Baby Tremors Linked to Mother's Antidepressant

Beth Trickleback, a 24-year-old mother from Derbyshire, has shared her harrowing experience after her newborn son, Jack, displayed severe tremors shortly after birth. This occurred because Beth had been taking 200mg of Sertraline, a common antidepressant, throughout her pregnancy to manage grief following her mother's death in September 2021. Despite being informed by her doctor that discontinuing the medication posed a greater risk than continuing it, she experienced significant guilt upon witnessing her baby's distress.

Jack was born at home in July 2024 and immediately exhibited withdrawal symptoms from the Sertraline he received in utero. Although doctors confirmed the tremors were medication-related, they stated there was limited intervention possible. Beth was advised to breastfeed to pass small amounts of the drug to Jack, but this offered little relief. The tremors persisted for the first three weeks of Jack's life, causing Beth immense emotional turmoil.

Beth, who had not been fully informed about the potential for neonatal withdrawal symptoms, chose to share her story on TikTok, where the clip gained millions of views. She emphasizes the importance of doctors providing comprehensive information and obtaining informed consent from pregnant patients regarding medication risks. While Jack has since recovered fully with no apparent long-term effects, Beth is advocating for physicians to consider lower dosages of such medications in the lead-up to birth to mitigate these risks for newborns.