I am hopeful that women who are expecting will use this folder to interact. I would also love to see those of us who can offer helpful suggestions to do so. There might be a few men out there who have some insights to share!?

Best regards to all, C.

Libran
Posted September 24, 2007 09:03 AM
Has anyone had anxiety throughout their pregancy? And I don't mean anxiety about having a child but anxiety like GAD/Panic Disorder. I want to know if your anxiety affected your child at all. I am afraid my anxiety will hurt my unborn child if I get pregnant. I know stress can be hard on the baby but want to hear everyone else's experience with being pregnant with anxiety.
Posts: 15 | Registered: July 22, 2007

polishprincess
Posted September 24, 2007 09:53 AM Hide Post
Libran,
There are many women one here that are currently pregnant. I am one of them and I know of about 4 others right now. I wont lie. I for one am having a difficult time right now. I have anxiety/depression and obsessive thoughts. I am currently taking medication. There are thankfully treatment options when you are pregnant with this condition.Many of the mothers on here did go through their pregnancies and had perfectly healthy children. Hormones can get wacky but it'll be worth it in the end.

CarolynEd.Dir. Posted September 24, 2007 10:25 AM Hide Post
Remember your baby doesn't have the interpretations you put on the feelings...being anxious only stimulates the baby. So, you might notice he/she gets active.

Have you tried walking with soothing music in a walkman, yoga, relaxation tape/cd, music (babies LOVE violin music), rocking in a rocking chair and softly patting and stroking the baby,...?

Let's all add something to this list.

Remember that during pregnancy your body makes more progestrone...this hormone has soothing qualities to it. Cooperate with those feelings.

Carolyn
Posts: 306 | Registered: March 08, 2006


mandymoo81
Posted September 24, 2007 12:28 PM Hide Post
I am pregnant and have this terribly. I have anxiety ALL the time. It feels like I am always on the edge of having a panic attack. It's awful. I already have issues about taking meds and now I am taking meds while being pregnant (prescribed by the doc) and I can't sleep at all so I have to take ambien. I feel worthless!
Posts: 3 | Registered: September 24, 2007


BTTRFLY
Posted September 24, 2007 12:34 PM Hide Post
You are not worthless! I am also pregnant, taking Prozac, klonopin, and ambien all under the watchful eye of my Ob, and he has told me many times the meds are much better for the baby than the panic attacks. We are doing the best we can, which is all we can do. Chin up

Tara

"If nothing ever changed...there would be no Butterflies." Author unknown
Posts: 516 | Location: northeast | Registered: June 02, 2006


polishprincess
Posted September 24, 2007 12:35 PM Hide Post
Mandymoo81,
you are far from worthless. You are one step ahead by getting the help you need to take care of yourself. Like I said I am also pregnant and am currently getting back on zoloft. Wellbutrin is the safest in pregnancy but it didnt help me very much. I have had much better luck with the zoloft. Although there are risks in the end of the 3rd trimester(low birthweight, possible withdrawels). I will deal with that when i get there. I am scared but taking care of ourselves first is taking care of the baby. Remember that. You need to be healthy first.The baby is fine inside you just take care of yourself and remember that we are all here to help.
God knows i have needed it lately.
Posts: 54 | Location: Mass | Registered: May 24, 2005

I am so glad to see this topic! I am 16 weeks pregnant. I started taking zoloft at 14 weeks because I was having a lot of anxiety at night that was interfering with my sleep and increasing my nausea. (I have had some pretty bad morning sickness!) I have been on it for 2 weeks now and it is helping, though I am still anxious. It feels hard to balance the needs and physical difficulties of pregnancy with the demands of my life and job. (I am a teacher and it is hard to care for the needs of 20 students when I am exhausted and sick.) I am working on positive self-talk, being compassionate with myself and lowering my expectations, but it is really hard.
I was disappointed to have to take medication while pregnant, and I am a little worried about the affect it might have on my child, but I also know that I need to take care of myself!

Don't feel bad about taking care of yourself! You should be proud of yourself for choosing to help yourself!

I love the idea of communication with other pregnant moms! Write back!

