Zoloft while breastfeeding? Has anyone use this med.?
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My Dr. said it is completely safe while breastfeeding and that many pregnant women take it as well. She said she's seen no issues with it. She said there should be no effect on the baby and she feels confident prescribing it.
Well, the pharmacist looked at me horrified and asked me if I was nursing and did my Dr. know and when I said yes to both, she just sat there looking at me. I asked if there was a better alternative and she was sort of snotty and said "Well, I guess you just have to weigh it out." So, now I am a little worried to start taking it.
BTW-I have never had a Pharmacist say anything like this! I thought her attitude was terrible! Ok, just had to vent...
Has anyone use this while nursing? Just curious if you had any problems?
My cousin took while pregnant and nursing. Believe me it was much better than having her depressed!
Here's some info that might be helpful and might ease your mind a bit. It talks about the best time to nurse after taking the drug.
Zoloft
Check out these web sites:
http://otispregnancy.org/pdf/zoloft.pdf
http://www.marchofdimes.com/pnhec/188_15663.asp
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics%3b108/3/776#T4
The last link is from the American Academy of Pediatrics and specifically deals with breastfeeding. You want to view Table 4. Zoloft is listed by its generic name - Sertraline. It specifically states there are no known side effects.
I have read recommendations that, if possible, you nurse before you take your regular dose of Zoloft. It is a drug which passes through the body fairly quickly, and some of it will have already passed out of your system before you nurse if you time your nursing to be before taking your medication. But if you can't, there still seems to be no or miniscule risk.
Do, however, tell your pediatrician that you are taking Zoloft while you are nursing. S/he should be aware, "just in case".
As for your pharmacist, if you didn't ask for counseling, you shouldn't have gotten it. And, a pharamcist is NOT a doctor. If both your doctor and the peditrician are aware and they don't have any problems with it, the pharmacist should just butt out.
Having dealt with depression personally at a time which coincided with the birth and infancy of my first son (but not post-partum), I can tell you that your baby is a whole lot better off with a mom who is not seriously depressed than a mom who is off medication and depressed.
*raising my hand* I took it through my second pregnancy and for the seven months I breastfed. I was told it was the safest antidepressant I could take and that Paxil was another safe one. Maybe the pharmacist thought that was a better option??? I hadn't had my PPD diagnosed until my dd was almost a year old and was terrified to not be on some kind of medication. My pregnancy wasn't the best, either, so my PCP (who'd prescribed it) and my OB/GYN thought it was best for me to stay on it while pregnant. I spoke with the pediatrician and was so glad to have everyone in support of it. Good luck, Eve! I think Ginny has some great information and advice.
As for your pharmacist, if you didn't ask for counseling, you shouldn't have gotten it. And, a pharmacist is NOT a doctor. If both your doctor and the pediatrician are aware and they don't have any problems with it, the pharmacist should just butt out.
Sorry, but I disagree. I'm also the daughter of a pharmacist.  Pharmacists are much more versed in the drug interaction, half-life of drugs, side effects, etc. than doctors are. Doctors pretty much rely on whatever the drug reps tell them...and the drug reps are just trying to sell drugs (my dad did that for awhile too). It is the pharmacist's job to catch physician errors in dosages, possible drug interactions, etc. To hear my dad tell stories, he has caught A LOT of mistakes---some, but thankfully relatively few, potentially fatal.
Now your pharmacist may have been snotty in her presentation, but you should actually be thrilled that she brought up the issue. Nowadays, a lot of scripts are just filled by techs and signed off on. The fact that she took note of the prescription and asked about your breastfeeding (and I was prescribed drugs when breastfeeding, but doctors never asked that--I had to tell them), shows that she is on the ball. I had a pharamcist question the dosage of one of the reflux drugs my son was on. He took my son's weight, refigured the dosage, called the doctor, and the doctor corrected the mistake. This drug had serious side effects and if the pharmacist hadn't caught it....
Anyway, back to your question Eve. I don't have any personal experience, but I would do a little research on your own. That link that Heaventree posted stated that the baby does receive the medication, so you'll have to make the call if you think it's worth the risk. Note the difference: Your doctor said there were no side effects to the baby. The link says that your baby does receive more than insignificant amounts of the drug. So whether or not there are side effects, you have to decide if you want the baby to take Zoloft too. It's a tough call, but only you know how you are affected with and without the drug.
I am a phsrmscist. And by law it IS the pharmacist duty and resposibility to cousel. BUT, if that is the way she provided the information to you, she was way out of line.
The medical field is supposed to be a team effort. Doctors do make mistakes and it is my job to catch it when related to medication. But if a pharmicst does not know what he/she is talking about, he/she should keep her mouth shut.
In a perfect world, no one would ever need to take any medication while pregnant or bf. But since we don't live in a perfect world, the doctor, pediatrician, pharmacist and patient have to weigh the benefits against the risks. Zoloft has the safest record in the preg,bf category of antidepressants. I had a friend who took it her 2nd and 3rd trimesters and all during bf without any issues and a beautiful, healthy dd. Zoloft is safe for your baby. Trace amounts do pass into the milk but with very little adverse effects on the baby. If you would be fine without it, then I wouldn't take it though. But if you have been having a hard time coping with the stresses of new motherhood beyond the normal, it would be fine for you to take it. Is your baby going to be better off if you can hardly drag yourself out of the bed without the medication? Do you and your dr feel like you may be experiencing postpartum depression? I don't mean for you to answer these questions on the board. Just ask yourself.
Please keep in mind when you read drug information that the drug company has to report any and every reaction that was reported to them during the testing or after it is on the market. And sometimes it can't been proven that a particular medication was the culprit but it may get the blame anyway.
Debbie, I was hoping you would post.
Eve, I think you've gotten some good advice. If you think you are better off continuing with Zoloft but really don't want to chance it with the baby, it is ok to stop breastfeeding. I am not starting any kind of a debate and I've done both formula and breastfeeding with my kids and in the long run the most important thing is that you do what's right for you. When I gave up breastfeeding I was given rations of crap from a lot of people, but sometimes you have to step back, take a look at everything and do what's right for you. Sometimes you just need to hear that it's ok to stop if you need to.
I would probably also not go back to that pharmacist.
I took Zoloft while breastfeeding my daughter, Eve. I was taking a low dose of Effexor the whole time I was pregnant with my doctor's okay. I was advised to switch to the Zoloft after she was born since I chose to BF her. I was told it is a safer alternative. I benefited from the medication, and my daughter is and was fine.
I'm sorry the pharmacist treated you in such a manner. I would have been upset, too.
I wonder what the peditrician would say if you asked her?
Should you breastfeed and stay on the zoloft
or
bottlefeed and stay on zoloft.
Don't know the answer.
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