Paxil Through Whole Pregancy

Dear M.,
I would certainly talk to your daughter's pediatrician about your concerns. However, keep in mind that many, many children "have trouble concentrating" and it likely has nothing to do with the Paxil at all. Don't start beating yourself up or worrying that a medication you took did something to your child if she's just having trouble concentrating.
I don't mean to sound like I am making light of the situation, but I was critically ill throughout my pregnancy with my son. I was so sick, to be honest, that I wasn't even aware at the time of all the drugs they had me on just to keep me alive. My son was born full term and perfectly healthy in every way. He has no learning disabilities or hearing or sight problems. And I'm here, 14 years later to write about it.
Several years ago, my son began vomitting at night. It became apparent it wasn't the flu. It was acid reflux. His doctor gave him a medication and the vomitting stopped immediately. He still takes it from time to time, but not on a daily basis.
Imagine my horror when I saw a commercial on TV that said, "If you or anyone you know experienced x,y,z, problems after taking this medication, please contact the law offices of......"
At first I thought, Oh my God! What did I let them give my kid?
But, then I calmed down, and realized that he had not had one single side effect that they had mentioned. Not one. So as far as contacting a law office, it didn't pertain to us.
Absolutely anything has the potential for side effects. I'm allergic to the adhesive on band-aids as silly as that sounds.
If you have heard that Paxil has effects if taken during pregnancy, it doesn't automatically mean that your child has a problem related to the Paxil. Get her fully assessed by your pediatrician and work to help her with her concentration skills. There must be a million kids who don't concentrate well with moms who never took Paxil a day in their life.

I wish you the best.

There are lawsuits against the makers of Paxil going on right now for the effects that it has cause on children because their mother took it during pregnancy. Think about it, the drug effects your brain, your moods, etc., right??? It probably effects babies in the womb too.

I can't speak to whether any problem your daughter is having now could be related to Paxil, but please don't beat yourself up about having taken it during your pregnancy. You did the right thing by taking care of yourself and made good decisions based on the information available at the time. Perhaps the thing to do is to focus on helping your daughter improve her concentration and not on whether your medication contributed to her difficulties.

You sound like a wonderful, thoughtful mom and I wish you and your daughter all the best.

I just did a quick Google search about Paxil & pregnancy. A lot of pages were saying the risks were for major birth defects including problems with the heart. Sounds like your daughter didn't have any of those problems.

I would talk to her pediatrician about it. It may not be related to the Paxil at all!

get her eyes checked.

what kind of problems?

The only problem I have heard about Paxil through pregnancy is heart problems. I take Paxil and have recently had my 16 yo son put on it because he was having the same ADD/OCD/Depression problems I have always had. I think that the problems that we have that caused us to have to take Paxil are heretitary. Think back to when you were a child and see if you can remember having the same problems. You might find that she is more like you than you care to admit LOL