Fluoxetine or other SSRIs in pregnancy, experiences

[Southwestwhippet]

Was on fluoxetine before I got pregnant. Really is a wonder drug for me, limited side effects, pretty much INSTANT action (unusual, I know) and makes me feel normal again. Stopped taking it when I got pregnant.

I am 10wks ish and really not coping. Desperate for my fluoxitine again, feel like I don't want to be pregnant anymore, no emotions other than frustration and rage, being evil to my DP, snapping at poor DD, not sleeping, lying awake with anxiety attacks, feel like I don't love DP and baby was a stupid idea. Wish I could just run away from it all and at worst points fantasising about miscarrying [ashamed to type this] just so I can go back on it again and get my life back. I was desperately depressed with DD last time and it ruined my relationship, my job and left me quite traumatised for a long time about the process of pregnancy. Anxiety that history is repeating itself is also adding to my depression. This is a much wanted baby BTW.

I Tried to talk to doctor last week but she just said "no" nothing until 14 weeks and even then not keen. ?????? don't know what to do now. I know the risks for fluoxetine but to be honest, I am prepared to take the risks just to keep my family together and be able to function again.

How did,you guys who took fluoxetine convince your GPs? Did you wait until the heart was developed before you went on it and are you under any additiionak care in pregnancy? Please, any experiences really helpful.
Thxs

[MerryKat]

Stopping medication in pregnancy should be a risk/benefits conversation between you and your gp. It infuriates me when Gps do this to women without taking into account what happens if you get ill again.
See a different gp. There is a slightly increased risk of heart defects in first tri but it needs to be weighed up against the risk of you being ill and what that means for your unborn baby and family.
Check out latest nice guidance on pregnancy and ads and go back to a different gp!
If you wanted an alternative to meds then cbt has a good evidence base for mild/moderate depression but you are the best judge of what works for you!
Fluoxetine gets into breast milk in higher levels than sertraline so sertraline is recommended by nice for women wanting to bf xx

[MerryKat]

what area are you? Some areas have specialist perinatal teams that can advise gps or prescribe for you!

[Southwestwhippet]

Thank you, I think I will give it a week and try my surgery again to a different GP.

When I went to the surgery last time I was pregnant saying I wasn't coping (bout 5yrs ago) I was told to struggle on until I had the baby, breastfeed for a month the switch to formula. No conversation about how I felt about this. Like many mothers I was really really desperate to be able to breastfeed and was hoping to extended feed to approx 2yrs so this just made me feel worse and more of a failure.

In the end I struggled on with depression until DD was 9months then went back to GP claiming PND (although think TBH it was just standard depression). But using the PND label meant they were prepared to prescribe and I was given sertraline which was ok ish although not as effective as fluoxitine.

So this time I deliberately chose a different GP at the practice to talk to but got no more help really. But I've been coping better this week as DP (who also suffers badly fro depression, often triggered by my anxiety attacks and being horrid to him) has got on top of his with citalopram and is being very supportive. Also he is making me leave work earlier (we work together) and get a nap whenever I can, so I'm not so exhausted.

I'm Somerset based, not sure what services are in the area though, adult mental health is massively oversubscribed and I had a course of CBT 2 years ago so I don't think I'd get anything else ATM.

Thank you for the kind and non judgemental words. I will keep trying with GPs.

[NeopreneMermaid]

My GP told me I had to stop taking fluoxetine during first pregnancy; midwife set him straight. Took it during second and everyone was fine.

[ArseForElbow]

I took fluoxetine during both my pregnancies and all was fine. My GP said it could do me more harm than good by stopping. I hope your next appointment goes better and you feel better soon.

[anythingbutinsomnia]

I've been in fluoxetine since birth of DD nearly 4 years ago. Tried coming off completely once, which was a disaster, but was making another attempt when I very unexpectedly fell pregnant again last summer. At the time I was taking 20mg every 2nd day but it wasn't going well. I was lucky that the GP i saw was supportive & ok with me staying on them, even saying I could go up to 20mg daily if needed. I coped until 12 weeks but then had to up my dose. Midwife has also been supportive - making it clear that the impact of my mental health on the whole family needs to be considered, not just the potential impact of the ADs on the baby. at no point has anyone directly suggested I stop taking them but I've seen one other GP just for a repeat prescription who was obviously less keen on me taking them. I just made it clear to him that I had considered the risks and made an informed choice based on my circumstances. I'm having an ELCS on mental health grounds (mild birth trauma with DD contributed to PND). Consultant was again very understanding & her main advice was to try breastfeeding for a few days just to help wean the baby off the ADs when he's born but she's not expecting any major issues as I'm only on 20mg. Nothing showed up in terms of heart issues at my 20 week scan, but we'll know for sure this week - my ELCS is booked for Wednesday!
Sorry for the ramble ... really I just wanted to say trust your instincts about your need for ADs, be open about acknowledging the risks but needing to balance that with the needs of you & your family, and most of all keep hunting down understanding midwives/GP

[jlibertine]

Hey OP. I've been lurking for ages, but felt compelled to post. Don't worry! I took fluoxentine throughout my pregnancy and now have a beautiful three month old DD, who is the calmest most placid baby my friends and family have known. (Sorry, PFB syndrome.)

I've been on one sort of AD or another since I was 18 for anxiety and eating disorders. So, when DH and I decided to try for a baby we were naturally concerned as to what to do with my medication of 20mg a day of prozac.

Cut a long story short, I did the same as you due to pressure from my family. Ended up being signed off from work for a week due to the same sort of worries as you have had. I was desperate to miscarry during that time. Ended up back on prozac and under the obstetrician. They made me see a psychiatrist for an assessment, to determine whether I was on the right dosage, which I knew I was, but just went along with it.

You WILL be able to BF (if you can) because the dosage passed to baby through breastmilk is so small. I was told to make sure I left a two hour window before taking the pill and BF. I planned to combination feed and express to solve this, however I ended up formula feeding. Just couldn't cope with BF after birth trauma. (40 hours and Emergency CS.)

You should also be able to access a mental health midwife, who was a godsend. She is trained to help people like us. I'd ask your midwife for her number. The message I had from her was that in order to produce a healthy baby, mummy needs to be healthy too. Like the other posters, I'd say keep taking the meds and try to get through pregnancy- I know you've been pregnant previously, but I know I hated it and really needed my meds.

I hope everything works out for you. xx