pregnancy | ADHD Information

I would consult a physician or a pharmacist, she needs to be up front and forget any shame and consider her baby.  As in the fire business did the last doctor tell her to go elsewhere for services?My daughter is 4 months pregnant and is on ritalin, she is afraid of the effects. We live in a small town and one Dr. fired her and she is afraid to tell the new OB. Her therapist states it has to be her decision to take the medication or not. She really needs it and I was hoping some one could tell her there experiences with staying on rital while pregnant the dr fired her?

wha?

I don't understand...

Beyond that, it's a really strange subject. Being a guy I don't have experience but I can't say that taking ANYTHINg while pregnant is really a good idea... you gotta tell the new OB.
I have only seen negative comments on staying on Stimulants during pregnancy. It can harm the baby, I have read. Please do more research and see a Dr who is knowledgable about these meds.She should definitely tell her OB. The OB needs to know about any drugs she is on so that she will not prescribe anything that might have a drug interaction that might end up being harmful to the mom or baby. This is especially important in labor- what if there is an interaction with an epidural? Or if she needs an emergency csection and the ritalin interacts with an anesthesia?

Believe me, she definitely won't be the first person the OB has ever seen who has been on Ritalin. It is in the best interest of her baby for her to speak to OB.

And, as the other posters have mentioned, stimulants are not reccomended during pregnancy. Doctots even limit caffeine, so you can imagine that ritalin (a much stronger stimulant) may be a risky medicine to take. Her OB should be able to give her advice on this as well.chocoholic38487.8214351852I don't even want to take meds while breastfeeding, much less if I got pregnant again.  I don't want to take any chances with my baby.  However, there is supposed to be something called Brightspark that's supposed to help with symptoms but is safe for the pregnant and breastfeeding.  I've been considering taking it, though I'm also debating whether I want to continue my med-free life or if I want to start taking it in order to try and better the life I have managed.  If she really has a concern about how the Ritalin will affect the baby, she may want to talk to the dr about this Brightspark stuff.

[QUOTE=Tamaraw1969]Ritalin is in the FDA pregnancy category C. [/QUOTE]

Really? Ok.  I humbly stand corrected.  I thought I remember reading somewhere that it was a category A, but as I said, I was not sure.

ANY meds, including category A drugs, whether they are for ad/hd or not, or for a headache, or a cold, or whatever, should be ran passed your doctor for approval before taking during pregnancy.

It is a very personal decision for the mother as to whether or not she feels the need to take meds or not for her AD/HD or any other mental condition during pregnancy.

It depends on whether or not the mother is able to reasonably function when not on her meds, also.  AD/HD ranges in severity, and also it must be factored in the hormonal swings, and life changes that the mother will be experience, for some mothers is a huge problem, for others, not so much of a problem.

I am 34 weeks pregnant, and I have AD/HD.  However, considering that my ad/hd is not extremely severe in my personal case, and also the fact that I live with my husband who can help out with house work and bills and so forth while my brain is temporarily in it's "slack" state off of meds, I decided not to take them.

However, if I lived on my own, and had no one else to depend on, I feel my life might fall apart if I was off of medication and my unborn child would suffer.  I would not remember to take my prenatal vitamins everyday, would not be able to stay off of caffeine without some one to help monitor (my addiction is caffeine, which is not good for unborn babies and pregnant mothers) , and would not be able to keep up with bills, I would probably find myself homeless before the end of my pregnancy, if not for my husband, or some one else around to help me.  Therefore, my decision to take meds during pregnancy might have been a different one if my circumstances were different.

It depends on the person and each individual case.  Ad/hd is different for each individual, and ranges in severity.

If your ad/hd is so very severe that you need meds even if you ARE pregnant, then this needs to be discussed with your doctor.  Sometimes, if you are on one of the more dangerous drugs, then doctor can wean you off of that one, and then subscribe another drug for ad/hd that might not be as risky.

But definitly EVERY medication that you are on needs to be revealed to your doctor while you are pregnant. 

And I agree with the individual who stated that there is no reason to be embarrassed to tell your doctor this.  OBGYN doctors have more than likely dealt with many MANY mothers who have been on ALL KINDS of drugs INCLUDING ones for psychiatric conditions before your personal case.

There should never be any reason to be ashamed to tell your doctor anything.

sonya_h38495.6445486111Ritalin is in the FDA pregnancy category C. This means that it is not known whether Ritalin will be harmful to an unborn baby. Do not take Ritalin without first talking to your doctor if you are pregnant or could become pregnant during treatment.

Sonya_H,

        I didn't see your previous post, I went searching the internet for that answer, I may very well be wrong on it being a class C for pregnancy depending on when they updated. It was the point I was trying to make that any drug you take during pregnancy should be OKed with your Dr. 

Because of the type of work I was doing during my last pregnancy, I continued to take my meds (Adderall) just in a lower dosage.  I made sure to tell my doctor so he could monitor me and my daughter for any negative effects. 

