Anxiety problems.. Please help me!?

Question

I have an anxiety disorder and I am pregnant. I take Lorazepam .5 mg 3x daily as needed but it doesnt do anything for me since its a low dose.. however, it does make me incredibly tired. Could me being pregnant make me more sensitive to the sedative part of the anxiety medication? I've tried therapy and exercise and they dont really help with my anxiety is there anything else medication or otherwise that could help me and not be harmful for my baby. The lorazepam hasnt affected her and shes healthy as can be in there but I still worry.. Please help. I lay in bed all day every day depressed because I can't fight anymore. I've tried so many things and I cant get rid of my anxiety. I want to stop taking the Lorazepam but I need some other way to fight my anxiety if I stop the Lorazepam. Any ideas. Please help me.. I feel so helpless I just dont know what to do..

Answer 1

Congratulations on your pregnancy!

Being tired and exhausted is a normal phase of pregnancy. Did you know that the energy needed to "create" a life form (inside your womb) is about the equivalent of 3 nuclear plants!? No jokes!! Some women have it easy and some have it harder...

I can totally relate to you cause when I was pregnant with my daughter, I could sleep 20 out of 24 hrs a day!! Plus, the psychological stress pregnancy put on a body is very exhausting!! We spend 9 months wondering: Will I be a good parent? Will I know what to do? What if I suck at this?...Our brains are overworking (as our body is...) and as a result, our anxiety is elevated and our energy is drained.

And all the hormonal changes can be (and most likely are...)  responsible for your anxiety being stronger. I know when I was expecting, I felt like I was going crazy : happy exstatic one minute and crying helpless the other! LOL...It's part of the pregnancy!! All I can say is: hang in there! Take one day at a time...SEE one day at a time!! And if that is that is still to much, take one hour at a time! If you need to sleep all day long, DO IT and don't feel guilty about it...you need it and deserve it!!

I'm happy to hear your daughter is healthy!! But your doctor should have told you that lorazepam is DANGEROUS during pregnancy!!! It may cause congenital malformation after the first trimester!! It is a big NO-NO for pregnant women!! You should contact your psychiatrist as soon as possible to see what other options of medication their is to replace the lorazepam. I don't want to scare you and cause you more anxiety but I want you to be aware of the risk involved (in case your doctor hasn't told you...)!!

I also want to warn you though, once born, she will go through a withdrawl phase (since she was getting some through you...) She will most likely be drowsy and cranky.... and might have sucking difficulties (meaning, she will have a hard time latching on...) Plus, it is strongly recommended not to breasfeed when taking lorazepam , for it is transmitted in the mothers milk...

Whatever you do, don't stop Lorazepam cold turkey cause the withdrawl effects are known to cause MORE anxiety, insomnia, irritability and restlesness. If you want to stop taking them, you must reduce your dosage gradually over a period of 6 to 12 weeks. And, if you stop taking lorazepam cold turkey, your blood pressure most probably will go up... and that would harm your daughter!! I had a miscariedge (of my second child) because I had stopped my medications and the additional stress that was brought onto me resulted in a lost pregnancy...

Do not fall under the impression that "natural" remedies are a better option, cause honestly no profound research has been done on pregnant women taking them. We tend to associate "natural remdies" with "harmless" but that is a faulse conception!

What helped me while my pregnancy, was taking ginger herbal tea or mint/pepermint tea. DO NOT take red rasberry tea before your 32 week of pregnancy cause it enducess contractions!! And camomille is not recommended either when pregnant.

Hope I've helped you out

Good luck and hang in there;)

Answer 2

I wish I could help you but all the psych meds seem to be a potential harm to babies while pregnant.