DH is very worried about the effects of zoloft on DD

[Jenine]

I started taking zoloft (25mg.) about a week ago and am feeling the positive effects already. It wasn't an easy decision to make but I'm glad I did it. DD is 9 months old and nurses about 8 times a day, she also has 3 small meals a day. DH is really worried about how the zoloft is going to effect her developing brain (as am I) and is watching her like a hawk! How do we determine if she is reacting to the medication? What are we looking for?

I have a bit of insomnia and feel a little bit of chest tightening for a couple of hours after I take a pill, but otherwise feel fine, good actually! She is teething hardcore and has been really fussy for the past two days, more than ever before, but I think it's just what she is dealing with. She is starting to cruise, her sleep is about the same, she's active and cheerful (despite the fussiness).

DH is supportive of my taking the zoloft but also worried about DD. Help me ease his mind please.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I do know that only microscopic amounts go through bm to the baby so there is really nothing that could cause harm. I was on zoloft for 8 months from the time dd was 3 months on. I saw no issues with her then or now and she is 9. Out of all the anti d's zoloft is by far the safest for ppd in the nursing mother.

[estercita]

I was super worried about taking medication, but after researching it extensively, I was assured that Zoloft was safe. I started taking it when my daughter was 5 months old & am still taking it (she weaned about 1.5 months ago, at 19 months). She is on target with all of her development. Especially since your baby is 9 months & eating other solids, it's not as much of a concern as with a newborn or younger baby.

[JavaJunkie]

Zoloft is one of the oldest and most researched SSRIs available.

Seriously, the effects of having a depressed mother are more harmful to a baby than the amount of Zoloft that passes through in breastmilk.

[mom0810]

Zoloft is undetectable in breastmilk and in the blood of breastfed babies whose mothers are taking zoloft. I would not worry a bit about it. I nursed two babies while on zoloft, and I took zoloft while pregnant with one of my boys. No issues at all. None. My oldest is 4 and is gifted and perfectly wonderful, and my youngest is 2 and gifted and so verbal that everyone thinks he is 4!! Don't worry a bit. Studies show that a depressed mother is by FAR worse for a baby than any tiny amount of meds a baby gets by nursing.

The chest tightness concerns me a little... I would ask your doctor about that. Is it asthma you are getting, or just a panicky feeling (totally normal for the first couple of weeks on any ssri)? It's normal to have insomnia the first couple of weeks on an ssri, too. But I would ask the doctor about the chest tightness.

[Jenine]

[QUOTE=mom0810;15681970
The chest tightness concerns me a little... I would ask your doctor about that. Is it asthma you are getting, or just a panicky feeling (totally normal for the first couple of weeks on any ssri)? It's normal to have insomnia the first couple of weeks on an ssri, too. But I would ask the doctor about the chest tightness.[/QUOTE]

What I'm feeling is a mild panicky sensation. I described it as chest tightness because I don't have any of the emotional feelings that would usually accompany that sensation. I'm not having any trouble breathing or any true muscular tightening, just what I would be feeling if I was having a panic attack, but without the anxiety. Yay!

[mom0810]

Yes, panicky sensations (heart palpitations or feeling of heart racing) are totally normal during the initial phase of taking ssri's. Usually goes away after 2 weeks or less.

I am so glad you are feeling better, and don't worry. Honestly. It's so great that you are feeling better!!!

[prothyraia]

Originally Posted by JavaJunkie

Zoloft is one of the oldest and most researched SSRIs available.

Seriously, the effects of having a depressed mother are more harmful to a baby than the amount of Zoloft that passes through in breastmilk.

:

There are some concerns during pregnancy, but it's just about as safe as it gets for nursing (especially at such a tiny dosage).

If you have time, look it up in Medications and Mother's Milk (you can go to amazon and do a "search inside")
Also http://www.kellymom.com/health/meds/...hale10-02.html .

[LynnS6]

My kids were both nursed while I was on Paxil (another SSRI, and not as favored for breastfeeding as Zoloft is).

Ds breastfed for 16 months while I was on Paxil. Dd breastfed for 4 years while I was on Paxil. I saw no changes in their behavior or development before or after weaning.

Developmentally, they are both fine. Cognitively, they are more than fine (both are several grade levels ahead of their age in terms of school work). Physically, they met all their milestones. Dd was ahead for some (learned to ride a 2 wheeled bike at 4, for example), but mostly they were on target. Emotionally, they're also fine. Well within the range of normal. Ds is an introvert and doesn't discuss his feelings much; dd is much the opposite. Given their genetics and our environment, that's about what I would expect. Ds has sensory issues, but those come down from both sides of the family (dh has the same ones, and so does my brother). Both are highly sensitive, but guess what, so are their parents!

I've also done considerable reading on the subject (I'm an academic and slightly obsessive, so it's considerable). The reading all says: (1) Very very little Zoloft gets through the breastmilk. (2) developmentally, we can't tell the difference between kids whose mothers have been on SSRIs and kids whose mothers were not depressed. (3) developmentally there is a difference between kids whose mothers are depressed and untreated and kids whose mothers are not (whether that's because they weren't depressed or because their depression was treated). Kids with depressed mothers do not do as well.

For me the equation came down heavily in favor of SSRIs.

I'd also say that 9 months is fussy age. They're mobile, so they don't want to sleep. They're teething. They're advancing cognitively and preparing for language. I remember lying in bed exhausted with dd cheerfully not sleeping at 10 or 11 pm when she was that age. We all survived.

