Did you know that 1 in 20 babies born to mothers who take valproic acid (Depakote) have a birth defect? According to http://psychcentral.com/news/2009/12/05/fda-warns-pregnant-women-taking-depakote-depakene/9977.html, the FDA warns mothers on Depakote. I am one of those mothers. Scarey. I know about the risks, though I thought folic acid played a bigger role in preventing defects than this article suggests. I religiously take my folic acid but now I'm nervous. My doctors support my decision to continue my current treatment while trying to conceive. Olivia turned out just fine, but I don't know if I could forgive myself if she hadn't. Its true that taking the medicine is safer than taking nothing, but is it selfish of me to get pregnant in the first place? Should I bring an innocent human being into this world with the potential risk of increasing his/her chances of having some life-altering deformity that could result in pain and unhappiness? I admit I am not a religious person and sometimes I wish I was, mostly so that I would have someone to blame it on other than myself. Terrible, I know...
"The FDA has classified AEDs into two categories: Class C which is all the newer drugs, stating, that information is available in animals, and appears safe but no information available in humans: whereas, Category D is all the older drugs, and here we know the risks in animals and humans, both of which have shown malformations. The newer drugs seem safer, but we just do not have enough information yet to make a statement about them. " -- epilepsyfoundation.org; Even if I changed meds, there's no guarantee that will make any difference. I go back and forth, back and forth. Isn't creating a life better than not creating one at all? What happens if I find out early in the pregnancy that there is a problem? What decision will I be faced with then? Its tough, and I'm feeling scared today.
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