By Beth Kiernan, MPH, Interviewer & Teratogen Information Specialist, MotherToBaby Kristin called MotherToBaby one afternoon saying, “I just took a home pregnancy test and it’s positive.” Kristin sounded beyond worried. “I’ve been taking a medication for ADHD since I was eight years old, and when I searched the internet it said it was harmful and that I should stop taking it before getting pregnant.” Kristin hadn’t planned on getting pregnant. Now, not only was she terrified she had hurt …
The Baby Blog: Mom's Health Conditions
Adoption: Sharing the Journey
“Sometimes I forget I am adopted,” exclaims my amazing son as he grabs his backpack to head off to college. I had just let him know that his birthday this year falls on National Adoption Day. “So cool! We will need to do something special this year on my birthday, to celebrate both my birthday and my adoption! See ya, mom!” To Shaun, adoption is as easy as one, two, three, and just a part of everyday life. As anyone who’s been through adoption knows, this is simply not the case much of the time. …
RhoGAM and Rh Negative Moms: A Life-Saving Match
Having worked as a Teratogen Information Specialist at MotherToBaby for close to 10 years, I have become well versed in the different exposures people commonly ask about. Allergy medications in the spring, sunscreen and bug spray in the summer, and cough and cold medications all winter long. So, when I logged onto our live chat service at mothertobaby.org on a Tuesday morning, I was surprised to see a question that doesn’t come up very often. Natalie, pregnant with her first child, asked: “I’m …
Individualized Mental Health Care is Essential in Pregnancy
Mental health conditions are real health issues that deserve appropriate and individualized medical care. Making informed healthcare decisions requires that women and their healthcare providers be aware of the available safety information for each specific medication they might be considering. We encourage pregnant women and those planning a pregnancy to have open conversations with their healthcare providers to carefully weigh any potential increased risks of medications, as well as the …
Can Moms Who Had a Transplant Breastfeed While Taking Tacrolimus?
By LauraAnne Hirschler, BS, OMS4 with help from Casey Rosen-Carole, MD, MPH, MSEd, FABM and Rogelio Perez-D’Gregorio, MD, MS As an infant, I received the gift of life in the form of a liver transplant. Growing up, I remember taking a multitude of medications that just became part of my daily life. As the years went on, my immune system became stronger, the transplant check-ups became farther and farther in between. As the years went by, I found myself taking an extremely low dose of one …
