Women who have suffered from depression or anxiety face being quizzed by GPs about whether they plan to have babies.
New guidelines also instruct family doctors to inquire if they are using contraception.
Health watchdog NICE says women need to be warned they may suffer a relapse during pregnancy or after the birth, which may affect their ability to care for the newborn.
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Women who have suffered from depression or anxiety face being quizzed by GPs about whether they plan to have babies (file picture)
There is also very strong evidence that antidepressants raise the risk of miscarriage, premature births and foetal abnormalities.
Its guidelines do not suggest GPs should deter women with a history of depression or other mental health conditions from having babies.
But campaigners said it was ‘intrusive’ for doctors to even raise the topic during a routine appointment and make women think they weren’t ready for motherhood. Well over a quarter of women receive treatment for a mental health disorder during their lives, most commonly depression, anxiety and eating disorders.
They are twice as likely as men to be diagnosed, which may be partly due to their biology as well as the fact they are more inclined to admit it.
Roger Goss of Patient Concern said: ‘What’s it got to do with the GP? It’s intrusive. They should mind their own business. Depression is a very vague concept and I’m sure all of us have suffered from it to some degree. I wonder how they expect GPs to choose their targets.’
Marjorie Wallace, of the charity Sane, said: ‘It would be a shame if these guidelines alarm the majority of people who may have suffered some kind of anxiety and depression. They must not be deterred.’
Over the last few months NICE – which receives £60million of public money a year – has issued a spate of guidelines described as ‘nannying’.
Campaigners said it was 'intrusive' for doctors to even raise the topic during a routine appointment (file picture)
This latest one – aimed at GPs as well as counsellors and psychiatrists – states: ‘Discuss with all women of present and future childbearing potential who have a new, existing or past mental health problem the use of contraception and any plans for a pregnancy.’
It says any advice should be given in a ‘non-judgmental’ and ‘compassionate’ way.
Professor Mark Baker, director of the Centre for Clinical Practice at NICE, said: ‘It is really important that a woman is able to make an informed decision about her treatment and she is helped to weigh up the risks and benefits of stopping, starting or changing their drug treatment.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2693648/Ask-depressed-women-plan-baby-doctors-told-Watchdog-say-women-need-warned-relapse-pregnancy-birth.html#ixzz37qAvPO3M
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