should i just quit or is there to much risk for my 23 week pregnancy?

Question

i have been taking lortab 7.5 for a little over a year and my dr has never said anything about possible side effects, i just read about some and now i am scared. my ob is my regular dr too, since i have been taking them for so long will my baby go through withdraws and will it hurt him or is that the safest way to quit, or should i just taper down to once a day for a while?? i really dont want to take the risk of hurting my baby. and please only serious answers thank you

Answer 1

I would definitely talk about it with your OB. If you have been taking them that long, I don't think you should quit cold turkey. That may actually do more harm than good. They may try to switch you to something less harmful to your baby like Tylenol 3. Honestly, though, many women have to take pain relievers during their pregnancy and everything turns out fine. As long as you aren't abusing them you and your baby should be fine. Of course many ppl will say on here that you shouldn't be taking them, but it just depends on whether or not the benefits outweigh the risks. There will be risks with most presciptions you take during pregnancy, but if you are taking them only when necessary, everything should be fine. I know I am repeating myself, but I went through the same thing with Tylenol 3. My dr. prescribed them to me, but ppl on here made me feel awful about taking them. So far everything has been fine with my pregnancy and I am not anticipating any problems in the future. Good luck and don't worry. Talk to your doctor about it.

Answer 2

Here's what I found on Drugs.com

FDA pregnancy category C. This medication may be harmful to an unborn baby, and could cause addiction or withdrawal symptoms in a newborn. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Lortab can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not give this medicine to anyone younger than 18 years old. Older adults may be more sensitive to the effects of this medicine.

Also, I have asked my doctor about other medications I was taking when I found out I was pregnant and he suggested that because there is not enough research on my medication I should just caution on the safe side and not take it at all, especially if it wasn't life threatening that I don't take it.

As far as withdraws for the baby..i have not a clue on the issue and I know it's been said before but possibly talk to your physician about the safest way to quit. If they don't have an answer my gut tells me that a gradual decrease would limit symptoms of withdrawal if there were any at all. In the end, if there are side effects of this medication on the baby, it could not hurt the baby any more to reduce the amount you're taking.

Answer 3

Well if this is what your Dr has been wanting you to take and knows you are pregnant then they can't be too worried so it must be ok. If there was a problem then the Dr would have taken you off the pills long by now. I wouldn't worry unless you really feel it might do something, then give your Dr a call about it and see what they think. Tell him/her about the info you found and let them know your concerns. That would be the best thing to do for you and your baby. Good luck.

Answer 4

If your doctor is aware of you taking medication and he is the one who prescribed it for you I wouldn't be too concerned. Don't read to much into stuff you find on the internet. Express your concerns with your doctor. Don't stop taking your medicine without his advice. I don't know what type of medicine it is but the risks to you and your baby may not outweigh the benifits of taking the medication.

For example, I have to take a lot of asthma medicine. At first I was concerned about taking it while pregnant but then I was assured that the benifits outweighed the risks. They told me that by me having asthma-I get less oxygen and so does the baby. I also take high blood pressure medicine. They said that left untreated, the blood flow to the placenta would be very low and my baby wouldn't get the nutrients and oxygen from my blood that it needs to survive.

I hope this was helpful.

Answer 5

You should ask your doctor about this. I'm a retired nurse and I don't know the answer to this one. You can always call and ask a question. The doctor will either call you back or have an assistant call you with the answer. Congratulations and good luck!

Answer 6

Your regular dr. is your ob dr. too? Is he the one giving you the lortab? if so, he needs his license yanked. If you're getting them somewhere else, please tell your ob dr. It's important for you and your baby. Talk to him about quitting NOW!

Answer 7

if you don't need to take the lortab for pain, then by all means get help with your weaning. these types of pain killers are not addictive with short term use, but are addictive with long term use. you may need some help with getting off this med. please talk to someone experienced with addiction!

good luck.

Answer 8

I think this is a question better left answered by your doctor, but congrats on your pregnancy, good luck and God bless.

Answer 9

you should ask a doctor, not us!!!!!