What Is Wrong?

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

Hi everyone I'm 37 and pregnant with my first. I'll be 8 weeks tomorrow. When I found out I was pregnant my GP took me off Tepazapam immediately and he weaned me off 60mg daily of Prozac. I've been off Prozac completely over 2 weeks and I feel awful. I struggle every day to go to work (I'm a teacher) and I am dead tired the whole day and don't feel like doing anything at all. I tutor twice a week after school and am considering quitting because I am so exhausted I can't hardly function. I have an amazing fiancé who, since I've been off the Prozac, has helped do everything around the house. I am just so depressed lately that I cannot function mentally. I don't care about anything except sleeping. Is there something seriously wrong with me? Everyone is worried about me because this isn't me:(

redheadbride15 · January 2016

I'm sorry you feel so lousy! There is absolutely nothing wrong with you, but 60mg of Prozac is a large dose to come off of so quickly - I'm not at all surprised you're feeling so terrible. Please call your doctor right away and tell him/her that being off of the medication isn't working for you. That class of drugs is generally considered pretty safe in pregnancy so it's a no-brainer that if you feel so bad you need to restart it. If your GP gives you any push-back at all then please find another doctor. Taking care of yourself and baby is #1 priority! Best wishes!

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

Thank you:) My fiancé urged me to call my OB today and now I'm just waiting on a call back. I was so depressed yesterday I didn't go to work because it caused stomach issues and today I have a snow day. The idea of going back to work tomorrow makes me wanna cry.

Sporty1216 · January 2016

I hope your OB can get you in soon and has some good solutions to get you feeling better!

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

The OB office called back and they said I can start taking 20mg of the Prozac but it's a Class C meaning there's not enough evidence whether or not it's dangerous during pregnancy, ugh I don't know what I should do.

Jenniferk08 · January 2016

I'm 11 weeks and just starting to get my energy back. Weekends I was doing nothing but laying around. Try to go outside for a little bit to get some sun. I know it's cold but it helped me.

redheadbride15 · January 2016

@Jenniferk08 is right that fatigue (even extreme fatigue) is really normal in first trimester, so I'm sure that this is contributing to you feeling so awful. But if you're also feeling depressed then that's another story. Don't feel bad if you think you need to restart the low dose of medication. Your OB can't tell you with 100% confidence that it's safe (because those studies haven't been done), but the fact is there are many, many women who take Prozac during pregnancy and have perfectly healthy outcomes. If the choice is between taking a small/unknown risk and not being functional - personally, I'd take the risk.

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

I'm leaning toward the risk myself because I can't stand being in this black hole. This goes beyond just fatigue. I have depression that started years ago. I am truly depressed at this point.

redheadbride15 · January 2016

It sounds like that's a smart choice. Keep your OB in the loop and also schedule an appointment to go in and be seen. It's really, really important for you to take care of yourself right now.

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

I've got an appointment set for next Tuesday. Another stress I have is missing work for my appts:(

redheadbride15 · January 2016

That's good! I know that missing work is stressful but taking care of yourself is so much more important, so try not to give it another thought. Let us know how things go, and also feel free to come and participate in this board or post to the threads whenever you want. Pregnancy can be so isolating and scary sometimes, especially first trimester. I personally found internet forums really helpful. We're a nice and supportive group and can offer advice on this type of issue and really so much more!

Sporty1216 · January 2016

Someone on this board or my BMB posted about an organization called mothertobaby.org that offers (free, I think) information about various medications and exposures during pregnancy. I just popped by the site and it looks like you can online chat with someone about it. I'm not sure if that's helpful or not, but I was glad to know about it myself.

As others have already said, taking care of yourself is a huge benefit to your baby. So even if there is some risk involved, it seems worth considering (as you are).

Take care and please keep company here if that helps. The first tri is so exhausting and isolating--it's good to have people to talk with.

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

Thank you so much ladies for the overwhelming support:). The first trimester is super overwhelming as I'm trying to adjust to all these new demands and being AMA.

alitria · January 2016

I was on Prozac for my first pregnancy and have chosen to remain on it for this pregnancy at a low dosage. I was on 20mg and dropped to 10mg but may need to go back up. I have crippling depression and anxiety without it and based on current research, the risks of untreated anxiety and depression concerned me as much as the risks of the Prozac. I become non-functional and have constant anxiety with panic attacks. For me, I had to consider the risks of both sides and have chosen to take the lowest dosage I can to remain functional. I rarely talk about it because of the comments and side eyes I get but the only people who fully understand and are qualified to make decisions about my medical care are me and my doctors. The people who have only seen functional, medicated me have no idea what they're saying when they say "oh, you can just tough it out" or just try drinking tea and meditating. I'm not "feeling sad," I have a chemical imbalance that has a variety of health implications for myself and my baby, both before and after birth. Obviously, I would prefer to not need to take Prozac, just like I would prefer to not need medication for my asthma but neither condition is likely to resolve with the power of positive thinking so I do the best I can and accept that circumstances are rarely perfect. I did alter my medications prior to attempting to get pregnant to be as safe as I could and Prozac is one of the ones that seems to be the most documented and lower on the risk scale.

Knottie1450304223 · January 2016

How are you feeling on the lower dose of Prozac? How long does it take for it to start working again once I've been off it? Thanks:)

alitria · January 2016

At 2 weeks, you still will have some levels in your bloodstream, though probably not enough to be noticeable. It sounds like you came off pretty quickly for that dosage! My dr did a taper from 20 to 10 that lasted about 10 days! I tend to feel improvement within a week, though not full relief of my symptoms. I'd say I'm closer to "normal" in a couple of weeks, and get the full effect within a month. If you do 10 then 20, you may not get relief at 10, but could notice the effects at 20. You are welcome to PM me, I've spent years and two pregnancies managing this with two amazing doctors who have been great about including me in the decisions and as I posted recently on a similar post, mental illness and pregnancy is an incredibly isolating experience.

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