Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

I could really use some advice/ encouragement from women who have gone through this or know someone who has dealt with this. I recently(this past May) started experiencing anxiety attacks that escalated into anxiety disorder/GAD w/ depression. After much coercing by my DH and counselor I began taking Lexapro and finally got up to 10mg which seems to be helping me cope with this issue. I also have been working on meditation/relaxation techniques as well. One of the things that Really Really worries/bothers me is that my DH and I were planning on TTC this coming winter and now I feel like I may never be able to have a normal healthy pregnancy and be a good mom. Just want to hear some stories/experiences of people who have been on medication or went off prior to becoming pregnant and what there experiences were like during pregnancy and post partum. I may try to wean off my SSRI prior to TTC but I'm not sure if that is a good or bad idea. With this condition I just feel kind of robbed from having a normal experience Please feel free to FM me if you are not comfortable responding here. Thank you in advance!!!

Re: Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

I am not ashamed to say that I had Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome / PPD after Molly's birth. There were MANY reasons for this that I will not go into now. I did not take medication, but did go to therapy for a while to work out some of the issues.
By getting help you are being a GOOD mother. You are making sure that you are healthy. You are learning how to cope with all of these new situations/stresses.
If you want to begin to TTC again you should speak with your doctor about it. You can be healthy, happy and TTC. You may or may not need to change medications or stop them all together. But you can make it thru any situation- keep telling yourself!!!

Re: Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

I have suffered with anxiety and depression my whole life. I never wanted to take medication, but my husband finally convinced me that I needed help. I took Lexapro for about a year and then went off about 2 months before we started TTC. My Dr told me that it actually changes your brain chemistry and by 1 yr you may not need it anymore. It helped me tremendously and I continued to feel good after I was no longer on it. I now have a beautiful baby boy and 10 weeks PP I am still feeling good. (BTW, the weaning off process is awful! But once you get past that you're fine) FM me if you want to talk.

Re: Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

Thanks for the responses so far....I am a little afraid of the withdrawal symptoms from the Lexapro...I have heard it can be rough. I think my DH and I might put off TTC for several more months to make sure I am stabilized before I think about stopping the meds.....Sometimes things are just so frustrating

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Message edited 3/4/2013 11:49:02 AM.

Re: Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

DITA, I'm glad that the medication continues to help you even when you are pregnant... That is was yet another one of my concerns that somehow the medication might not work once pregnant. I will definitely continue to take medication if the risk of coming off of it throws me back into a tailspin. That is definitely not an option.

Re: Anxiety/Depression and Pregnancy...please help (sorry long!)

You have FM.