Bipolar Disorder & Conception...

I am bipolar and my husband and I also want to start trying to have a baby soon.  I talked to my psychatrist and he said that I would have to come off all my psych meds a couple of months before we started to try.  I am taking Lamictal 100mg twice a day and Geodon 50mg once a day.  I asked him what would happen if I had an episode while I was pregnant and he said that the only medicine that he could give me then would be, I think, Haldol.  I am very scared to get pregnant for that reason.  But I have also heard that when some women that are bipolar are pregnant, that there hormones sort of balance everything out.  I guess it will be different with everyone.  Good luck to you.  I am sorry I couldn't be more help.   Amanda

I was in your situation was I was 33, 22 years ago.  I stopped taking meds.  I was married.  I prayed a lot.  I took vaginal temperatures and charted them for 4 months to predict ovulation.  I got pregnant on my first try.  I was absolutely fine during the pregnancy.  I was absolutely fine during the year I nursed.  Then mood swings set in again.  I have had a life of mood swings before and after, but those two years were symptom free and very happy.  I had a home and a baby.  Then the problems in my marriage came to the fore again.  When my son was 6 we separated and I had to enter 5 years of litigation to keep him.  I underwent 3 psychiatric tests.  Strong moral underpinning kept me going as my 'boat' nearly capsized many a time.  During the 8 years alone I prayed a lot.  My prayers changed from demands to asking Gd to stand by me and guide my thoughts words and deeds, to turn me into the kind of woman who could attract the kind of man I wanted to be with.  Now I am very happily married for 5 years.  My son is doing well.  Getting well and staying well is a 3 legged stool for me; family dynamics, therapy and medications.  Throw in taking good care of yourself in sleep, stress, diet and exercise.  Stay around good people.  Save yourself first, not the world.  From there you can help others too.  Hope this helps.

Hi I am trying to plan to conceive as well (hopefully we can try in September). I was wondering if I could receive an update on your situation.  For about 6 months the doctors have been weaning me off of my meds (200 mg Lamictal, 100 mg Seroquel, and 30 mg of Cymbalta).  Believe me the best thing to do is to get off the medication responsibily, if possible. Through all the research and counseling I have done this is the Best #1 situation.  I too am scared and in fact I believe I am currently going through a mini episode for I am only taking 25 mg of the seroquel.  But I am trying to remain calm, remove myself from the stressor and keep entertained but with limits set.  I have learned that keeping busy isn't interpret by my mind as a small project. rather I seem to submerge myself into so many project that I find my self lost, lazy, or worse manic towards the end. 

If you are to do this all I can say is Keep Calm, Bring Peace into yourself, and think that if something goes wrong there is halp out there to make it RIGHT.  

your doctor is mistakin abou the all the way off the drug thing and you should find a new doctor. My husband has bi-polar and i am a theripist. We took a lot of steps to get him down to 250 mg of Depekote once daily. Prayer, meditation, alot of support and talking about the reality of feelings and stress are key. I had to take Clomid to get pregant. and since our son was born 2 years ago. My husband is about to step down his meds again. So there is hope and alternative to medication.