknown if it will or not, but its more likely that it WILL harm the baby...thats why i just want to stop right now thanks anyway girls, I'll see what doctor says again on wednesday. x

 

[Sunnyb]

There are antidepressants available that are safe to use in pregnancy, so your gp might switch your medication for you, but I guess you will still need to do it gradually to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

As far as I remember my gp said fluoxetine is safe to use - I was taking it for 2.5 years & was frightened of getting pregnant whilst on antidepressants. My gp said she wouldn't be too worried if I fell pregnant whilst on these x

Sunnyb xxx

 

[pinkymum]

There are antidepressants available that are safe to use in pregnancy, so your gp might switch your medication for you, but I guess you will still need to do it gradually to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

As far as I remember my gp said fluoxetine is safe to use - I was taking it for 2.5 years & was frightened of getting pregnant whilst on antidepressants. My gp said she wouldn't be too worried if I fell pregnant whilst on these x

Sunnyb xxx

Yeah I know people who were on fluoxetine (prozac) while pregnant. I was on it for 8 years but came off them 2 years ago. If the benefits of an anti d out weight the negatives while pregnant and the mother really needs them the doc will prescribe them.

 

[Miss]

They can prescribe other SSRI's (the family your meds belong to) suitable for pregnancy - as the ladies before me have said, please do not stop taking them completely until your doctor says so tho. Just know there are other options.

Should you stop taking them suddenly a major side effect can be suicidal thoughts - were you to have them and act on them the outcome would be a lot worse for you baby than taking them for a couple more days I would think.

Please be safe hun and let us know how you get on

Xxx

 

[Kat91]

thanks girls...im definitely not taking them until wednesday just to make sure....then if im offered ones that are safe ill take those...im so worried if my baby's already been harmed by them i need an early scan to find out

 

[pinkymum]

I don't think its wise for you to stop them till Wednesday but its your body. I weaned off diazepam, zolpidem and codiene between 4 and 13 weeks. And my baby hasn't been harmed
Oh and did a weaning plan with my doc as I no longer needed the medication anymore anyway.

 

[HeppiBean]

I was on Citalopram when I fell pregnant and chose to stop taking them... Just BAM like that but my dr and about 3 midwifes told me that anti-depressants are generally safe during pregnancy... (Cause a lot of pregnant wome end up needing them) but it's up to you xx

 

[Miss]

I don't think its wise for you to stop them till Wednesday but its your body. I weaned off diazepam, zolpidem and codiene between 4 and 13 weeks. And my baby hasn't been harmed
Oh and did a weaning plan with my doc as I no longer needed the medication anymore anyway.

I am with Pinky on this one.....when your body is used to a medication thru prolonged usage stopping suddenly is normaly not the way to go!

But it is your choice.....just please, if you start with any side effects see your Doctor xx

 

[suzzi]

hi i was on citalapram and my dr decided i needed to be weaned of them, i decided to just stop taking them and luckily have felt fine, but talk to your dr about halving the dose and weaning of them over a month, i was told that if you stay on them then baby will have them in their body so will be upset and cry for a few days as they come off them

 

[cherrybinky]

Im with Cosmic. I was on anti deps for 9 years on and off and came off cold turkey twice running. I had dizzy spells, sickness, headache, nightmares and was a weeping mess for about 6 weeks but luckily Im over it all and fine now for 10 months

 

[pinkymum]

Obviously none of us are doctors and can't give medical advice, whatever you do just be careful! Hope your doc can help on Wednesday.
They don't have warnings on the leaflet for the fun of it

 

[Bunnykins]

Hi hon I agree with everyone else speak to your Dr, they will have had other people in your situation I'm sure so will know what's best to do. I was on citalopram when I got my bfp and I didn't take that days dose I booked in with my Dr the next day and he luckily said I could come off them with no weaning period as I'd only been on them 2 months. I didn't have any physical side effects but I did feel very down and my hormones made this worse, I can go on prozac if it gets worse as that is safe in pregnancy apparantly. This might be an option for you but only your Dr will know, but make sure if they do take u off them u are honest with ur Dr or midwife if u start to feel down as they take it pretty seriously and will monitor u.

 

[Kat91]

well it's been 7 days without any medication now and I honestly don;t feel that bad...the first few days I had bad brain zaps but even those seem to have eased up now the rest I have is sickness (feeling), fatigue, upset tummy and being very emotional, but I think that's just the pregnancy lol also have had nightmares but nothing i can't cope with

 

[mummyloulou]

when i found out i was pregnant, my gp (not the usual one) made me come off them instantly, no slow withdrawal.... i was ok for 2 weeks then suddenly, i had sickness dizzyness, visual disturbances, the shakes, i was a mess.... persevered for a few days of it and it slowly ease..... have been off them since i was 6 weeks now..... but in the last few weeks have gone downhill into a very low blur... have been signed off for a few weeks to get my head together. as work seems to be the biggest stresser at the moment... but have decided not to go back on them, although there is not evidence to say they are harmful during pregnancy, there is not to say that they aren't safe as there has not been enough research..... wish i had come off them slowly though as the withdrawal was horrid, and im sure feeling like that cant have been good for the baby either.

hope it goes well for you xxx