Babble

Hi moms. I followed the previous thread on effexor during pregnancy, and I myself was on effexor during my first pregnancy to no ill-effect to my now 19 month old. It was a very difficult decision to make, but I was convinced that the stress of suffering a major depressive episode during pregnancy would have been far worse than the risk of medicating. My doctors, including a neo-natal specialist who focused on high-risk pregnancies agreed. My son is healthy and never had any withdrawal symptoms as some research speculates.

However, I am currently on cymbalta (Duloxetine), and my husband and I are considering another pregnancy. Since cymbalta is a much newer drug, I've had a harder time finding anyone who used it during pregnancy. This worries me, of course. Is there anyone out there who has used cymbalta during pregnancy and/or nursing?

Many thanks for all your good help,

S. 

If you get any information back on Cymbalta during pregnancy, I would love to hear it.  I am on Cymbalta and want to get pregnant soon, but my husband and I have not been able to find sufficient information on dangers or non dangers of taking it while pregnant. 

you should really either talk to your a psychiatrist or have your dr. refer to you one who specializes in womens psychiatry - this is what i did as i am on zoloft and cannot go off my medication. 

 http://www.ctispregnancy.org/about_us.html  Try this link...I was part of a study for this group when I was pregnant with my 3 year old - who is perfect! I was on Lamictle and after the first trimester, Celexa. I'm now pregnant with number 2 and on Emsam and Lamictle. I feel 100% confidant that this baby will be fine as well....the alternative is going thru a pregnancy out of my mind. I have a friend who did this and her anxiety and depression has obviously effected her baby, her marriage, her friendships and ability to cope with everyday life. But of course, consult a psychiatrist who has worked with preggos before. GOOD LUCK! Contact me directly if you want to chat....

Did you ever find anybody that was taking cymbalta during pregnancy. If so, what were the effects if any , on the baby?

I was told by both my psychiatrist and my ob-gyn that I absolutely HAD to go off Cymbalta if I suspected I may be pregnant or wanted to get pregnant. Since then I've seen some conflicting info - like that it has not been tested and there are no real studies yet because the drug has been on the market for less than 10 years. Talk to your doctors. They will be the best to judge if you should stay on it because the benefits will outweigh the risks.

I am considering switching from Zoloft to Cymbalta because of my weight gain. My doctor said you cannot take it while breastfeeding but you CAN take it if you're pregnant. Hope this helps.

Hi. I am currently 11 weeks pregnant and in a total panic after doing a search on this very topic (Cymbalta in pregnancy). Originally my OB/GYN had told me that if I were ever to get pregnant that I would need to go off the Cymbalta. When I found out that we were expecting (SURPRISE!), I went immediately to my psych. who said that it was better for me to stay on than to go off. However, in doing my research (which is how I found this post) I just found a whole bunch of information.... Basically the information all says that babies who had mothers who took it during the last trimester may "infrequently develop withdrawl symptoms such as breathing/feeding difficulties, seizures, muscle stiffness or constant crying". This came from the New England Journal of Medicine. Most sites I've found (that were not lawyers or anti-psych) recommend going off by week 20...slowly! This obviously concerns me since 9 weeks is not exactly slow as far as Cymbalta is concerned. I found this info tonight, so tomorrow I plan to call the OB and also my psych. to discuss this bit of information. I tried to go off it before and basically thought I was dying...I had a heart attack before and I really felt worse coming off the meds than I did recovering from the attack, so I am very nervous. I think you need to talk to ALL your docs, get 2nd and even 3rd opinions until you feel SUPER confident in your decisions. I wish someone had told me the truth about coming off Cymbalta..I would never have started it in the first place. Don't be afraid to do your own research, too. I googled "cymbalta and newborn". "cymbalta and babies" and duloxetine and newborns" and many sites came up...just watch which ones you go to because of course there are those sites that are very biased. -M

 I hope all goes well with your pregnancy.  From my experience and from what my psychiatrist told me is that cymbalta is the new effexor; and there have been many moms with perfectly healthy babies who have taken effexor.  I have a friend who took a very LARGE dose of Lamictal when she was pregnant and lactating (400 mg is the max per day, she was on 500 mg day).  Her baby is fine, beautiful and smart.  She's been breastfeeding for over 20 months now also.  