She was born healthy and whole at 7lbs 14oz, and to be honest she was the smallest of my three.  I didn't know I had ADD when I had my two boys they are 7.5 & 10 years older than she.  Scarey enough I think that's what kept her from kicking me like crazy (like my oldest) when I was prego, because I believe she has ADD.  I believe that because she acts just like her oldest brother did at that age.  He was diagnosed at the age of four and I was told he was prolly one of the top 10% extreme cases. 

I digress...all I can say is she has to make her own decision.  If she decides to stay on her meds then she should tell her doctor and make sure her doctor is supportive of her decision, if not then she needs to find another doctor who will be.  I wish her luck, health, and happiness.

All drugs, including ones for AD/HD, are broken up into "grades" of safety to take for pregnancy, i think, something like

grade A (drugs that have been tested and proven not to cause problems in human pregnancy)

to like, grade B and C: drugs that have NOT been tested in humans, but have been tested in animals and have been presumed safe, OR safe IF the benifits of the drug outweigh the risks (like, if you are an extremely psychotic person who would be homicidal or suicidal without your psychiatric meds...your life and the life of the kid would be endangered...etc...)

to like, grade X: Proven NOT to be safe, and should NOT under any circumstances be taken during pregnancy.

If I remember correctly, Ritalin is actually a classified grade A drug.  I have read that pregnant women have taken it throughout their pregnancy with no effects to the baby.

HOWEVER!! YOU SHOULD CHECK WITH A DOC ON THIS!  There could be other factors to come into play, such as, certain drugs are not ok to take in the 1st trimester, but are ok later on, and so forth.  Each and every single drug has a different perspective, so this is a question best left to the doc. 

(how can a doctor fire a patient?...but anyway.) Find another doc, or AT LEAST call one on the phone and ask them the best course of action, but I really do think Ritalin was a class A drug.  But I could be wrong, so check.

congratulations on the coming of your grandchild!! HOw far is your daughter??

I am pregnant too; I am 33 weeks now, and I am due on july 3, I am having a boy.

I am not on any drugs right now, but I do have ad/hd....(i am missing my drugs, my house is a complete wreck!!)   

My midwife gave me the option of her writing a prescription for my depression/AD/HD that was grade A, and that i could take during my pregnancy, but my personal decision was to see if I could stick it out for the duration of my pregnancy WITHOUT meds....

MY DECISION WAS NOT NECESSARILY RIGHT FOR EVERYONE, and I realize that.  There are some ad/hders out there that DESPERATELY need their meds, and may end up living on the streets before the pregnancy is out, if not for their meds, and I could very well have been one of them.  If I was alone, I would have chosen to take them, but since I live with my husband (who also had ad/hd) we decided to see how long we could make it WIThOUT me being on meds, and he would help take care of me, and made sure things got done.... I WILL be continueing on my meds after the birth of my child....

My midwife gave me the option of her writing me a prescription at any time during my pregnancy if at any point I thought I needed them.  I have kept that in mind, but so far we have been doing farely well (not perfectly, by NO MEANS!) without my meds... I only have a couple more weeks left to go, so I will see if I can just stick it out.

I hope everything goes well for you and your daughter!!

sonya_h38488.4639467593

Personally, if I felt strongly about the course of action I wanted take while pregnant, I would definately want a doctor that supported that. So, that would be part of the interview process for choosing a doctor. You mentioned that you live in a small town, so your options might be limited. However, her doctor MUST know the meds she is on. The baby needs to be closely monitored for any complications. Please encourage your daughter to tell her doctor. Really would you want omeone caring for you that does not support you?

stepmom2maddy38488.5650347222honestly, I have pondered what to do when I get pregnant again.  I have made the decision to STOP taking everything.  It's not worth the risk.  I can be a little wacky for 9 months and get right back on it afterwards. 

hey i took ritilin while pregnant. my girl is 18 months old. i had a great pregnancy(didnt take meds on my son and had a very horrible pregnancy)although i was worried about my meds . my docs told me i had to take them the risk were alot more for me and my boy who was already here. so i did. the father never stayed around for reasons related to adhd but i aint gonna go in to that. but anyway my pregnancy i fully loved but when she came along she wasnt well (instanly i thought it was my fault.) she had a few different things going on and we both had to stay in hospital for 2 weeks . they didnt really know why she was bad but what ever it was righted itself mostly so when she came home i just got on with it with my new addition to my family.

we had to go for check ups every month for blood tests, wasnt nice but had to be done. but that was it. then the last time i spoke to them they said she was left with a underactive thyriod and that was treatable with a tablet a day . so i supose i am saying it was hard when she was bad  but she is fine happy and full oof life and she makes me laugh every day .

 

i didnt takes the meds for one child and i did for another and if i have a third i would definatly take my meds . as i bonded with my girl months before she was born . my son,months after he was born i bonded.

i think in the long run she will know if  she needs them or can cope without them as everyone is different.

 I totally agree.