I had morning sickness untill 4;pm for 5 months. I nearly lost the baby because my Dr. didn't belive me and my stomich musels were weakending she was falling out. Finnaly I got another Doc. and he put me to bed, drove to my house to giveing me Vitamine B shots, every other day, affter 6 of thoes I stoped throwing up. my musels rested, and I kept the baby, She was a beutiful 9lb. girl. You know they say if you have alot of burping they will have hair. My girl had 3 inch hair. Life is A-maz-ing

You do need to rest, and eat healthy, for both of you. but I bet your Doc. told you that already. use that relaxation tape, and Yoga is good. enjoy this awsome time with your baby, they are so amazing, When my daughter had her babys, she would sing to them and I know they heard her, because, affter her first one was born he was crying, and my daughter wanted him to stop, I sound exactly alike her, I started singing her favorite Lullaby, "Hush Litttle baby" and he stoped crying emediatly, the nurses made me stop singing, they wanted him to cry, and get the stuff out of his nose, etc.

It is such a wonderfull time, enjoy it all you possibly can, think about "if the baby were on the out side would you do (What ever it is that is pressureing you) instaed of being with your baby? It is a good time to start practicing saying no to others, you have your baby to make time for, now .

Hi all, I just wanted to post and say Thank you to Carolyn for making an area for us moms and dads to be. I have been having alot of the same symptoms as many of you. I was throwing up constantly, always exhausted and very anxious and depressed. I was upset cause I had to take meds, I didn't want to take them during my pregnancy, but I have since realized that it is far bette for me and the baby to be on them than not. I am going to my doc regularly and talking about my emotions and the pregnancy. I find it helpful to know this is all part of the due course of having a little one. I know women without anxiety who have worries and obsessive thoughts and scary dreams, so it's no doubt that us very sensitive people who already have anxiety issues will have it heightened during pregnancy. All the suggested ideas to relax are amazing. I am only 3 months and I would like to take yoga classes, but do you think I should take prenatal yoga or just regular yoga? I am not sure of the difference, if anyone has done either please let me know. We are all going to get through this anxiety or not. Just keep in mind the end result of a wonderful little baby that will be all yours. Take care.

Just curious is anyone or has anyone taken diclectin for morning sickness? I am taking it, I had lost 10 lbs being sick and the doctor said to take it. So many people are telling me "You shouldn't be taking that, be careful with those kind of meds they cause birth defects." I read up a bit on it and it seems ok. It has been working for me for about 3 weeks now I just wonder if it is more harm than good. Any feedback would be great.

Hello Ladies-

I have been thru 4 pregnancies- all with morning sickness and panic/anxiety. I took Paxil with all of them, and they are all healthy, normal, feisty sons. Please relax, let your body change and enjoy yourself as much as you can when you feel nausea, etc. The time goes so quick and soon the baby will be here. I agree that the baby doesn't judge you and will just love you. You and the baby will grow in your relationship together. You do not have to be a perfect parent at the conception or at any point in the pregnancy or the raising of your child. What you do need to do is be realistic, honest, forgiving and keep communication open. It's been almost 12 years since my first one was born and I have grown right along with him. It will be OK. Just keep loving each other and loving yourself.
Please rest your hearts and put down your worries. I am making it and so will you.
Terri

I took phenergen and was switched to Zofran for morning sickness. I think (and am NOT a doctor) that overall anti-nausea medication is okay for pregnancy. I too have lost 10-15 lbs so far from it. I'm 12 weeks now and it seems to be getting a little better, but if you can take something to feel less miserable, amen!

I am 6 weeks pregnant and going to my first doctors appt. today. I am really nervous. I know that when you are pregnant your not supposed to feel the best but for the last 4 days I have been feeling dizzy, nauseous, weak, hot flashes, shakey, and just all around weird. I was wondering if anyone else experiences this? I wish you all the best of luck and Congrats. WE ARE GOING TO BE MOMMIES!!!!!!!!WOW

Amy, how did your doctor appt. go?

I am nearly 18 weeks pregnant and still struggling with nausea. I was really looking forward to feeling better at 12 and then 14 weeks, but no luck so far! Also I feel SO emotional sometimes. I just got in an argument with my sister. She lives with my husband and me. While we were talking, I felt completely unable to be rational. I just got more and more upset. After she left I was so worked up that I dry heaved until I lost my voice. Sometimes I feel crazy. I have been sick and emotional for so long, I feel out of touch with who I used to be. I also feel like a burden to my husband and sister, because I am not able to do as much around the house as I used to, and with all of my emotions I need a lot of comforting.
My husband is awesome. He doesn't complain at all, but this is not how I expected pregnancy to be. (I am on week 4 of the program, which talks about how we set ourselves up with unrealistic expections.) I was really looking forward to being pregnant, and thought I would enjoy it!

