Side Effects in BF Babies

As far as I can tell it depends on the specific medication. There's a good overview of the various drugs (using the US names, of course, might need to google to see if they're called the same thing here) on kellymom here.

(There's some more general info on PND and breastfeeding here too)

The meds prescribed for PND are know to be safe in the shorterm but NO tests have been done on the long term affects (ie presenting adulthood etc)

This was the reason I have chosen to not take meds.

That said there is no research saying that it will have a long term affect.

Its a matter of weighing up happy mummy v possible unknown side affects.... My PND is mild and can be managed without meds so I went this route however, if I get worse (and I am making this decision now) then I will take the meds as Jake needs me now...

hmmm wonders about the weight loss issue. Will have to check back through my calender and posts on here and see if the 2 coincide

really jess? far out..my doc assured me like 8 times it was totally safe..i know someone on three a day who was told same thing!!!!

but yes i will ring and check it out to make sure.

I was taking citalopram while breastfeeding. I wasn't 100% comfortable with it, but my doc assured me it was ok and I was a mess and had tried herbal/natural remedies. In my case, it was either go spiralling out of control or take the drugs

Four_eyes wrote: really jess? far out..my doc assured me like 8 times it was totally safe..i know someone on three a day who was told same thing!!!! but yes i will ring and check it out to make sure.

It ABSOLUTELY is safe, KA.

I even just went and checked in my La Leche Leaders book.

Side effects as weegee says. What happens is you just take it after you have fed, then it has time to "get into" your system before next feed. They have this thing called half life etc. Long explanation about half lifes etc, won't go into it, but it is all to do with timing. Ring your Dr to make sure, and talk to your midwife and a lactation consultant if it makes you feel better.

my doc is super duper cautious and wouldnt put me on anything that was an issue because otherwise i wouldnt trust him!:) so I'm comfortable trusting him and mw.. i was 24 weeks when i started on it.. i cant imagine coming off it esp if it made me have a meltdown with a toddler and a newborn!:)

Jezsika wrote: Only stating what i was told... My dr was really cautious about what i was on when pregnant too, i was on Cit when pregnant and ranitidine for reflux, all Maxs problems make me wonder whether it was from all that.

I know you were, hun, but your dose might have been different and your doc may not have the up to date information or be overly cautious.

Some Docs put a blanket "no" on things cos its easier or more cautious.

Its not the *best* one to be on if you are beastfeeding, but it is safe.
Surprisingly, very few AD's are actually contraindicated with BF.

KA's Doc wil know what is safe for HER, and what he is happy for her to have, just as your Doc knows what he is and isn't happy having you on. Cos we are all speshil and you neeqe!

lol I know I'm not a Dr, but for my job, I must have up to date information on meds and BF

and

http://www.llli.org/llleaderweb/LV/LVAprMay97p39.html

CuriousG wrote: Can anyone enlighten me on what the possible side effects are in Breast Fed babies whose mother is on Anti D's? What did others notice in their bubs when you started taking them? I am so reluctant to start taking them again but am getting to the point where I am having meltdowns every day and I know from past experience that its caused by PND.

I was breastfeeding on 3 different ADs; fluoxetine (also known as fluox or prozac), citalopram, and venlafaxine (known also as effexor), and also BFed on another PND drug called Quetiapine (serquol).

The only drug that I noticed had an effect on Charli-Rose was the fluox. On the first dose I was taking it didn't effect her and I fed fine on it for 9 weeks- it wasn't til I went on a higher dose that I noticed it effecting her- she became very irritable and fidgety and unable to relax and stoped sleeping well.

So I went on another AD and that was fine. The quetiapine did make her more sleepy, a bit too sleepy, so I stopped BFing her the last feed at night right after I took my meds and she would have a bottle of formula then and I would pump'n'dump that feed.

Just remember there are lots of different ADs out there and some are better for breastfeeding that others. Also the risks of untreated PND can far outweight the risks of some ADs going across the breast milk, so keep trying to see the bigger picture.

The best thing I found for me was to have a doc (or whoever is looking after your mental health) that I could trust as they knew me as well as the medications so knew what would work best for us all!