Melatonin & Pregnancy

[MildPCOS]

So I know the jury is going to be out on this one, but I'm looking for all opinions here so let's keep an open mind.

So since finding out I was pregnant I have been suffering from terrible insomnia. Literally will be up for hours and hours at night and maybe was getting 2-3 hours of light, fatigue induced sleep per night.

So I first tried to just let it run it's course and when that didn't work I tried pretty much everything else including all the standards of regular bedtimes, no TV or electronics, deep breathing, Unisom, Gravol, muscle relaxation, exercise, self guided hypnosis, acupuncture, Chinese herbs getting out of bed for 30 minutes, reading and on and on.

This went on for about 2 weeks, and I went and seen my doctor and explained what was going on. He prescribed me some kind of sleeping pill which I looked up and it is a Category C for pregnancy. He assured me it would be OK to use just for short term. I used it for a couple of nights and it semi worked and then stopped taking it because I didn't get a GREAT sleep on it and it left a HORRIBLE metallic taste in my mouth that would last for hours and hours after I woke up.

So I started reading about Melatonin, I have taken it prior to getting pregnant and always found it worked great, left no fuzzy feelings in the morning and generally speaking it is considered pretty safe... expect they will not tell any pregnant person that ANYTHING natural or homeopathic is safe - so herein lies the debate. I actually tried acupuncture first, and the doctor is a Chinese medicine doctor and she gave me some Chinese herbs to make into tea and told me - "if you Google these - it will say not to use why pregnant, but these have been used for centuries all over the world and I have been taking them my entire pregnancy - as needed (she was 8 months pregnant at the time). I guess it lies in your beliefs in traditional medicine vs. alternative medicines.

I read on several different forums that doctors, midwives and OBGYNS have told woman it is OK to use Melatonin in small doses on a needed bases while pregnant, which directly conflicts with others - perhaps its a matter of opinion that they cannot test accurately the 'effects' on a pregnant person or fetus. I have my first appt. on June 6, so I will be talking to my OBGYN about it to see what she thinks.

I bought 3mg Melatonin tabs and have taken them the last 2 nights and while it's still not a perfect system, I do find the quality of sleep I have gotten to be much better and I am way less tired during the day.

So I find it hard to believe that Tylenol PM, Unisom, Gravol and even Rx sleeping pills are considered totally safe, but a low dose of Melatonin, a naturally occurring element in our bodies is going to cause harm, and believe me, if I could go days without sleep and still function, I would do just that, but I think the extreme mental and physical exhaustion of not sleeping properly for days on end, while having to get up and go to work for 9 hours is going to be much more of a detriment to myself and the baby.

Sorry about the novel - I had to fully communicate the situation and what I have already tried so I don't get a bunch of responses about how to manage the insomnia - believe me, taking anything was my absolute last option, but none of the things I tried even remotely worked (including Unisom - a safe sleeping aid for pregnant woman)

So question of the day.. what are others first hand experiences? Any similar situations out there?

 

[JAJuly2013]

This is what I found on the mayo clinic's website regarding melatonin. Which is surprising to me as well since it's already naturally occuring...

https://www.mayoclinic.com/health/melatonin/NS_patient-melatonin/DSECTION=safety

Pregnancy and Breastfeeding

"Melatonin supplementation should be avoided in women who are pregnant or attempting to become pregnant, based on possible hormonal effects. High levels of melatonin during pregnancy may increase the risk of developmental disorders. In animal studies, melatonin was detected in breast milk and therefore should be avoided during breastfeeding. In men, decreased sperm motility and decreased sperm count are reported with the use of melatonin. "

Here is the part about hormonal effects/changes:

"Hormonal effects have been reported, including decreases or increases in levels of luteinizing hormone, progesterone, estradiol, thyroid hormone (T4 and T3), growth hormone, prolactin, cortisol, oxytocin, and vasopressin. Gynecomastia (increased breast size) has been reported in men, as well as decreased sperm count (both which resolved with the cessation of melatonin). Decreased sperm motility and decreased libido have been reported in rats and humans. "

 

[MildPCOS]

Yeah I read that one, but it's not all that specific as it says high levels may result in... what do they consider a high level? I read one study where they were studying people taking 80mg of Melatonin (non pregnant) and that didn't have major side effects, and the ones that I picked up are 3mg and you take 1 per night.. then on the other hand when i look up the sleeping pill that the doctor rxed me there is all sorts of negative info about that too - so it's like a lose/lose situation lol. Hopefully it just runs its course soon as I never had insomnia issues prior to pregnancy

 

[JAJuly2013]

Yeah I read that one, but it's not all that specific as it says high levels may result in... what do they consider a high level? I read one study where they were studying people taking 80mg of Melatonin (non pregnant) and that didn't have major side effects, and the ones that I picked up are 3mg and you take 1 per night.. then on the other hand when i look up the sleeping pill that the doctor rxed me there is all sorts of negative info about that too - so it's like a lose/lose situation lol. Hopefully it just runs its course soon as I never had insomnia issues prior to pregnancy

Yeah I would think if it was in small doses it would be ok. It would be interesting to see how much was ok to take though.

