Can you take antidepressants when pregnant

If you don't treat your depression you may:. Do NOT suddenly stop your antidepressant if you find you are pregnant. Most women with a history of depression who stop taking medication during pregnancy find their depression comes back. The content on this page will be of most use to clinicians, such as nurses, doctors, pharmacists, specialists and other healthcare providers. Looking for Where to get medical help A health professional or service Patient portals Newsletters View all.

Antidepressants in pregnancy Print A A A. Overall, the risk of birth defects and other problems for babies of mothers who take antidepressants during pregnancy is very low. However, some antidepressants are associated with a higher risk of complications for your baby. Talking to your health care provider about your symptoms and medication options can help you make an informed decision.

If you use antidepressants during pregnancy, your health care provider will try to minimize your baby's exposure to the medication. This can be done by prescribing a single medication monotherapy at the lowest effective dose, particularly during the first trimester. If you take antidepressants during the last trimester of pregnancy, your baby might experience temporary signs and symptoms of discontinuation — such as jitters, irritability, poor feeding and respiratory distress — for up to a month after birth.

However, there's no evidence that discontinuing or tapering dosages near the end of pregnancy reduces the risk of these symptoms for your newborn. In addition, it might increase your risk of a relapse postpartum. The connection between antidepressant use during pregnancy and the risk of autism in offspring remains unclear. But most studies have shown that the risk is very small and other studies have shown no risk at all.

Further research is needed. A new study also suggests a link between use of antidepressants during pregnancy, specifically venlafaxine and amitriptyline, and an increased risk of gestational diabetes. More research is needed. The decision to continue or change your antidepressant medication will be based on the stability of your mood disorder.

Talk to your health care provider. Concerns about potential risks must be weighed against the possibility that a drug substitution could fail and cause a depression relapse. If you have depression and are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, consult your health care provider. Deciding how to treat depression during pregnancy isn't easy. The risks and benefits of taking medication during pregnancy must be weighed carefully. Work with your health care provider to make an informed choice that gives you — and your baby — the best chance for long-term health.

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Pharmacologic factors associated with transient neonatal symptoms following prenatal psychotropic medication exposure. J Clin Psychiatry. Antidepressant use during pregnancy and the risk of major congenital malformations in a cohort of depressed pregnant women: An updated analysis of the Quebec Pregnancy Cohort.

BMJ Open. Abnormal pregnancy outcome associated with high-dose maternal tranylcypromine therapy: Case report and literature review. Reproductive Toxicology. Nardil label. Updated August Mechanisms of action and clinical characteristics of three atypical antidepressants: Venlafaxine, nefazodone, bupropion.

Maffei ME. Int J Mol Sci. Kinsella MT, Monk C. Impact of maternal stress, depression and anxiety on fetal neurobehavioral development.

Clin Obstet Gynecol. Forray A. Substance use during pregnancy. Armstrong C. ACOG guidelines on psychiatric medication use during pregnancy and lactation. Am Fam Physician. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. September ;7 3 Antidepressant use during pregnancy and the risk of major congenital malformations in a cohort of depressed pregnant women: an updated analysis of the Quebec Pregnancy Cohort.

January ;7 1 :e Delaney C, Cornfield DN. Risk factors for persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn. Pulm Circ. Recorded diagnoses of depression during delivery hospitalizations in the United States, — Henderson A, Rice M. Is St. Evidence-Based Practice. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. Koren G, Nordeng H. Antidepressant use during pregnancy: The benefit-risk ratio. National Library of Medicine. Drugs and Lactation Database LactMed. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for VerywellMind.

If you've already been taking an antidepressant before becoming pregnant, you may think you'll need to go off your medication, but that's not necessarily true. If your depression develops during pregnancy, your course of treatment will depend on your level of depression, says Shelly Cohen, M. In general, medications are considered when depression enters the moderate-to-severe range, includes suicidal thoughts , or when a woman has a history of severe depression.

The question of taking antidepressants during pregnancy is a highly debated topic. No doctor can say with percent confidence that the drugs are completely safe. Puryear says. That means that the data is limited, because other factors—for example, if the pregnant women smoked or used alcohol —may have come into play. One common fear is that antidepressants may increase the chance of birth defects in babies.

But aside from Paxil which Dr. Cohen says is controversial for risks of cardiac complications SSRIs have not, on the whole, been linked to an increase in birth defects above the baseline risk.

Two recent studies have raised other concerns about the use of antidepressants during pregnancy: A paper published in the March issue of the journal PLOS One linked preterm birth defined as earlier than 37 weeks and antidepressant use.

The study found a 96 percent higher risk of preterm birth for women who had taken antidepressants during their final trimester. But doctors aren't quick to point the finger at medication just yet. She notes that the study is "not conclusive" and adds that untreated depression is also a risk for preterm birth.

Another study, published in Pediatrics , showed that prenatal exposure to SSRIs, especially during the first trimester, may "increase susceptibility" to certain forms of autism spectrum disorders in boys.