Pregabalin whilst pregnant!

[HeartyRose]

Is there anyone who’s had experience with taking Pregabalin whilst pregnant and if so what dosage were you on and was the baby fine after taking it? Reason I’m asking is I’m late for my period (and I’m never late) and I’m on 150mg of Pregabalin and I remember my doctor saying I shouldn’t get pregnant whilst on the medication. Reason being is apparently it can cause birth defects in the fetus. The Bumps website says it’s only a small chance of defects so that’s comforting but every other weblink I click on has a very negative view on it. I know people are going to say take a pregnancy test and find out but I’m generally scared because of me being on the Pregabalin.

There is no point stressing until you know for sure you are pregnant. There are other reasons why your period could be late so please do go take a pregnancy test. If it turns out you are pregnant then you need to speak with a doctor quickly to see if the benefits of continuing to take it outweigh the risks. This can only be done by a doctor who is aware of your medical history.

Bumps is a reputable resource and I would trust the information there. You are correct other sources do mention worse effects on the foetus but also from what I can find this is from animal studies where the rats were given 18 times the recommended dose. We can’t run clinical trials on pregnant women as that would be highly unethical so data that is available is normally due to what is seen in practice. This is another reason why it’s important to talk to a healthcare professional about this.

Thank you for your response, I know you’re right, I should take a test. I should mention the other reason why I’m scared is I have a 3 year old and a 10 month old to which my second pregnancy was very traumatic and where the labour was good, the recovery was bad as I developed PPD and PPA, hence why I’m on the Pregabalin.

This last month or so I’ve only just started feeling like myself again and gained some sense of self and identity. I’m just scared that if I am pregnant then A: my identity will go out the window again for another year or more and B: how much harm would the Pregabalin do if I stayed on it and C: how would my husband take it?

We went though so much when our second was born and it was such a traumatic time for all of us, I don’t think I could put us through that again.

It’s understandable after all you have experienced that you are apprehensive and worried. Unfortunately, you can’t work through your concerns until you know what you are dealing with. You can spend days expending energy on the what ifs and tie yourself up in knots coming up with potential solutions that may not be needed. The first step in finding a solution is defining the problem. If your PPD or PPA is making this difficult please reach out to a trusted loved one IRL and get the support you need to take this 1st step.

Sorry you're feeling so scared❤ As the pp said though, you've got to first find out if you're pregnant. If you are and are planning to continue the pregnancy then you can start addressing the medication issue. Were you under perinatal mental health with your last pregnancy? If you have a direct number for them I think I'd advise trying to contact them first. I found the specialist mental health services so much better for this kind of thing than the GP for obvious reasons. If you can't then of course ask GP for help :). I was advised by the perinatal psychiatrist that pregabalin is one they try to avoid in pregnancy but as always they'll work with you to balance the risks and of course they would not want you suddenly taking yourself off your meds! Please don't panic, there's expert help available to figure these things out 😊 If you aren't pregnant maybe take some time to review birth control/have a think about what you would want to happen in a future pregnancy. You've got this. Xxx

Not quite the same but a very similar drug, I was on gabapentin when pregnant with my eldest. I looked at all the studies that said there was a risk of birth defects. Problem with the studies was they weren't only taking gabapentin, they were also on anti psychotics that were known to cause birth defects anyway. I know it's not the same drug but as I said it's very similar. Look at the actual studies not just the outcomes. I weighed up the risks and made my decision from there. My eldest has shown no signs of side effects and is now 4.

Hey,

I know this is an old post but thought I would comment anyway incase someone else comes across the thread.

Before I went through fertility treatment (currently pregnant) I was seen by obstetrics with regard to my medication so that we knew what pain medication I needed to stop/change.

Whilst they did mention there is a very small increased chance of a birth defect, the risk of not taken pregabalin and my pain being uncontrolled is a higher risk to baby so advised I continue.

The only thing he noted was that baby may need 1-2 extra nights in hospital when born for monitoring incase of withdrawals.

As a little extra information. I was approved for 300mg pregabalin 3 times daily, tramadol when required and amitriptyline later in pregnancy as my pain is likely to worsen in 3rd trimester.

Ive currently found out I'm pregnant and I'm taking 25mg twice daily of pregablin.
My pharmacist mentioned there is risks, but if rather have stable mental health looking after my 19month old and enjoy this pregnancy as I found it really hard.
I'll updare if anything come up on scans, but I definitely wasn't meant to be pregnant. I had the morning after pill and started the pill three days later. So I was either already pregnant or the medication interacted with the emergency contraception and I got caught.
Hope this helps someone.

Took 150mg my whole pregnancy. No issues.

Hey girls, thank you so much for your replies. For what it’s worth it turns out I wasn’t pregnant but a couple of weeks late for whatever reason, possibly the new birth control I was taking, hence my panic of possibly being pregnant and taking it around the same time.

It did however make me and my husband think if we did want anymore children to which we decided yes, but not yet. Questions were then pondered towards if I’d be able to take the Pregabalin whilst pregnant and your comments have given me a more positive outlook towards taking the medication.

I did also ask my perinatal team (as like I said I got PPD & PPA after last pregnancy, to which has nearly gone) and she said if we decided we wanted to start trying she said to contact her 3 months before as she’d need to prescribe 5mg of folic acid as Pregabalin lowers it’s levels and she’d need to update me on the latest research into pregnancy and Pregabalin.

@Clomid100 congratulations on your pregnancy and I’m so glad you got some good advice on your medication.

@Pinklady1990 congrats on your pregnancy too and yes please keep us updated if anything gets flagged up on your little ones scans (fingers crossed it doesn’t) and if they have any withdrawal symptoms.

Thank you ladies once again for your comments and I hope this post helps someone in the future.

just wondering the outcome of your pregnancy and baby as I’m also on 300mg Pregabalin and very scared. I’m 31 weeks !

Would love to know the outcomes of anyone’s pregnancy while on Pregabalin if possible please 🙏🏻☺️