 

[xturnitoutx]

I LOVE melatonin but, after doing a bit of research, i decided to give it up shortly after finding out i was pregnant.

That being said, I'm not sure what I would have done if I found myself in your situation. Have you talked to your acupuncturist or perhaps a naturopath or midwife about it?

Also, 3 mg is a fairly large dose, no? Prior to pregnancy, my acupuncturist - who recommended melatonin - said 5 mg MAX per day; and preferably half that dose or less.

SO sorry you're not able to sleep! Sounds miserable

 

[winkthehousee]

My Dr. suggested taking Benadryl for insomnia. It's class B

 

[MildPCOS]

I LOVE melatonin but, after doing a bit of research, i decided to give it up shortly after finding out i was pregnant.

That being said, I'm not sure what I would have done if I found myself in your situation. Have you talked to your acupuncturist or perhaps a naturopath or midwife about it?

Also, 3 mg is a fairly large dose, no? Prior to pregnancy, my acupuncturist - who recommended melatonin - said 5 mg MAX per day; and preferably half that dose or less.

SO sorry you're not able to sleep! Sounds miserable

Uhh so miserable haha - Well when I went to the drug store - they sold 3mg, 5mg and 10mg tabs. I figured 3 being the lowest dose sold was the best option.

The acupuncturist just gave me the treatment and the chinese herbs, both of which did not help. What happens is I usually can fall asleep after a period of time, but for no reason I will wake after maybe and hour or 2 and once I wake up I cannot get back to sleep no matter what I do, and I have tried everything! I have tried Benadryl (Unisom) and haven't found it to be effective, but that is at 50mg (1 tablet) maybe I should try 2 tablets and see if perhaps I just need a higher dose or something - at least it's 'safe' at a Category B! So crazy because while I have never been a super great sleeper (DH head hits the pillow and he's out in minutes, I'm more 20-30 minutes normally to fall asleep) I have never experienced something quite like this.

Everyone told me how tired I would be in my first trimester - so I am actually waiting for that urge and ability to sleep for hours and hours without even thinking about it!

 

[justhoping]

having had taken in one of my pregnancies told to me by my ob...the studies that are done are done with hugeeee doses, 3 mg is fine...i really dont thnk it is going to do anything it is such a low dose of it...my doc presribed me 10 at the time...

i would still stay with the min dose though...

go get sleep its not healthy to get no sleep either.....sometimes you also need to do the risks outway the benefits....and you getting no sleep and cracking or getting super sick is not an option either...

no judgment...people need sleep to survive....

ps i have also taken ambien for sleep i find the lowest dose of this works the best...and have taken that with pregnancy as well...

i think she gave you the other prescription sleeping pill as it has a habit of the yucky metal taiste in the mouth

 

[Bonnie11]

Wouldn't say that it's any worse for you than taking other sleeping tablets. The risk of taking them really is down to you to decide. I know it's miserable going without sleep, you will have enough of that when the baby is born!! X

 

[LeesaA]

Hi,

I am responding to the article posted regarding taking melatonin while being pregnant. I am assuming that the author has already had her baby??? I am wondering how everything worked out, as I am 3 months along, and have been taking melatonin. My doctor's office says its okay, but what I'm reading on-line scares me.

If you could give me any feedback, that would be great.

 

[LeesaA]

Yay,

Happy it was all a success! Please tell me, did you continue using melatonin. I am taking 3mg a night.

 

[Ericas]

I know this is an old post but just in case anyone in the future is looking for advice. Melatonin has a maximum effective dose for each person taking it. So start off taking 0.25 mg...yes a quarter of a mg. if you don't fall asleep try 0.5 mg the next night and so on. Most people do not need more than 1 mg a night. Also, don't jump up too much after one night. I know occasionally I take melatonin and I'm just too mentally distracted for it to work. Too much can actually have an adverse reaction to sleep. So I don't know the reaction to pregnancy but I truly cannot imagine a dose of 0.5 causing harm especially if it's only taken occasionally.