I called my OB/GYN to inquire about safety of using Zoloft during pregnancy. Of course, she had no idea what MAV is. I HATE having an illness that no one understands. I gave up trying to explain it. Anyway, she said that it can cause withdrawal in newborns if taken in the 3rd trimester. Of course, I have to make the final decision by weighing the pros and cons. I feel terrible thinking of my newborn having possible withdrawal sxs. I just wish I knew that this drug would do the trick. Then, I think I would most surely take the risk, but i don’t even know if it will help. Does anyone know what the therapeutic dose for zoloft. I took it in the past, but only got up to 25mg for a short time, before Dr. Buccholtz took me off of it stating that it is not effective for MAV. This was, of course, after a prior doc told me it is very helpful for MAV. I believe it did make my headaches a bit worse, and I suffer from daily headaches now and frequent migraine with aura.
Lisa,
How short a time did you try it? Did you give it enough time to see if it could help? I think there have been people that didn’t have a drug work the first time around only to come back to them and then work. Would there be enough time to try it and see if it helps and then go off it at the end of you pregnancy to prevent that from happening to the baby, or doesn’t it work that way?
Tammy
I feel your frustration about trying to explain what MAV is! Other than that I have no idea what to tell you. It is a really hard decision for you to make especially when you don’t know if it will work. How far along are you now? Would you consider taking it up until the third trimester to see if you get any relief and then reassess from there?
Sarah
mayoclinic.com/health/antide … ts/DN00007
There seems to be conflicting opinions out there on this subject even among the experts.
Thanks so much for everyone’s responses. I am 15 weeks pregnant now. After writing my post, my husband actually contacted Dr. Newman, who is treating Lisa and whom I previously saw, since he was the one who recommended Zoloft. He said that no migraine preventive drugs, including zoloft, are safe during pregnancy. Of course, he’s not an ob/gyn, but I wouldn’t even have him to prescribe it. I guess I have to just wait it out until baby’s due date feb 10. If I’m still this ill, I will probably have to pass on breastfeeding and just get on a drug ASAP. I am so scared to see how this progresses during the past several months. But, I don’t have much of a choice. I guess I’ve dealt with it this long, and have been consistently very debilitated now for 2 years.
Timeless - I forgot to thank you for the article. I appreciate it. You are all such lovely people, who do not deserve this crap.
Hey Lisa,
I just wanted to let you know that I did ask Dr. Newman if he prescribes zoloft alone and if he uses it as a first line treatment. He said absolutely to both. In fact he would have preferred to start me on zoloft alone because of my low bp and pulse to begin with, but of course respected my wishes to start with verapamil. He has seen excellent results with it’s use alone. Maybe you would do well in using the verapamil for the headaches and trialing zoloft… of course when your timing is right. As you know, Dr. Newman is super conservative, so trialing zoloft now is best to decide with an ob/gyn on board.
Good luck!
lisa
Thanks so much, Lisa. I appreciate you asking him.
what’s the teurapheutic dose of Zoloft?
I think as with so many drugs the therapeutic dose depends on the individual response. My doc usually finds success at dosages between 12.5 to 50 mg. I have heard of others on the forum that found success as high as 100 mg. I guess we won’t know until we try? Anyone out there on zoloft that can share their personal story?
Lisa
I am trying it right now, I’m only on day 4 at 25 mgs. From day 1 I noticed it help calm me down but nothing so far as far as the dizzies. I am also on propranolol (3 weeks) so that could be helping too, it’s supposed to have anti-anxiety properties as well. Doc told me to be patient, which is something I’m runnung out of. I am supposed to up it 50mgs Monday. I’ll keep tou posted.
Tammy
I was on Zoloft for about 6 weeks recently. It gave me insomnia, no appetite and anxiety (which I did not have prior to starting it). These side effects did not go away after 6 weeks & I wasn’t noticing any improvement in my dizziness or depression so I discontinued it. I was at 25 mg & never went higher because of the side effects. Also, my neurologist did not recommend this for MAV. He was against me trying it. My family dr thought it was worth a shot & because I was feeling so depressed, I tried it. It took a good 2 weeks of being off it to get back to baseline. So again, what works for one won’t necessarily work for another. I was really hoping this would be the answer for me.
10 days on Zoloft and I knew it was not for me. It gave me tremors going down my spine. It has been 5 weeks since I went off and I am still getting the tremors but much less often. Also, my anxiety and visual symptom increased and stayed there.
But we have to remember that others may find success with it.
Sally