Hello I recently found out that I was pregnant (probably about 4-5 weeks) and I have severe anxiety issues and have been on medication for it for over 10 years (xanax 2mg daily). The thought of not having it scares me to death. I tried not taking it for a couple days last week and went crazy at work and had to leave! I need to know if I continue with this pregnancy will I be able to stay on my medication?

You really need to speak with the doctor that prescribed you these medications. And you need to do it now.

smoothy is right -- your doctor needs to reevaluate the meds and maybe even move you to a different prescription that will be as helpful to you and won't hurt the developing baby.

Xanax is labeled Class D (A, B, C, D, X) by the FDA, meaning not recommended.
Since it is illegal to do studies of pregnant women by deliberately giving them drugs, the FDA goes by what they know from the chemicals themselves and animal studies.
You will find many, many pregnancy chat sites discussing Xanax while pregnant.

(I hope you talk to your doctor about trying to wean yourself off 2mg routinely, such as 1 mg one day and to the next, or getting .5's to take some days such as when not at work... the drug is very habit forming, and going crazy when you went off it might be the drug dependence speaking as much as your anxiety, or more so, I'd hazard a guess.)

Agree, I find it hard to believe a doctor would leave you on it for that many years, You need to find other treatments and methods for this. Even if not pregnant, taking it for so long, is not good at all. For you

When I was researching this I saw pages and pages and PAGES of pregnant women on Xanex, routinely, for YEARS, all claiming that they absolutely can't stop taking it! Of course not - they've been on it for too long.
Some said 'I had 2 kids and they are fine' and some said 'my doctor told me my baby might go through a tiny withdrawal' and 'my anxiety would be worse for the baby than the drug is' on and on. Gee. I wonder just how many are taking it.. and what REAL long term effects might be.

When I was researching this I saw pages and pages and PAGES of pregnant women on Xanex, routinely, for YEARS, all claiming that they absolutely can't stop taking it! Of course not - they've been on it for too long.
Some said 'I had 2 kids and they are fine' and some said 'my doctor told me my baby might go through a tiny withdrawal' and on and on. Gee. I wonder just how many are taking it.. and what REAL long term effects might be.

I bet it has to do with the high incidence of learning disabilities we see today.

Xanax is known to cause congenital malformations (birth defects) in the fetus. There is also a high incidence of withdrawal symptoms after birth.

However, the doctor must outweigh the benefits versus the risks when deciding whether to continue prescribing benzodiazepines,

Thank you "Smoothly" for stressing me out even more "You need to do it now." doesn't really help someone with severe anxiety attacks and ulcers. I thought this was an ask a nurse type of thing, but its obviously not judging from the ignorant responses.. I am a 33 year old professional not some adolescent with a drug problem. My Psychiatrist knows the horrible things I've been through as a child up until adulthood. This would be my first child and all I want is for it and myself to be happy and healthy.

Thank you "Smoothly" for stressing me out even more "You need to do it now." doesnt really help someone with severe anxiety attacks and ulcers. I thought this was an ask a nurse type of thing, but its obviously not judging from the ignorant responses.. I am a 33 year old professional not some adolescent with a drug problem. My Psychiatrist knows the horrible things ive been through as a child up until adulthood. This would be my first child and all I want is for it and myself to be happy and healthy.

Wow.. dial back that attitude a few miles...

What I stated was fact... and the reasons for it were backed up by J_9 who is an actual Registered Nurse.

Thank you "Smoothly" for stressing me out even more "You need to do it now." doesnt really help someone with severe anxiety attacks and ulcers. I thought this was an ask a nurse type of thing, but its obviously not judging from the ignorant responses.. I am a 33 year old professional not some adolescent with a drug problem. My Psychiatrist knows the horrible things ive been through as a child up until adulthood. This would be my first child and all I want is for it and myself to be happy and healthy.

Wow, that was nice. Smoothy said nothing wrong here and everyone else agreed with what he said but you chose to single him out for some reason.

So anyway, yeah, you need to talk to your doctor about this right away and get it taken care of.

Now that you have reacted this way (and it sounds like you just took the first response to criticize, even though we all said the same thing), I am going to ask the obvious: why would you get pregnant first and worry about a serious drug you take second? And if all you want is for the baby and yourself to be happy and healthy, why retaliate against the truth as presented here, either through research or first hand knowledge? If you had wanted it sugar coated, most of us wouldn't have answered.

We don't answer to suit what you want to hear. If you want someone to hold your hand and tell you it's going to be okay, talk to your friends and family. You came here asking for facts, which is what we all gave you. If you can't handle those facts, I wonder how you're going to handle this pregnancy, and then being a mom. Children aren't easy. If you can't handle an honest answer on a website, how will you handle raising a child?

