Can you take benzodiazepines while pregnant

A running enthusiast who regularly participates in San Francisco's Bay to Breakers run, Chandler works as an independent caterer, preparing healthy, nutritious meals for Phoenix area residents. Klonopin Is Best Avoided When You Are Pregnant We all experience anxiety at certain stressful times in our lives, but for a woman with an anxiety disorder, there is no real calm after the storm.

Valerian Root Vs. Herbs to Reduce Anxiety During Pregnancy. Magnesium for Headaches in Pregnant Women. Into astrology? Although there are a number of studies and individual case reports concerning the use of benzodiazepines in human pregnancy, the data concerning teratogenicity and effects on postnatal development and behaviour are inconsistent.

There is evidence from studies in the s that first trimester exposure to benzodiazepines in utero has resulted in the birth of some infants with facial clefts, cardiac malformations, and other multiple malformations, but no syndrome of defects. Diazepam and chlordiazepoxide are amongst the drugs most frequently implicated in the earlier studies.

However, data from later studies provide no clear evidence of significant increase in either the overall incidence of malformations or of any particular type of defect. Many of the women included in these studies has psychiatric illnesses, epilepsy, or diabetes all of which have an intrinsic risk in pregnancy, and some were on multidrug therapy.

Medical-obstetric histories and family history of malformations were not always presented in the publications, which makes assessment of risk associated with benzodiazepine use per se difficult.

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Evidence Based. Find the right treatment program today. Call to be connected with a treatment specialist. This page does not provide medical advice. See more. There are some concerns about the impact of benzodiazepines taken while pregnant on the newborn. As adults who take these medications may suffer from side effects, so too may the baby. Symptoms of toxicity have been reported in newborns, and these include sedation, decreased muscle tone floppiness , and breathing problems.

In general, these symptoms appear infrequently but probably occur more commonly in women taking higher dosages of medication. There are also some reports of benzodiazepine withdrawal occurring in newborns exposed to benzodiazepines in utero.

Symptoms of benzodiazepine withdrawal include irritability, sleep disruption, and, less commonly, seizure. For women who wish to stop anti-anxiety medications prior to pregnancy, it is best to do a slow taper over 1 month of the medication.

After stopping a medication, it may take several days or weeks to completely wash out the medication. Unfortunately, some women are unable to stop their anti-anxiety medication without significant symptoms and need to remain on a benzodiazepine during pregnancy. The decision to take anti-anxiety medications during pregnancy should be discussed with your psychiatrist or obstetrician, ideally before attempts to conceive. Im currently 23 weeks pregnant and suffer with sever anxiety,agoraphobia,and depression.

I did not find out i was pregnant untill 3months into my pregnancy,at which i was taking a reg. Since i found out i was expecting i have only been taking it as neede,but worry even thats to much. I especially worry about the 3 months that i did not know i was pregnant. If anyone can shed light on my issue it will mean the world to me wheither the info is good or bad. I keep asking my doctors and they just say all will be fine,my ultra sounds and other test for birth defects are all good.

But that is just not enough 4 me…. Hi Vera. I am sorry to hear about your challenges. Have you tried other meds?