Has anyone else struggled like this?

starflower; I am so sorrry it is happening to you too. I have writen before, about my nausia, dry heaves, untill 4;pm every day I finaly just didn't eat untill affter 4;pm I couldn't keep any thing down before then any way. I heaved over smells too. untill the musels in my stomic got so week I nearly lost my baby at 7 months. My doc. put me to bed and drove to my house to give me vitamin B shots every other day for a week. I didn't even need one for my second child, 3 years later. My daughter went to her doc. affter the first week and got a shot it only took 1 for her.

Also as for the going crazy thing, I am reading Omega 3 oil is the reason for that, the baby is taking all you have, and you probably need to take a supplement to give him more, so you have enough for yourself. Hormoes do alot but not everything. Nutrition, has allot to do with it, some women, loose their teeth because they don't have enough calcium. Thank God the bably will take all he needs but you need some left over. Drink water, breath deeply, they have prenatle Yoga I hear, very good to stretch your musels. I wanted to have a happy healthy baby, and I did she was 9lb. but I wanted to have her naturaly, I practiced self hipnoces so the labor pains would't distreact me from beeing there for my babay, but None of it went the way I wanted it too. I ended up after 12 hours of 3 min. labor because the nurse didn't believe I was even haveing labor pains because I was in control. The baby started dying trying to get her 11 in. head out, and my cervex would not get that big. So they had to do a c-section. I felt so badly, I shoulded all over myself, I know the hormones started the migrains, but the condemnation I put my self through for not being able to have a child the normal way, kept them going on for days. It nearly kept me from haveing my wonderful son 3 years later, and then I had to quit. my deram of a baslball team, was gone.

Take care of your self you are working harder than your husband or your sister you are growing a child inside of you! it is not easy if it was men could do it. It is very heard and blessed that way by the Lord our God. Look pased this to the day you bring him in to the world, and give him to your sister to watch, while you get the houe the way you want it. I made the mistake of working through that time, the time I needed to be singing to my child, and reading to my child. letting her know "I loved her, more than these". As my grandmother used to say "the work will always be there", let the cob webs grow, let it all go. you are busy right now resting, and growing a baby. Take each day as a gift. things arent like you like them but God is in control, and every thing is OK. Your job is clear, take care of that baby, my dear.

I recently found out I was pregnant and also lost my brother to a trajic car accident, I am so stressed and worried about having to go to the funeral and the thing that I am the most worried about is how my agoraphobia and panic disorder with going to the funeral will affect my unborn child. I have yet to see my doctor since I only found out about my pregnancy a week ago and the day I found out was the day my brother was killed. I am terrified of going to the funeral and am scared that I will pass out and have to leave when my mother needs me there the most. Any tips on how I can cope with this? And any tips on how someone with agoraphobia can deal with going to the doctor when Im too scared to even drive on my own or go into a store? Any info or tips would be greatly appreciated.

Congratulations; Molly K
I know this is all scarry for you. It seems the world is moveing in on you, at a time when you need to be concentrating on making a baby.

Your Husband is your help mate in this. Here is whear He shines. Let him be the head of your family now, let him be you knight in shinning armor. The husband is the protector of his family. We always have to ask for what we need, You need him to be by your side through the funeral, and going to the Doctor. This is his job, you do not have to be alone in this, You do not have to be strong in this. You have to let him know what you need from him. This is his part in the family you two are building together.

I few weeks ago, I was in a really bad place with my anxiety. About a month ago I started taking Zoloft and that seemed to help a lot. On Friday, immediately after I wrote my last post, my husband and I learned that my father-in-law has lung cancer that has spread to his back and liver. Since then, my anxiety has increased again. I am feeling a lot of sympathy anxiety for my mother-in-law who is also an anxious person. I know she has a hard road ahead of her. I am also worrying that my husband's father will not be alive to meet our baby - his first grandchild. I keep picturing myself holding a new baby at his funeral. I am also having a lot of general anxiety about my work and the baby and the fact that I am still nauseous at 18 weeks.