Pregnancy and 50mg Zoloft.

[musicislife]

I was wondering if taking 50mg Zoloft would be ok during pregnancy? I'm experiencing anxiety off and on during pregnancy. I had a little amount before pregnancy controlled as needed by xanax, however during pregnancy has been much worse. My doctor suggest 50mg of Zoloft, but wanted to me stop during my last month of pregnancy so baby doesn't have it in it's system when I deliver. I am only 12 weeks pregnant. I'm anxious about taking this medicine on top of already being anxious I do not want to become addictive to something, however I hate dealing with this.

[admin]

Musicislife:

We have extensive study on the use of Zoloft(sertraline) in pregnant and breastfeeding women and the overall outcome on the infant is just fine. It is the most commonly used antidepressant in pregnant and breastfeeding women in the world. While it does produce a slight withdrawal in newborn infants (which is normally uneventful), tapering the dose or quitting the last month of pregnancy would certainly remove the risk of withdrawal in your infant (normal rate is around 30% show some withdrawal symptoms).

Be advised, that the complications of untreated depression are horrific in pregnancy and in a breastfeeding mothers. Keeping yourself healthy (mentally) during this period is very important. Follow your doctors advice and treat your depression and anxiety. Its the best thing for you and your infant.

Tom Hale Ph.D.
Director, InfantRisk Center

[bestellen]

You should talk to your doctors">primary care doctor and your psychiatrist about these concerns. It sounds like you have a lot of different questions you need answered, not just related to the possibility of taking Zoloft during pregnancy. Generally speaking, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) like Zoloft are safe during pregnancy and they are taken by many women during pregnancy without any serious effect. The risk of having birth defects and other serious problems with the baby are low with all the SSRIs. The most common side effect is that a large percentage of babies will have minor withdrawal symptoms (jitteriness, fussiness) after they are born from no longer having the SSRI around. However, it sounds like your doctor may not want you to continue the Zoloft, and so this might not be an issue for you. However, the fact that you are experiencing significant anxiety means that your anxiety is not well controlled, and you need to talk to your doctors about potential changes to your medicines to help with this. If you do decide to stop the Zoloft, you should come down on the dose slowly as directed by your doctor to avoid any potential withdrawal symptoms, which are generally minor but can be unpleasant.