Antidepressants and IVF

Has anyone been on antidepressants during IVF and pregnancy or is it better to stop medication?

[Solly-44]

Hi Lasu,

I think it really depends on the circumstances (not helpful I know!) and definitely something you should check with your doctor.

I’m currently on antidepressants and am having my fet next week, but I think it depends on which drug it is and what stage you’re at. Eg mine isn’t recommended for mid-late pregnancy but is fine at this stage. There are risks to be weighed up in stopping though, especially suddenly.

IVF is such a stressful process that it’s probably not the best time to stop, but obviously you don’t want to be taking anything that interferes with the drugs used or poses any risk. I think only your dr can give you the correct answer xx

[Hidden in reply to Solly-44]

My doctor has advised against taking any medication pre pregnancy and during pregnancy. She said it was really my decision which is not helpful at all x

[EmGLA in reply to Hidden]

Hello Lasu

Depending where you are in the country there is actually a service you can use called Medicines Information, it is regional and run by pharmacists whose job it is to answer questions on medicines from health care professionals and the public. They usually can't answer your question right there and then but will go away and research it for you.

You might find this useful to go back to both your doctor that prescribes your antidepressant and your fertility doctor.

PM me if you would find this useful?

xx

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK]

Hi Lasu. If you really need to be on antidepressants, there are a few that are safe to take during treatment and pregnancy. All I can say is to check with your specialist. If you could manage without, all the better, but you are important and need to feel well and able to cope with treatment etc. Hope all goes well for you. Diane

[AcuFertilityDoc]

Hi Lasu,

It’s really not helpful for your doctor to make a very broad statement like “best not to take anything”. The chance of a birth defect occurring in general

is low (about 3% for any degree of defect from extremely minor to more significant in all women giving birth), and taking anti-depressants that are high on the advised-against list only raises the chance of occurrence by at most 1% of the original 3%. About 1 out of 20 women who become pregnant take some form of anti-depressant. If birth defects from anti-depressants were common, there would be a lot more babies in the world with problems.

If you can safely go off your med without being left feeling depressed, that’s fine. But going off fast and/or experiencing depression can be detrimental to your health and your baby’s health. If your doctor isn’t more helpful, then maybe you can find another for advice. If necessary you can change to one of a number of anti-depressants that are considered low risk.

[Hidden in reply to AcuFertilityDoc]

Thank you for your reply. I am already on one which is one of the safest ones to be on. To come off them is terrifying me as I have tried 3 times over the years and have had to go back on them. I am now considering not doing IVF for my own health and fear this will lead to the breakup of my marriage. If I did become pregnant I would most certainly not want to put the baby at risk either. So so hard x

[AcuFertilityDoc in reply to Hidden]

Sounds like a complicated situation. Get a second opinion but it sounds like you are on an anti-depressant that should not cause you concern during pregnancy. Can you share the concerns about your health that are making you rethink IVF, and why not going forward would possibly end your marriage? Feel free to message me if you want to chat out of the public sphere.