[sosurreal09]

Originally Posted by Jenine

I started taking zoloft (25mg.) about a week ago and am feeling the positive effects already. It wasn't an easy decision to make but I'm glad I did it. DD is 9 months old and nurses about 8 times a day, she also has 3 small meals a day. DH is really worried about how the zoloft is going to effect her developing brain (as am I) and is watching her like a hawk! How do we determine if she is reacting to the medication? What are we looking for?

I have a bit of insomnia and feel a little bit of chest tightening for a couple of hours after I take a pill, but otherwise feel fine, good actually! She is teething hardcore and has been really fussy for the past two days, more than ever before, but I think it's just what she is dealing with. She is starting to cruise, her sleep is about the same, she's active and cheerful (despite the fussiness).

DH is supportive of my taking the zoloft but also worried about DD. Help me ease his mind please.

for what its worth i am in the exact same boat as you hun ((hugs))

[LisaJP]

Hello ladies!
I don't mean to hijack your thread here, but what about Zoloft and pregnancy??

I am not pregnant yet, that I know of, I turn 39 on Sat this coming week, and I am so flipping stressed, I can't see straight!

I see a natural dr, so I have always been on a quest to replace SSRI's with natural alternatives. RIght now, I am taking SAM-E, 5 HTP and GABA (at times). I was on Lexapro for about a year and a half, and I didn't really feel that it didn't anything for my mood.

By the way, my daughter is a 3 and a half and I teach high school fulltime, so I can totally relate to those of you who are knowledge-seekers in regard to this.

I would like to get pregnant again, but with the school year coming up and I am teaching something I haven't taught in 12 years, I am wondering if I should take my meds (I have Zoloft that I only did a week or two on) again, just so I can smile sometimes.

Thanks for listening!

[mom0810]

Zoloft is very, very safe in pregnancy. I took it while pregnant with ds2 from start to finish, and for a year of nursing him. He is totally gifted, normal, and wonderful. Very smart and articulate for 2 years old.

It's worse for the fetus to have a depressed mother than for a mother to take ssri's while pregnant. It's not a big deal at all.

[mojobin]

I too was preggo while on zoloft (only 50 mg, but still) and am nursing my 7 mo. old. She is absolutely perfect - healthy, happy, developmentally right on. I think it may have been a different story if I had been my old super stressed and overwhelmed crazy self.

[prothyraia]

Depression during pregnancy usually has more negative effects than taking SSRI's-- *however* there are some risks (primarily respiratory, if I remember correctly). I was on zoloft for some of my second pregnancy (and now have a brilliant, happy two year old who had no trouble at any point). But there are some potential issues and side effects to be aware of.

[laurashum]

The most recent study done on SSRI's during pregnancy has shown to cause persistant pulmonary hypertension in the baby after delivery. I am currently taking welbutrin during the last couple of weeks of pregnancy and will start zoloft right after delivery. I would rather wait on the zoloft and not have a baby that has to go to the NICU for respiratory distress. I do know that the OB opinion is that they weigh the risk of not putting the mom on something during pregnancy with the risk to the baby. It depends on whether the depression is severe enough to warrant the risk to the baby.

[mom0810]

My pdoc told me that PPH happens in babies NOT born to mothers on ssri's, too, and there isn't a causal relationship proven, just that SOME mothers whose babies were born with PPH also HAPPENED to be taking ssri's, so they have to note it in the literature. It doesn't mean that ssri's cause pph at birth.

I will say again that my ds2 was born totally healthy, even 3 weeks early, needed no assistance at all, and I was on zoloft the entire pregnancy. I know it's just an anecdote, but still I think it helps to know of mothers who went through this and everything turned out just fine.

Also, depression/anxiety is MUCH more harmful to an unborn baby than ssri's.

[LynnS6]

Originally Posted by mom0810

My pdoc told me that PPH happens in babies NOT born to mothers on ssri's, too, and there isn't a causal relationship proven, just that SOME mothers whose babies were born with PPH also HAPPENED to be taking ssri's, so they have to note it in the literature. It doesn't mean that ssri's cause pph at birth.

I will say again that my ds2 was born totally healthy, even 3 weeks early, needed no assistance at all, and I was on zoloft the entire pregnancy. I know it's just an anecdote, but still I think it helps to know of mothers who went through this and everything turned out just fine.

Also, depression/anxiety is MUCH more harmful to an unborn baby than ssri's.

Yes, I can't agree more. My mother was severely depressed during her pregnancy with me and during the first year of my life. (Life circumstances (she lost 4 family members in an accident) and there was nothing they could do in the 1960s). That has predisposed me to depression and anxiety

I took SSRIs while pregnant with dd. She's 6 now and is a happy, healthy kid. OK, somewhat predisposed to anxiety, but there's a strong genetic component. she had NO physical problems at birth.

[friskykitty]

Dr. Thomas Hale has done a good bit of compiling research of many different drugs. He has a forum here that you can search.
http://neonatal.ttuhsc.edu/cgi-bin/d....cgi?pg=topics

Best book ever.
http://www.ibreastfeeding.com/catalo...pp4mh3n77hhi28

Search the forum, if memory serves Zoloft doesn't get into breastmilk very much. It's minute amounts.

Older babies (read older than 1 month) can handle the small amounts of SSRI that comes in breastmilk even when it's more than minute.

Prozac is the only SSRI approved for pregnancy.