Pregnancy, breastfeeding and fertility while taking aripiprazole - Brand name: Abilify

Aripiprazole and pregnancy

There's no good evidence that taking aripiprazole in early pregnancy will affect your baby.

Taking it in the weeks before birth may sometimes cause withdrawal symptoms in the newborn baby. However, these symptoms do not last long. Your baby will be checked after they're born and given extra care if needed.

It's important that mental health conditions are well treated since these can affect both your and your baby's wellbeing. Good treatment is important because symptoms of a mental health condition sometimes get worse during pregnancy or after your baby is born.

Speak to your doctor if you become pregnant. They'll help you decide on the best treatment for you and your baby.

Aripiprazole and breastfeeding

If your doctor or health visitor says your baby is healthy, you can take aripiprazole while breastfeeding.

It's important to keep taking aripiprazole to keep you well. Breastfeeding will also benefit both you and your baby.

There's not much information about taking aripiprazole while breastfeeding, but the information shows that it passes into breast milk in small amounts. It has not been known to cause any side effects in breastfed babies. However, it may reduce the amount of milk you produce.

Your doctor will advise you whether other medicines might be more suitable.

If you notice that your baby is not feeding as well as usual, seems unusually sleepy, seems irritable, is having sudden or jerky movements, or if you have any other concerns about your baby, talk to your health visitor, midwife, pharmacist or doctor as soon as possible.

Aripiprazole and fertility

There's no evidence that taking aripiprazole will reduce fertility in either men or women.

For more information about how aripiprazole can affect you and your baby in pregnancy, visit the Best Use of Medicines in Pregnancy (BUMPS) website.