This week, the FDA held an unbalanced and largely inaccurate panel discussion on SSRI use during pregnancy. Of the 10 presenters on the panel (three from outside the U.S.), only one represented the robust body of research demonstrating the safety and efficacy of taking SSRIs during the perinatal period. The remaining speakers —most with little to no experience treating pregnant or postpartum individuals with psychiatric conditions —spread harmful misinformation that threatens the health and well-being of mothers and birthing people struggling with mental illness.
Panelists claimed that SSRIs are ineffective, that depression resolves spontaneously, and that data supporting the safety and efficacy of SSRIs is driven by pharmaceutical manipulation. Alarmingly, some equated SSRI use during pregnancy with increased rates of fetal alcohol syndrome and dismissed perinatal depression as simply “women feeling emotions more intensely.” These statements are not only scientifically unfounded—they are dangerous.
Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs)—including depression, anxiety, OCD, PTSD, and psychosis—affect 20% of all pregnant and postpartum people, with over 40% of Black mothers impacted. Despite the pervasiveness of these often life-threatening conditions, 75% of cases go untreated due to stigma and shame. During the pandemic, PMAD rates surged, coinciding with rising maternal mortality. The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, and mental illness is the leading cause—despite these deaths being considered 100% preventable. As a perinatal mental health specialist with 20 years of experience, I’ve supported and treated thousands of women and birthing people with mild to severe PMADs. I’ve served on New York City and State maternal mortality review committees and have lived through perinatal depression myself. I know —both personally and professionally —that SSRIs can be life-changing and lifesaving.
The research is clear: The benefits of treating perinatal depression and anxiety with SSRIs far outweigh the risks to both mother and fetus. Untreated perinatal depression is linked to:
- Higher rates of preeclampsia, early labor, C-sections, and preterm birth
- Low birth weight and increased NICU admissions
- Health and mental health complications postpartum
- A significantly increased risk of suicide in pregnant individuals with depression
- Poor cognitive, developmental, and behavioral outcomes in children
- $14.2 billion in annual costs to the U.S. economy
We know what works. We know how to save lives.
We are at a pivotal moment. The 2024 Surgeon General’s report Parents Under Pressure highlighted how parental mental health affects children, families, and society at large. A recent JAMA study found maternal mental health in the U.S. has sharply declined between 2016 and 2023.
With the dismantling of Medicaid access and increasing reproductive health restrictions raising suicide risk among reproductive-aged women, we must expand—not restrict—evidence-based interventions like SSRIs. Now is the time to strengthen our commitment to maternal mental health—not threaten to take away the most effective, lifesaving tools we have.
Resources
To learn more about the risks and benefits of taking SSRIs and other medications during pregnancy, visit Mother to Baby. MotherToBaby, a service of the non-profit Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS), is the nation’s leading authority and most trusted source of evidence-based information on the benefit or risk of medications and other exposures during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. They specialize in answering questions about the benefit/risk of exposures, such as medications, vaccines, chemicals, herbal products, substances of abuse, maternal health conditions and much more, during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Their no-cost information service is available to women who are pregnant and/or breastfeeding, their family members, health professionals, and the general public via chat, text, phone, and email in both English and Spanish.
Join Behavioral Health News in partnership with the New York State Office of Mental Health for two virtual roundtable discussions on Maternal Mental Health and Stigma, taking place on November 13 and November 20, 2025, from 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM. Both sessions will be facilitated by Paige Bellenbaum, LCSW, PMH-C, a leading expert in perinatal mental health. If you’re interested in attending, please email dminot@mhnews.org to be added to the invitation list.
Paige Bellenbaum, LCSW, PMH-C, is a perinatal mental health specialist and Adjunct Professor at the Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College.
After struggling with severe postpartum depression and anxiety following the birth of her son, she became a passionate advocate for maternal mental health, using her own lived experience as a tool for change. She drafted legislation championed by New York State Senator Liz Krueger, requiring New York birthing hospitals to educate and screen for PMADs—a bill signed into law in 2014.
In 2017, she became the Founding Director and Chief External Relations Officer of The Motherhood Center, the first New York State Office of Mental Health Article-31 Perinatal Partial Hospital Program for mothers and birthing people experiencing moderate to severe perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. She continues to serve as the Education and Government Relations Consultant for the organization.
Paige works closely with New York City and State agencies on maternal mental health policy and best practice, including the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Administration for Children’s Services and serves on the New York State Office of Mental Health Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Advisory Council.
Paige is nationally recognized as a subject matter expert appearing on the Today Show, Good Morning America, NPR, PBS NewsHour, and in Fortune, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
To contact Paige, please email paigebellenbaum@gmail.com.
