Mary, I think you misunderstood my message regarding selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI's). I would not accuse any depressed patient of taking them as "happy drugs," although there have been non-depressed people who have taken them recreationally. My own father was given Zoloft, after disability 2ary to a stroke. This was against the will and consent of either of us. We demanded that it be stopped, and he did wonderfully on St. John's Wort, despite his doctor's dismissive and angry protests, for the time that my father needed it. St. John's Wort has been used widely and successfully in Europe for decades and is much safer and better known than SSRI's (despite recent drug company attempts to discredit an herb which they cannot make money on). Please see the book I referred to, "Talking Back to Prozac," an excellent, well-researched book on the problems with SSRI's. I would cite relevant points in it and the author's name, but I lent my copy to someone years ago and never got it back. And I caution against acceptance of proclamations of drug safety by drug companies on what has been a profitable line of products for them. More importantly, regarding breastfeeding with SSRI's, I am very happy that you and your baby are doing well and would not have it any other way. However, the mechanism of SSRI's and cocaine is similar (inhibition of reuptake of neurotransmitters at the synapse, leaving the neurotransmitter bathing the synapse in higher concentration and for a longer time). This is not a misconception. You can find it in the PDR. You can find it in pharmacology textbooks. This does not mean I am accusing you of using these drugs recreationally. What it does mean is that *if there are acceptable and effective and safer substitutes*, i.e., St. John's Wort, acupuncture, any other non-invasive modalities, that are less likely to interfere with the natural brain chemistry of an infant, by all means let's seek them out and have them as alternatives for nursing moms with these disorders. Please don't take my last post in an offensive way. I certainly did not mean it that way, and I know that you have the best of intentions for your child and others. Colleen Huber *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html