According to sociologists, the level of stress in the population and depressive moods in society are increasing every year. This negative trend is more common among women, and does not bypass future mothers, who, being in position, use strong sedative drugs. Pregnancy and antidepressants, are they compatible? In today's article, we will try to figure out how justified the use of psychotropic drugs by women bearing a child is, and is there an alternative to this type of treatment. And also learn about when you can plan a pregnancy after antidepressants.
Acquired and ongoing depression: difference and features
Mental disorders have occurred in every person. This is not necessarily about serious diseases like schizophrenia or manic syndrome, but even insomnia, panic attacks, anxiety, depressed mood and irritability can be symptoms of diseases of the nervous system. At the same time, there are people with a stable psycho-emotional state who can cope with stress and shocks quite simply, and some require the help of specialists and medical treatment.
The hardest thing is for those who have a chronic depression. Like any disease, it has an active phase and remission, which can be quite long - years and even tens of years. However, the slightest emotional shock can disturb the person’s peace and cause a new round of the disease. Women are not an exception during pregnancy. And antidepressants in such cases are seen by them as salvation.
But you need to understand that in the new position it is not allowed to use most medications - this can trigger the development of defects in the fetus. Only a doctor will correctly explain which antidepressants can be used during pregnancy. If we are talking about a mild illness, it will be possible to do without the use of drugs, in this case, we can limit ourselves to several courses of psychotherapy.
Why does depression occur during pregnancy?
What antidepressants during pregnancy will not harm the health of the mother and the child, we will tell a little later, now we will try to highlight the main causes of mental disorders in expectant mothers.
In the first trimester, serious hormonal changes in the body can contribute to this. Due to the fact that the hormonal background adjusts the operation of all systems to bear the fetus, girls may feel different than usual. They increase tearfulness and irritability, many have drowsiness, fatigue, mood swings. The toxicosis that often torments pregnant women so much that does not allow them to live in the usual way does not add joy.
At this stage, it is not advisable to use antidepressants during pregnancy - you can lessen anxiety and insomnia by less radical methods.
Often the root of the problem lies precisely in deep psychological experiences, the causes of which, for example, are as follows:
- unwanted child;
- the mother does not have relatives and relatives who will support her after childbirth;
- she has a difficult financial situation, significant financial obligations;
- she recently experienced severe shock, stress.
In such cases, it is important to try to solve existing problems or outline ways out of difficult situations, then the depression associated with them will disappear.
Subsequently, the negative psycho-emotional state of the expectant mother may be associated with the expectation of an early birth. In the second and last trimesters of women, it is often burdensome to realize that the child is about to be born, and they are not ready for this, many are afraid of the birth itself and physical pain. And also a serious test for them are changes in physiology - swelling, shortness of breath, pain in the back, etc. It is possible to overcome such excitement, even without using antidepressants. During pregnancy, you need to try to clarify as much as possible all that is unknown that is associated with childbirth, mentally tune yourself to some difficulties that will inevitably arise in the future and, of course, not to shoulder too much responsibility.
How to deal with depression during pregnancy?
Light forms, of course, you can try to overcome on your own. But if depression has captured the expectant mother, she does not leave a feeling of anxiety and fear, she cannot sleep normally, is, irritated by trifles, crying incessantly, which means that she needs the help of a specialist. Depression is not just blues or a sudden flood of sadness, it is a complex state of the psyche, a disease that requires a long and serious treatment. However, they should be handled by a specialist - a qualified psychiatrist or psychologist who will correctly diagnose and develop a course of treatment. The latter may include psychotherapy sessions and the use of special drugs - these are safe antidepressants during pregnancy, which will help relieve the acute phase of the disease and enter the woman in a normal emotional state.
How does depression affect fetal development?
