Psychiatrist Weighs In on Kelly Osbourne's Pregnancy Medication Decision

Kelly Osbourne has opened up about her decision to remain on her medication instead of breastfeeding, despite criticism from mom-shamers.

The reality TV star, who is expecting her first child with Slipknot's Sid Wilson, discussed her pregnancy during an appearance on Red Table Talk this week.

"I have chosen to stay on my medication instead of breastfeeding and the judgment that I have received from my friends and also extended family [is wild]," the former Fashion Police star said, without specifying the kind of medication.

"It has to be what's best for me, what's gonna be the best for my baby," Osbourne said.

"What kind of mother am I going to be if I start going backwards, if I start being self-destructive?" she said.

Osbourne has had well-documented struggles with addition. She opened up about her Vicodin addiction in her book "Fierce" in 2009, writing: "I was trying to be strong so I took Vicodin to hide the terrible sadness.

"But by this point, I was waking up and emptying six Vicodin into my hand. Soon I was taking 50 pills a day. Most people would overdose on 10," she was quoted as saying by the Mirror.

The daughter of Ozzy Osbourne also revealed that she was once committed to a mental institution, writing in her 2017 memoir: "Mum once locked me in a mental institution for three days, and it scared the hell out of me," according to People.

In 2021, Osbourne revealed she relapsed with alcohol during COVID lockdown after nearly four years of sobriety.

Dr. Carole Lieberman, a board-certified psychiatrist, discussed this situation and said that when a person chooses to continue to take psychiatric medications during pregnancy, a psychiatrist has to weigh the benefits versus the potential risk of each medication.

"If a patient is very depressed, for example, and might hurt themselves or their fetus, on purpose or inadvertently, then it is best for them to take an anti-depressant that has the least side effects during pregnancy," Lieberman told Newsweek.

"But, if a patient has anxiety, it is better not to take an anti-anxiety medication because of side effects and because they are addicting. Psychotherapy is best to reduce anxiety and mild depression, and to help the woman become more prepared to be a mom."

Osbourne, 37, also recently revealed that she has been diagnosed with gestational diabetes in her third trimester

"At first I thought it was something that I had done. I only got diagnosed with it well into my third trimester, so it wasn't like I developed it as some people get it from the get-go when they're pregnant," she told People. "I got it in my third trimester and basically, I thought it was something that I had done wrong."

"This whole pregnancy, I've had no cravings except for sugar, which is something I've never had before," she explained. "I wasn't eating right."

"The number one thing for me that I realized was taking me down was sugary drinks and it was juice. Because even though I was drinking fresh pressed juice, it still had a lot more sugar than I needed."

Osbourne and Wilson announced in May that their first child is on the way.

"I know that I have been very quiet these past few months so I thought I would share with you all as to why," Osbourne told her Instagram followers at the time. "I am over the moon to announce that I am going to be a Mumma."