Antidepressants whilst pregnant

[mrsb987]

Hi, we are TTC and I currently take 20 mg citalopram. Has anyone else taken this during pregnancy and if so where there any complications? I don’t feel I could come off then as have tried this before and needed to go back on, however doctors ive spoken to say I shouldn’t take them whilst pregnant. I’m not a risk to myself or anyone but my general mental wellbeing would be really affected if I came off them. I’ve done some research and it says the risks are extremely low (1%) so I would be grateful for any experiences you can share with me. Thank you x

I was on fluoxetine throughout my pregnancy and there were no related complications from it at all. They obvs can't really test drugs on pregnant women so there's not really any certain / non anecdotal studies or there weren't when I was pregnant. You're at higher risk of PND so I wouldn't come off them on those grounds alone. Good luck x

Thank you so much flappergirl86, can I ask how many mg u were on? I used to be on them at 20mg which is same dose to the citalopram I take at present x

Clinical trials aren’t run on pregnant women routinely so data will be patchy.
There is of course a risk benefit and if your doc thinks you need citalopram while you are pregnant then you should continue.
However it is tricky to say one way or other the effect of SSRIs on the fetus definitively.

I took venlafaxine through two of my pregnancies, 300mg daily & 150mg daily. In my case, although there is no evidence either way, it was safer for me to stay on medication rather than come off it. Babies were both fine & had no withdrawal symptoms.

Speak to your gp - there may be a different medication that is 'safer' in pregnancy. As has been said, they can't really do proper trials to find out safety during pregnancy.

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate it. Will have another chat with my GP

I'm on 20mg a day of fluoxetine, I also took it while breastfeeding and I have a happy healthy baby. :)