If the mother refuses to help and is depressed during the entire period of pregnancy, she risks giving birth to the baby prematurely or provoking a delay in its intrauterine development. Of course, drug treatment also has its negative consequences, but, as practice shows, sometimes it does not affect the condition of the child as negatively as a complete rejection of drugs. Thus, we can say that with the right approach, antidepressants and pregnancy are completely compatible.
Studies conducted by scientists at the New York State Institute of Psychiatry showed that children whose mothers, being pregnant, suffered from depression and did not take antidepressants, did not undergo a single course of psychotherapy, after birth had a serious risk of psychomotor development disorders.
Most of them immediately after birth were sent for nursing in the intensive care unit, because they had a serious lack of weight, oxygen deprivation, neurological problems.
Antidepressants in Pregnancy: Which Can Be Used?
As a rule, women prone to various mental disorders are aware of their problems and in the event of depression immediately begin to take those medications that the doctor prescribed them earlier. Fortunately, buying serious psychotropic drugs without a prescription is quite problematic, while various “sedative” pills and medicines are sold in any pharmacy without a prescription. You need to understand that self-medication with the help of sedative drugs can also adversely affect the health of the baby.
Specialists allocate a number of permissible agents that practically do not cross the placenta and have minimal impact on the child. Antidepressants allowed during pregnancy are part of the SSRIs group (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and tricyclic drugs. Western scientists have already conducted their large-scale studies on animals and humans, they note that when taking these drugs there is a risk of cognitive impairment in the fetus, but nevertheless classify them as conditionally safe. So, the allowed antidepressants during pregnancy (list):
- Fevarin;
- "Triftazine";
- Amitriptyline;
- Sertraline;
- "Citalopram";
- "Fluoxetine."
Many domestic psychiatrists convince their patients that, acting on the baby in utero, these drugs subsequently do not affect his behavior and well-being after birth, although in the annotations for most of these drugs, pregnancy and breastfeeding are a contraindication. Nevertheless, abroad they are also actively used in practice. There are numerous medical reviews to prove this. Doctors have to prescribe antidepressants during pregnancy more often than they would like, but most American and European psychiatrists are convinced that a situation left to chance can be even more dangerous than the use of psychotropic drugs in the treatment of pregnant women.
Adverse effects antidepressants
On the network, at various women's forums, one can often see girls' comments, for example: “I drink antidepressants during pregnancy and nothing, everything is fine, the baby develops normally” or “My friend took psychotropic substances, her baby was born with deviations”. When reading such sites, it is important to understand that self-medication during gestation is the worst evil that a mother unconsciously inflicts on her baby. Only a doctor with sufficient experience and qualifications can prescribe antidepressants during pregnancy. Is it possible to take this or that drug, is decided solely by a specialist.
Medicine does not stand still, work is constantly being done to create the latest drugs, as well as testing existing ones in order to identify their harm or benefit. In the course of such studies, antidepressants were identified that affect the fetus extremely negatively. These include many drugs from the SSRI group. They have the greatest impact on the area of the amygdala in the brain, as well as those areas that are responsible for the emotional state of a person.
Antidepressants and pregnancy are not the most successful tandem, because taking them, the mother risks giving birth to a child with autism, neurological problems and a lag in motor activity. Evidence of this can be research that was conducted by several educational institutions at once - the Medical Center of Columbia University (New York) and the University of Montreal (Canada, Montreal). Specialists of scientific laboratories located at these universities say that antidepressants change the personality of the child, and this is an undeniable fact. Another thing is that they cannot judge what consequences they have in the long run. Among the most studied and already banned drugs are: "Paroxetine" and "Paxil." And drugs with an unproven positive effect: Venlafaxine, Duloxetine, Milnacipran, Symbalta, Ixel.
Pros of Using Antidepressants
First of all, you need to understand that in a depressed state a woman will not be able to bear a child easily. Perhaps he will be born on time and absolutely healthy, but this will happen at the cost of the health of the mother's body. The fetus will suck out of it all the substances necessary for itself, empty the mother both physically and mentally. A tired woman who also suffers from depression simply will not be able to adequately relate to her baby after childbirth, because postpartum depression can stratify the current disease.
