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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 14 of 14. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
Hello there
I don't want to sound naive (I'm 36) - but I honestly didn't think it would happen so quick (the pregnancy).I am currently taking 10mg of Prozac, 5mg of Ambien and .5 mg of Ativan (as needed). I think I am about one month along. Has anyone had any experience with these meds while pregnant? I stopped everything, with the exception of the Prozac when I found out - and of course now I can't sleep. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
Posted by iris2 on October 27, 2004, at 12:13:32
In reply to HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
I would sugget you speek with your docter about it imediately. Is it ok to stay on the med you did?
irene
Posted by h on October 27, 2004, at 13:00:41
In reply to HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
A friend of ours took Prozac throughout her pregnancy. She said it was that or deal with her horrible mood swings that made her completely crazy. Well it either had no effect on the kid, or a good one because he is the calmest, greatest kid ever. Very bright. Got into very hard to get into private school.
If the effect on the fetus is your concern, hopefully that makes you feel better?
Posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 17:23:22
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by h on October 27, 2004, at 13:00:41
Everything is a concern right now. My pharmacist told me that Ambien and Prozac are both Class B - but Ativan is a big no no - haven't taken that one too much thought, so I think everything will be ok.
I think getting some sleep & seeing my doctor (tomorrow) will help ease my mind (or maybe not) who knows!
If anyone has taken either Ambien or Ativan during pregnancy - please let me know how things came out.
Thanks
Posted by iris2 on October 27, 2004, at 22:39:18
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by h on October 27, 2004, at 13:00:41
Of course it is my concern. Might I suggest that you read the package insert. You can just google it. Still a bit concerned.
Wishing you well,
irene
Posted by LyndaK on October 28, 2004, at 0:22:39
In reply to HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
I took Zoloft during my pregnancy (probably the same class of drug as Prozac and my son is just fine). Zoloft might help with the sleep a little, but the pregnancy itself ought to also help (most pregnant ladies get sleepy alot -- probably because their bodies are working to build a baby ;-)
Don't worry. Think happy baby thoughts.
Posted by woolav on October 28, 2004, at 9:02:02
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant » traveler, posted by LyndaK on October 28, 2004, at 0:22:39
I agree with the others. I heard prozac is okay to take while pregnant. But i know benzo's are not. I worry about getting pregnat on accident and it worries me because i take klonopin and lamictal too. But, prozac should be okay...
Good luck
Posted by dove on October 28, 2004, at 10:06:21
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by woolav on October 28, 2004, at 9:02:02
I took both prozac and effexor during my last pregnancy (along with Remeron for the last month), and baby was fine, no complications during pregnancy, birth, delivery or postnatally.
During the first 1.5 months of the pregnancy I was taking Adderall, Remeron, Prozac, Effexor and Klonopin. The two drugs the doc's were concerned about were Klonopin and the Adderall, which I went off cold-turkey as soon as I knew I was pregnant.
The benzo's are a bit more dangerous than other meds. However, there are not many studies to truly back-up the lack of long-term side-effects in the baby in regard to SSRIs taken during pregnancy. One must decide and weigh the benefits against the "potential" and/or unknown harm the meds may cause.
I encourage you to be honest with yourself regarding what you can and cannot handle. I went off all meds for a couple of months during my last pregnancy, but realized that I was rapidly deteriorating and went back on. I did the best I could and have no guilt or regrets regarding going off the meds and going back on.
Good Luck to you!
dove
Posted by ants on October 28, 2004, at 10:49:12
In reply to HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
I stumbled across this article at www.nature.com and thought I should share it. I know this is very controversial and there is certainly not enough information at this time, so ultimately it will be a personal decision on your part as to what drugs you choose to continue. I would weigh the pros and cons of your mental health for the next 9 months versus the risk factor...
here is an excerpt:"Children or unborn babies exposed to the popular antidepressant Prozac could suffer from abnormal emotional development, animal studies suggest.
Rats given the drug for the first few weeks of life perform poorly on tasks designed to test their confidence and ability to deal with stress, says psychiatrist Jay Gingrich, who ran the study with his colleagues at Columbia University in New York.
