PPD and Breastfeeding

I have had 3 children I have nursed all of them. My last one was 13 months old when he was completely weened. Here is the issue I am having, I know I suffer for horrible PPD. I do fine with the baby but I know that my other kids suffer, because I become very distant and less observant. Luckily I have a great husband and great family support who pick up the burden. When my youngest was 16 months old I went on anti depressants for about 2 years. It was like an amazing fog had been lifted and I was able to function. Now that I am pregnant again I am afraid of going through it again. I want to nurse my new baby and give him/ her the best start I can, but I really feel like I am going to need help right way so I do not go into that state again. I am very torn on what to do. Are there any safe meds you can take while nursing. I guess I just needed to vent this because it has really been worrying me lately, I already feel like I am dealing with some depression during this pregnancy and it really scares me.

 Zoloft has a very low transfer ratio to breastmilk. I know there are other anti-depressants they recommend too. I suffered PDD with my first child and after weighing things out felt it was best to be on an anti-depressant while breastfeeding. It's better to get ahead of it if you have already had to deal with this in the past. 

Take care!

Melanie

I was afraid that I would suffer from PPD given my past history of depression.  I talked to my OB about the fact that I really wanted to breastfeed, but obviously needed to take care of my mental health first.  She told me that there were several safe anti-depressants that could be taken while breastfeeding.  She even said she would give me script before leaving the hospital if it would ease my mind (I love my OB!).   Luckily, I didn't need to take anything last time.  Who knows what will happen this time though.
I suggest bringing this up with your OB at your next appointment.    I think it's great that you have family that can help!  I don't know what I would do with out my family!
Amy

I am on wellbutrin and the OB and HIgh Risk OB both agreed that it is one of the safest out there.

Hope that things are different for you this time!

Liz

my progesterone levels dip so low after I've had each of my babies, I get severe PPD for about a month after I have had them.   I am a completely different person and can't be a good Mom or wife to my family.   After seeing me after I had my 2nd baby, my doctor told me he is putting me on Zoloft a month BEFORE I give birth to my baby to help have my system stabilized before this baby comes.   I might ask him if I can get some progesterone supplements to take after the baby is born so it's not such a shock to my system.   When I've gotten pg with the other 2 babies, I've had to go on progesterone supplementation for the first trimester because my body doesn't make enough to support a pregnancy.   And then after I have the baby, my body doesn't make enough to catch my system up after the baby is born and I get PPD.   It really sucks.

I understand where you're coming from- After what I went through when I had my first baby, I was so scared when I got pg with my 2nd and going through that PPD again.   I was more worried about that than going through labor!!  And I went through it for 2 long weeks with the 2nd, but this time my doc started me on the zoloft in the hospital just after I had her.  But it wasn't soon enough cuz the meds took 2 weeks to kick in and stabilize my mood.  And it gave me insomnia (again) for a week as a side effect- not a good thing when you just gave birth and have a newborn, you need all the sleep you can get!   So hopefully getting on it before I have the baby will lessen the severity of my PPD this time.

PPD and just depression overall is the worst thing in the world and if you need meds or are worried about it right now, talk to your doctor asap!   No need to suffer if there's help out there!  GL!

Agreed! Good job supporting!

Thank you all so much for your replies. It really has help ease my mind. I thought I was going to have to chose between my mental health and breastfeeding. I will definitely bring it up with my OB at my next appointment.

My doctor and I discussed zoloft yesterday.  He believes that a woman shouldn't have to choose between mental health and the health of the baby as you mentioned.  He feels that if momma isn't well taken care of then it's not good for the baby- whether it is during pregnancy or after birth.  Talk to you doctor now so that you have a plan in place. 

BTW: He started me on 1/2 a dose of zoloft yesterday and I'm 27 weeks.

I started zoloft about a week after delivery and it made a HUGE difference!