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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Citalopram in pregnancy, help?

12 replies

Regularsizedrudy · 25/05/2021 16:00

Sorry if this is in the wrong place.

Has anyone stayed on citalopram throughout their pregnancy? Is it safe? Or weened themselves off once pregnant?

I have been trying to get hold of my doctor for 3 weeks but it’s proving very difficult. Google brings up all sorts of scary stuff.

Any experiences of this would be welcome!

OP posts:
LunaDreams · 25/05/2021 16:52

Hello!

I weaned off when I found out I was pregnant but only as I had a discussion with my GP about it and realised I didn't really feel I needed it anymore anyway and could manage through other means (e.g. counselling).
I've monitored my mental health throughout my pregnancy though and would have no hesitation starting them again if needed.
GP told me it often comes down to what is the risk to Mum's mental health if she doesn't get the support and treatment she needs, rather than risk to baby. Lots of people take Citalopram throughout and babies are fine so I guess it depends on your mental state and how you would feel you'd manage without them x

Wibblewobble99 · 25/05/2021 17:08

Hi. I took mine throughout my pregnancy as I felt it was the best for me and baby. I felt able to come off it when baby was 7 months old and so far haven’t felt the need to go back. I had extra checks but baby was born healthy. She’s now 4 and showing no signs of any issues. X

CheeseandWine91 · 25/05/2021 18:30

I was on 10mg throughout my whole pregnancy and am still on it now 4.5 weeks pp and am breastfeeding. Hasn’t affected my son at all that I can see. My midwife said it can cause more damage by coming off and your anxiety being unmanaged.

Megzj91 · 25/05/2021 18:43

I’m in a similar position with fluoxetine and I’m trying to wean myself off with a lower dosage. It is important to ensure that you recognise if your mental health is slipping though and not go cold turkey. Lots of ladies take it when pregnant so it’s just working out whether the benefits outweigh the risk if you’re no longer taking it x

weegiepower · 25/05/2021 18:49

I was on it when I got pregnant with eldest son and came to the decision to come off it (for me it was a reason I'd been looking for to come off it really) but was told I could stay on it, and it was basically a toss up between the possible effects on baby because of tabs and possible effect on baby because of how my depression would effect me.

I found that I actually had no feelings of depression throughout pregnancy and while I was breastfeeding, it was amazing

Regularsizedrudy · 25/05/2021 19:31

Thank you all so much for your replies they are really reassuring. Obviously I will keep trying to talk to my doctor but it’s good to know that staying on is a possibility, or perhaps just a lower dose as I really feel I’m at a stable place with the meds

OP posts:
peardrops1 · 26/05/2021 10:59

Hi OP, just to add to the above replies, I'm now 38+4 and have been on citalopram throughout the pregnancy, though I did reduce my dose from 20mg to 10mg. Like you, I worried about it a lot at first, and raised it with every midwife I spoke to (I've seen 3 different ones). All of them were very strongly in favour of me staying on it, and said they'd seen a lot of pregnant women on citalopram - they were very chilled about it, and said they would be more concerned about me coming off. I found that very reassuring. My depression and anxiety have only ever been mild to moderate, so in some ways I could probably manage without citalopram, but I know (from bitter experience) that I'm much happier and healthier on it. And pregnancy is, for many of us, quite a tough ride anyway so I didn't want to mess around with my medication. I
also spoke to my GP, who consulted a psychiatrist about the risks/ benefits of citalopram in pregnancy, and their combined advice was also to stay on it.

I did later speak to a different GP (who i'd never met, and it was a phone consultation) when I had a med review, who said it would be better for me to come off it, and I said, 'But what happens then, when I get depressed again?' and he seemed to panic a bit, and said not to come off it without speaking to my midwife. And she'd already said to stay on it... So all that felt a bit circular.

There's some conflicting advice and IME GPs tend to be more cautious than midwives/ obstetricians. Worth bearing in mind that GPs seem to consult a blanket list of indications for each drug, which seems to me quite a blunt instrument since this guidance doesn't seem to provide any detail on level of risk (I asked about level of risk during that second GP conversation and he said 'It doesn't say'), whereas obstetricians and midwives have seen the impact of citalopram/ no citalopram in practice.

I've read the available studies online too, and my takeaway is that there is a very slightly elevated risk of heart defects in your baby if you take citalopram throughout the first trimester but a) the increase in risk is extremely small, and b) the absolute risk also remains very, very small. Equally, i read that there's a (very slight) risk of breathing difficulties in the baby after birth if you've taken citalopram in the third trimester, but when I asked my midwife about that she said theoretically yes, but she's never actually seen it in babies born to mothers on citalopram, and all it would mean would be the baby gets a bit of extra monitoring for a few days. (It's not a permanent condition.)

So: I concluded from my research that there are some risks, but the level of risk is very low, and all this has to be balanced against the impact on the baby of a depressed/ anxious mother - all those stress hormones. So I made the decision to stay on citalopram, and for me it's felt like the right one. (Baby is merrily kicking away as I type, and all scans have been fine.) It's not easy, because of course you want to do everything perfectly for your baby. But there's no such thing as a perfect, risk free pregnancy. There are so many variables and many other things that can go wrong, so for me citalopram has been a very useful crutch.

Hope some of this helps! Good luck with the pregnancy.

victopai · 26/05/2021 11:29

I am on 40mg and will be continuing throughout my pregnancy. The consultant told me there is no risks that outweigh the benefits. And I know for myself that my mental health taking a tumble would be a far greater risk. I was very apprehensive but was reassured by consultant at hospital.

Aisforharlot · 26/05/2021 11:34

I'm on 25mg and am 15 weeks. Don't panic! It's ok to take. Self refer to mental health midwife team if poss and ask.

Aisforharlot · 26/05/2021 11:38

I spoke to a GP early days and asked if it was safe to wean off as presumably the fetus would get acclimated to it just as I am, and she didn't know. This was after she recommended I reduce.
I have an appointment with mental health team in 6 weeks and will ask then, but I'm not worried.

Listentodad · 08/07/2022 22:42

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This has been deleted by MNHQ for breaking our Talk Guidelines.

Tally111 · 09/07/2022 01:28

Yes, I took citalopram throughout my first two pregnancies. Both those children are fine. They said to try and change over if I was planning to do it again and now I'm on sertraline. But it's more important that your health is kept on an even keel. If you can't see your doctor if you are linked to a hospital try to see someone there for advice

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