Can I take antidepressants while breastfeeding? Hi, I am 29. I have 3 months old baby whom I breastfeed. I have anxiety since childhood. I used to take medication for it before getting pregnant. Now it has been an year I am not taking any medication. And my anxiety is back now. I feel difficult sometimes to bond with my baby. I don't feel excited and positive about future and life. I am having lack of concentration and confidence. I approached two psychiatrist recently. One prescribed me nexito 5 and other prescribed me prodep 20. They said it's ok to take them while breastfeeding. I really want to take these. I desperately want to be mentally healthy. But the thought that it might harm my baby doesn't encourage me to go further. Are there any lactating women who had been taking such medications? Are there anyone who has been in same condition? I just little bit of motivation to go ahead and start my medication. Please help.

Anxiety

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Dr. Rashmi NavelkarPsychiatrist9yrs exp

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First you need to calm down. It's very common for women to feel anxious or depressed post delivery. Sleep deprivation in this period due to frequent breastfeeding tends to trigger the symptoms. If you're skeptical about taking medications then you can try some relaxation techniques and breathing exercises to calm your self. Try yoga too. Avoid caffeinated drinks as it can increase anxiety symptoms. Best studied antidepressants during lactation are fluoxetine and sertraline, and are considered relatively safer. You can time your medications, eg take it at night after breastfeeding your baby. Don't breastfeed for atleast 8-10 hrs after taking medication. You can keep expressed milk ready before taking the medications, so that you can feed it to your baby during those 8-10 hrs.

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Mr. Harsh NagoriyaPsychologist0yrs exp

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Escitalopram (nexito) is excreted in human breast milk, it should be taken only if clearly needed. If you are taking, then monitor any adverse effects of the same, I would recommend not to take these medicines in these conditions, rather you go for exercise (aerobics) and yoga (it is slow but it definitely works), spend 1 hour daily behind exercise and yoga, include green leafy vegetables, eggs, almonds, nuts, oats and pineapples in daily diet. These foods help to increase tryptophan in human body, in turn in is converted to serotonin, which helps to regulate the mood. Consult your physician/psychiatrist before taking any step further.

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