DENVER (KDVR) — A new study suggests that antidepressants don’t always help with anxiety and depression in pregnant women and new moms, and doctors say these patients should be monitored more closely.

The new research is out of Northwestern University.

Dr. Patricia Westmoreland is the medical director of the Women’s Behavioral Health Unit for HealthONE in Aurora.

“Those medications may need to be adjusted or changed,” Westmoreland said.

She is not involved with the study but said women undergo dramatic hormonal changes and psychosocial changes during pregnancy.

“We shouldn’t be stopping medications in women who are pregnant or postpartum. We need to be monitoring them more carefully and adjusting the doses or changing the medications if needed because the women’s internal milieu has changed during that time,” she said. 

Westmoreland said no one needs to grin and bear it. Women experiencing depression can pump out more stress hormones and research shows it’s possible that could affect babies in utero.

“They may be more likely to have anxiety and depression themselves as they grow older,” she said.

If you are pregnant and have mental health concerns, Westmoreland says it’s important to talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits of taking medication.