Paxil Delivered Death Certificate

Whitby, ONDue to a bad car accident in 1998 that led to depression and anxiety, Lisa Goring was prescribed Paxil. She became pregnant in 2001 and her doctor said it was safe to stay on this SSRI. Most doctors today know otherwise.

"It wasn't until I went for an ultrasound, when I was five months pregnant, that I knew everything had gone wrong," says Goring. "After the ultrasound, I first thought I was just going to have a sick baby but he would be fine. All I was told was that his brain had developed but he had lots of blood flow to the brain. I was also told to come back the next day with my husband.

When I returned the next day, I found out that my son didn't have a heartbeat and they were going to induce my labor. I think the doctor didn't tell me that first day because I had my son with me - not my husband.

I delivered Jake October 31, 2001. I went into a deep depression, much worse than I ever was. I never did hear back from my doctor. I don't blame him though - they weren't told about the side effects of SSRIs either.

About one year later when I was pregnant with my daughter, I went to the same office for an ultrasound and at that time I found out that my treating doctor - the specialist in charge of reading Jake's ultrasound - had passed away. (I had a son before Jake and a daughter after. I was not taking Paxil during either time I was pregnant with them and they are both healthy.) Another specialist took over and she told me the results from Jake's ultrasound. I remember her telling me that he had club feet and something about blood to his brain but I didn't want to hear it at that time. And she didn't mention any causes.

About one month ago, I was talking to some friends that knew I was on Paxil during my pregnancy. They told me about the lawsuits against the makers of Paxil - the dangers of Paxil and pregnancy. I had mixed feelings: I was shocked when I went online and saw how many people were affected; how many babies had birth defects, and some had died. On the one hand I felt relieved, knowing I am not alone and there is a reason for his death. On the other hand, Jake's death could have been prevented.

I went through guilt for months. It was hard to cope but I had strong support through friends and family. And the hospital offered support (I spoke to other women with similar circumstances - losing a child, going through the same emotions). I was on 20 mg of Paxil during my pregnancy and afterward I was so depressed that my doctor doubled the dose. I didn't get a chance to go through a proper grieving process due to Paxil - it was a double whammy.

To the makers of Paxil, I want to say this: do more testing and be certain there are no side effects before putting drugs out to the public. I think the drug makers are negligent; I would like to see it mandatory that proper testing is done before medications are marketed so nobody else has to suffer. Losing my son was devastating.

Every October 31, I bring out his little urn with his ashes and some other things -a little hat, a bible and his baptismal papers. And his death certificate.