The group says its findings should be taken into consideration when prescribing Prozac (also known as fluoxetine) and related antidepressants to pregnant mothers and young children. But it adds that it is too early to consider banning use of the drugs in those patients."
and a link to the full article:
http://www.nature.com/news/2004/041025/full/041025-14.html
Posted by Starlight on October 28, 2004, at 13:16:10
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant-recent article ? traveler, posted by ants on October 28, 2004, at 10:49:12
Use of these drugs are linked to congenital malformations and I for one, don't want to be the rat that gets experimented on. My Pdoc, who is female said I had to come off of everything and I agree. From what I understand, once you get past the first trimester, the hormones that your body is releasing has a positive impact on moods and the worst part is the potential for post partum depression, although I would think that breast feeding would also have a good impact hormonally.
starlight
Posted by Larry Hoover on October 28, 2004, at 14:58:21
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant-recent article, posted by Starlight on October 28, 2004, at 13:16:10
> Use of these drugs are linked to congenital malformations and I for one, don't want to be the rat that gets experimented on.
The fact is, neither antidepressants nor benzodiazepines are linked to congenital malformations in cohort studies. In case control studies, there is a very weak link, but the cohort data is more reliable. If you take the cohort meta-analysis (link below) at face value, there is a reduced risk of malformations, but it's more likely that there is no difference between exposed and non-exposed pregnancies.
A cohort study is a look at a large group of cases, where differences within the group (such as exposure to benzodiazepines) are examined to see if there are different outcomes. In this example, benzo-exposed pregnancies had a malformation risk of 0.9 (less likely) when compared to unexposed pregnancies in the same cohort.
In a case-control study, you look at outcomes (positive cases vs. negative cases) and look for factors that might have led to those different outcomes. The problem with this type of study is that it does not take into account any differences in baseline health characteristics. For example, the question "Does anxiety itself lead to birth defects?", is not answered. Benzo use might be correlated to birth defects because both are themselves correlated with anxiety.
Here's a link to a full-text analysis of the issue. Dr. Koren heads the Hospital for Sick Children Motherisk Program, which assesses and monitors the effects of drugs and toxicants on pregnancy outcomes.
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/317/7162/839
Here, also, is an article Koren wrote about the risks of treated and untreated depression during pregnancy, found on the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada website:
http://www.sogc.org/sogcnet/sogc_docs/press/pdfs/Discontinuation_Syndrome_Following.pdf
I will not argue that the issue is settled. It is not. If anxiety or depression could be of significant effect during pregnancy, I think that serious consideration should be given to treatment. Untreated anxiety during pregnancy can have permanent adverse effects on a child's development (references available).
Lar
My Pdoc, who is female said I had to come off of everything and I agree. From what I understand, once you get past the first trimester, the hormones that your body is releasing has a positive impact on moods and the worst part is the potential for post partum depression, although I would think that breast feeding would also have a good impact hormonally.
> starlight
Posted by MKB on October 28, 2004, at 22:55:38
In reply to HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by traveler on October 27, 2004, at 11:56:54
You might consider trying L-Tryptophan. Do some research on it. It is all natural and works well to lift depression. I got mine from www.healthrecovery.com.
Posted by traveler on October 29, 2004, at 12:42:55
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by MKB on October 28, 2004, at 22:55:38
Wow - so much info. This is a very overwhelming time for me. I haven't taken a single Ativan since I found out I was pregnant. I have only taken 2.5 mg of Ambien and I am tapering the Prozac - hopefully all will be fine. I will probably stop the Ambien altogether this weekend and throw the bottle away, so I am not tempted...
I think (I hope) I am doing the right thing
Posted by traveler on October 29, 2004, at 14:48:54
In reply to Re: HELP - I'm pregnant, posted by dove on October 28, 2004, at 10:06:21
> I took both prozac and effexor during my last pregnancy (along with Remeron for the last month), and baby was fine, no complications during pregnancy, birth, delivery or postnatally.
>
> During the first 1.5 months of the pregnancy I was taking Adderall, Remeron, Prozac, Effexor and Klonopin. The two drugs the doc's were concerned about were Klonopin and the Adderall, which I went off cold-turkey as soon as I knew I was pregnant.
>
> The benzo's are a bit more dangerous than other meds. However, there are not many studies to truly back-up the lack of long-term side-effects in the baby in regard to SSRIs taken during pregnancy. One must decide and weigh the benefits against the "potential" and/or unknown harm the meds may cause.
>
> I encourage you to be honest with yourself regarding what you can and cannot handle. I went off all meds for a couple of months during my last pregnancy, but realized that I was rapidly deteriorating and went back on. I did the best I could and have no guilt or regrets regarding going off the meds and going back on.
>
> Good Luck to you!
>
> dove
So, for the first 1.5 mos - you were taking Klonopin? And then you took the Prozac the entire time? I am probably worrying more than I should - which is why I am taking the meds to begin with! Any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated.
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