Lexapro and Breastfeeding (x-posted in BF)

[njbeachgirl]

(X-posted in BF forum)

Does anyone know if Lexapro is ok to take for depression (in a low dose) while bfing? I have read conflicting things about this.

If not, is there another antidepressant which is better?

Thanks

[vegmama]

I took it while nursing my daughter (she was 2 at the time). I'm taking Zoloft now and nursing a 9 month old. I've been on it for a while. Zoloft is the one that is most often recommended. My friend is on Lexapro and pregnant. Her ob/gyn and psychiatrist felt it was safe enough.

[RootSnort]

Zoloft is considered to be the safest, but Lexapro is generally OK. Baby gets less than 8% of the dose you get, when adjusted for weight, and no adverse effects have been reported. I would just keep the dose as low as you can.

From LactMed:
Limited information indicates that maternal doses of escitalopram up to 20 mg daily produce low levels in milk and would not be expected to cause any adverse effects in breastfed infants, especially if the infant is older than 2 months. Based on limited data, escitalopram appears to be preferable to the racemate, citalopram, during breastfeeding because of the lower dosage and milk levels and lack of adverse reactions in breastfed infants. Monitor the infant for drowsiness, especially in younger, exclusively breastfed infants and when using combinations of psychotropic drugs.

[bonnydays]

Yes, generally Zoloft is considered the 'safest,' by Dr. Hale, but I took Lexapro (the SSRI that works best for me) throughout my pregnancy and am currently breastfeeding exclusively while on it. My little one is growing and developing beautifully! LactMed (a searchable database of lactation/drug interactions site by the National Library of Medicine) can be found here: http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/htmlgen?LACT if you search for lexapro you will find a nice summary of information.

Bonny

[les7699]

I was on Lexapro before my pregnancy and when I asked the doc to go back on after she wouldn't put me on it. She prescribed me Zoloft instead and then put me back on Lexapro after I was done BFing. Zoloft never helped me much.