Klonopin and alternatives during pregnancy

thewhites

My husband and I have been talking about expanding our family and trying to have a baby sometime very soon... then I researched the anxiety medication I'm on and everything I found said not to take it at any stage of pregnancy, but not really why!  And most were specifically for high doses (I'm on 1mg/day - one of the lowest doses doctors prescribe for this medicaiton) and women who were on it to treat epilepsy (which I don't have).

I've tried numerous different anti-anxiety medication and antidepressants, and all of them have made my anxiety worse (I've been on clonazepam [the generic for Klonopin] for about 2 1/2 years).  Is there anything out there that anyone has tried while pregnant (and breastfeeding) that helped control their anxiety and helped them get off Klonopin?  My biological clock is ticking away and my husband and I are excited to start TTC... but we have a huge hinderance!! Help!

~Lynchie~

I dont have any experience with that particular medication, however, I would definitely speak to your OB to find out if the medication is actually unsafe for use during pregnancy.  When I was pregnant, I found that a ton of medications I regularly took (topical steroids mostly) said not safe for use during pregnancy, however when I talked to my OB about it she said that it was fine for me to use it and that pharma companies just put that on their medications to cover their asses just in case.  Good luck!

Maddimom

Hey

I took Zoloft the whole time I was pregnant. They did have to up it at around 15 weeks because my anxiety was getting out of hand. But I think it worked great and M turned out PERFECT. I would talk it over with your OB. Also therapy is always good.  Hope you find the meds that will work great for you. PM if you want to chat or have any questions. 

IkesHawaiian06

I started taking Sertraline (generic for Zoloft) while I was breastfeeding and my doctor specifically said that it was one of the safest to take while pregnant or breastfeeding. I would say that talking to your doctor would be the best. Best of luck as you start this next step in your life!

koosh ball

Zoloft is the go to for pregnancy and breastfeeding. Klonopin and all benzodiazepine are not safe for pregnancy/breastfeeding (discuss with your doctor though).

Have you tried therapy? Has it helped at least take the edge off? I found it to be beyond helpful... better than medication.

preston18

i took it for restless leg syndrome before pregnancy, but just at 0.5mg/day.  The plan we set up was to stop it once I got a positive test and use tylenol PM if needed for RLS just to knock me out.  Going off cold turkey was He1l.  I do not recommend it. At all.  Talk to your doctor now and try alternatives before getting pregnant.

We have totally different reasons for being on it (my dosage never touched my occasional anxiety)  and yours sounds a lot more serious than mine so definitely talk to your prescribing physician.

stacylu

A great site is safefetus.com - it lists the drug category for pregnancy and BF - for Klonopin, it's level D which means:

 

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).

 

I hope that helps a little!