Originally Posted by Mari

Hi,

Do you have a gyn? Some gyn's specialize in high risk pregnancies -- for example women who have bipolar and are pregnant. The doctor can work with you to provide appropriate care. Taking medications during pregnancy is a personal decision that you make based on the advice of those doctors, your own history, and how you feel about being pregnant. Who has been giving you non-helpful advice??

Most of the advice is to taper down before getting pregnant with a pdoc's help. Then the pdoc might help you titrate back up at a certain point in the pregnancy.

Everything has some degree of risk, including pregnancy with no bipolar and no need for meds at all.
What matters is how you feel about the amount of risk.

http://www.safefetus.com/fda_category.asp

Drugs for pregnancy are classified into categories of
A (very safe as far as researchers know)
B (Safety unknown, seems to have no bad evidence),
C (Drugs should be given only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the baby),
D (There is positive evidence of human fetal risk, but the benefits from use in pregnant women may be acceptable despite the risk -- e.g., if the drug is needed in a life-threatening situation or for a serious disease for which safer drugs cannot be used or are ineffective).
X ( Studies show no go. The drug is contraindicated in women who are or who may become pregnant.)

http://www.mcmanweb.com/mood-stabilizers.html Lithium = category C

Depakote = category D
Tegratol and Trileptal = category D
Lamictal = category C
Lithium = category C

http://www.mcmanweb.com/antipsychotics.html

The anti-psychochotics are usually in Category C or D.
The benzos fall into Category D or X

http://www.bcnc.org.uk/BZ_pregnancy.pdf


Who in real life is available for you to talk to?

M