Therefore, mother must be treated, not letting her spoil the joy of motherhood with her own hands. This position is supported by many women, speaking in the reviews. Pregnancy on antidepressants, in their opinion, proceeds much easier than without them, because drugs give you the opportunity to relax normally, eat, enjoy your life and your situation, not to focus on the problems and difficulties of bearing a child. They also help overcome anxiety, fight dysphoria, and normalize the production of serotonin.
The harm of psychotropic drugs during pregnancy
Surely everyone understands that the greatest danger from taking antidepressants during pregnancy is their negative effect on the fetus. Medications, albeit in a small dose, but still penetrate the placenta, so they cause certain changes in a small body. First of all, they relate to the brain.
Whether a woman suffers from depression without taking any action or takes antidepressants, unfortunately, in both cases, children can be born with some problems. Moreover, the fact of the effect of antidepressants on the emotional state of the child is proven. They provoke an increase in the volume of shares in the areas of the brain that are responsible for emotions, mainly fear and joy. As well as scientific studies have shown that children whose mothers took psychotropic substances in the first days after birth are particularly capricious, tearful, they do not suck and sleep well. Over time, it passes with them, literally a few days after the birth, but you need to prepare for this.
Some doctors attribute the use of antidepressants by women to autism in their children. However, there is really no reliable evidence why this disease occurs in babies, and it cannot be argued that it is provoked by psychotropic drugs.
Pregnancy Planning During Depression
At a reception with gynecologists, expectant mothers often ask the following question: “I take antidepressants. Can they continue to drink during pregnancy? ” The decision to cancel, continue or correct treatment should be made by specialists. A female doctor will evaluate the pros and cons, talk about the consequences, help you choose the most safe drug for both the fetus and mother, and the therapist will monitor the course of depression in his patient, avoiding complications of the disease.
In the overwhelming majority, doctors recommend planning a conception during a period of remission, that is, when a woman feels well and does not bother anything. More worried about another question - about when pregnancy is possible after antidepressants. And will the fetus develop normally if the course of treatment was completed two to three weeks ago? The minimum period between the last tablet taken and conception is one day. This is the time it will take to remove the drug from the bloodstream.
Sometimes women worry that previously taken psychotropic drugs can affect the health of children, even if the treatment ended before pregnancy. Experts say that “retroactively” antidepressants can not affect the baby in any way, they do not cause a mutagenic effect, and therefore, if the disease is currently in a stable stage of remission, then this is the most favorable time for conceiving a child.
Alternative to antidepressants during pregnancy
Treatment of depression is not limited solely to taking tranquilizers and psychotropic drugs. A major role in alleviating the condition of patients is assigned to psychotherapy. Sessions of communication with the doctor in the acute phase should be very frequent and quite lengthy - two to three times per hour lesson. At the same time, it is important that a trusting relationship is established between the doctor and the woman for fruitful work. If the patient cannot open up before a professional, they will not reveal the root cause of her illness.
In addition to psychotherapy, treatment includes creating a healthy environment for a pregnant woman. In her life there should be no place for negative factors, she needs to minimize stressful situations.
And also a healthy lifestyle has a positive effect on emotional health. This implies the following points:
- organization of the correct sleep and wakefulness regime, elimination of overwork;
- socialization and communication with people;
- playing sports;
- walks in the open air;
- search for hobbies interesting for women, choice of hobbies;
- refusal of alcohol, drugs.
A very important role in this matter is played by the support of relatives and friends, relatives. They should surround the woman with understanding and care, so it will be easier for her to cope with depression.
As a result, a pregnant woman needs to learn to accept her position in which she is and the circumstances surrounding her. And also to love yourself and take care of health, if only for the sake of an unborn child. After all, only a mother is able to protect and protect her baby from dangers. The main thing is to keep calm and stay in a good mood, and then everything will definitely work out.