Remember, a healthy mom is essential for a healthy baby, so if you need your medication, take your medication.  

I'm on Cymbalta and Zoloft and it has worked wonders for me - I'm actually alive to enjoy my daughter! 

God Bless.   

Hello.well 3 days ago i had a miscarriage i was 6 wks into my pregnancy.And im taking cymbalta 90 mg a day right now i think that the best thing to do is if your considering getting pregnant is to get off it or take another anti-depressant its just best not to risk it. i hope this is of much help

Hi there,

From the searching I have done on-line it seems as though everyone has heard/done different things so I am going to share what I have been told by my OB and phych and you can take what you'd like from it. 

I was on 60mg of Cymbalta for about 2 years when I found out I was pregnant.  When I saw my OB on my initial visit (I was 5 weeks) she suggested that I see my phych and come off of the medication if at all possible.  I weaned off quickly (30 mg a day for 1 week) and although I did have some side effects I didn't thik it was as bad as it could have been given my prolonged use.  I have felt pretty good since, my OB believes that the hormones produced during pregnancy help balence things out without the Cymbalta. 

My OB has me seeing a specialist for additional ultrasounds and a couple of eco-cardiograms for monitoring as she has read that Cymbalta and related medications can cause heart defects and abnormalities in the development of the baby's internal organs, spcifically the stomach.  Being that much of this development takes place in the early weeks of pregnancy she stated that I should come off of the Cymbalta ass soon as possible (I was off by 9 weeks) and if NEEDED I could go back on the medication for the 2nd trimester, and wean off again for the 3rd to get the medication out of the baby's system before birth. 

I don't feel that I need to go back on thankfully and I think that if I did feel the need I would be reluctant both for the baby's safety and because I don't want to go thru the withdrawal again.

 Good luck to everyone and please get the advice of your OB and phych before doing anything.

Deb

 

My husband and I would also like to have another baby. I am on cymbalta and would like to know if it is safe too. Please let me know if you find out anything.

Thanks, J.A.

My husband and I found out we're having a baby and I've been on Cymbalta for almost 3 years however I was trying to wean myself off of it before hand. I started on 60 mg and then eventually I got down to 20 mg every other day but when I found out I was pregnant the doctor told me to stop taking it immediately. I am having the worst withdrawl symptoms ever. If I would have known what the Cymbalta would have done to my body I would have NEVER started taking it. My doctor that put me on it though never told me about the side effects and withdrawl symptoms. I'm scared to death to keep taking it while being pregnant but I can barely make it out of bed when i'm not taking it. My body has a tingly prickly feeling, I get light headed, nervous, nausea, it's very overwhelming. I intend on talking to my OBGYN to see if I can slowly stop taking it because I can't do this everyday feeling this way.

Megan

Hi Megan I am currently on Cymbalta too, and I am 8 weeks pregnant. My doctor doesn't think it is safe for me to be on it so she said to stop taking it. But I am concerned to to stop all of a sudden. I am currently on 30 mg and she said that the capsules go as low as 20, so its better to just stop taking it. I am worried about the withdrawal symptoms because I am a mother of three little ones and have no one to take care of them if I get too sick. She said to go to see the psychiatrist to see what meds would work for me instead. I just don't think I could mentally survive getting off the medicine then getting on a new one, then waiting for it to work.

Hi- For what it's worth... I have been on cymbalta, weaned off and am back on it again.  I really think the key to getting off of cymbalta is to do it gradually.  My doctor told me to take it every other day for about 2 weeks & we tapered off from there.  By the end of a month, I was completely off.   I've been back on it for several months now & we are wanting to have another baby, so I'm preparing to get off the drug again.  It is difficult & the side effects are not fun, but talk to your doctor about slowly getting off the drug.  Cold turkey is way too much of a shock to your system & can be dangerous.