This is what wikipedia says:

'Exposure to benzodiazepines during pregnancy has been associated with a slightly increased (from 0.06 to 0.07%) risk of cleft palate in newborns, a controversial conclusion as some studies find no association between benzodiazepines and cleft palate. Their use by expectant mothers shortly before the delivery may result in a floppy infant syndrome, with the newborns suffering from hypotonia, hypothermia, lethargy, and breathing and feeding difficulties.[11][100] Cases of neonatal withdrawal syndrome have been described in infants chronically exposed to benzodiazepines in utero. This syndrome may be hard to recognize, as it starts several days after delivery, for example, as late as 21 day for chlordiazepoxide. The symptoms include tremors, hypertonia, hyperreflexia, hyperactivity, and vomiting and may last for up to three to six months.[11][101] Tapering down the dose during pregnancy may lessen its severity. If used in pregnancy, those benzodiazepines with a better and longer safety record, such as diazepam or chlordiazepoxide, are recommended over potentially more harmful benzodiazepines, such as alprazolam or triazolam. Using the lowest effective dose for the shortest period minimizes the risks to the unborn child.'

Also, no scientific literature anywhere suggests that this class of drug be given for more than 2 - 4 weeks except for a few medical conditions, yet it is routinely prescribed for years. Withdrawal can take up to a year. I am going to GUESS that doctors keep prescribing it because they are begged to.

As for breastfeeding? Drugs.com says regarding Xanax specifically 'The manufacturer recommends that, as a general rule, nursing should not be undertaken by mothers who must use alprazolam [Xanax].'
Drugs.com also says 'Physicians are encouraged to register patients before fetal outcome is known (e.g. ultrasound, results of amniocentesis, etc) into the Antiepileptic Drug (AED) Pregnancy Registry at 1-888-233-2334 or 1-888-AED-AED4. This is an ongoing study at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School. This study is designed to monitor the outcomes of pregnant women exposed to antiepileptic drugs in order to determine which therapies are associated with increased risk.'

So that's something pro-active you can do, while discussing ways to hopefully cut down on your dosage.

Wiki is not a reliable source. I've witnessed the withdrawals and the birth defects firsthand.

It's not just cleft palate and lip, but there are also heart deformities, gastrointestinal issues as well as withdrawal symptoms. We keep our babies for anywhere from 24 hours to 2 weeks.

According to RxList.com, the top 10 list of drugs sold in the US in 2005:
Paxil
Lexapro
Hydrocodone
Xanax
Tramadol
Vicodin
Lyrica
Oxycodone
Lisinopril
Cymbalta

9 are either painkillers or for depression/anxiety.

Our 33 year old poster may not know (certainly doesn't remember) the Thalidomide disaster, which caused significant birth defects such as missing limbs. It was sold to pregnant women from 1957 to 1962 to alleviate morning sickness. Those babies are now all in their 50s. It was such a dramatic event that it prompted the classifications of drugs in use today.

According to RxList.com, the top 10 list of drugs sold in the US in 2005:
Paxil
Lexapro
Hydrocodone
Xanax
Tramadol
Vicodin
Lyrica
Oxycodone
Lisinopril
Cymbalta

9 are either painkillers or for depression/anxiety.

Our 33 year old poster may not know (certainly doesn't remember) the Thalidomide disaster, which caused significant birth defects such as missing limbs. It was sold to pregnant women from 1957 to 1962 to alleviate morning sickness. Those babies are now all in their 50s. It was such a dramatic event that it prompted the classifications of drugs in use today.

Now that I will agree with 100%!

Lisinopril is a medication used for hypertension, high blood pressure. So that would be the only one out of ten that is not used for pain or anxiety.

Yes J_9 you have seen this first hand, but what wikipedia is saying is that controlled studies are lacking for Xanax. Other sites bear this out. The studies that have been done are on the benzodiazepines as a whole, when they need to be done on the individual drugs within that group.

The only thing I am disagreeing with you on is the use of wiki. In medicine wiki is not to be considered a reliable source at all. Rather than using wiki, we need to be using scholarly articles and breaking it down so that we can help the OP understand what they are saying.

In my years of schooling in medicine, albeit nursing, we were told that if we used wiki for a paper, it was an automatic fail.

controlled studies are lacking for Xanax
And what ethical researcher will do a controlled study with pregnant women taking Xanax?

controlled studies are lacking for Xanax
And what ethical researcher will do a controlled study with pregnant women taking Xanax?

Thank you!

I mentioned the ethics in my first response.
Harvard Medical School is doing a study from vast numbers of REPORTS as most such studies are done. Huge numbers make up for the controls, in theory.
DID YOU NOTICE?