Substance Use Problem

The following news articles illustrate the hardship of maternal substance abuse. Rachel Lowe, 29 weeks pregnant, went to the hospital with her husband and son to seek help for her addiction to OxyContin. However, medical staff reported her substance abuse to the authorities and she was punished under the Wisconsin's "cocaine mom" law. The law states pregnant

Substance abuse during pregnancy can have a negative force on the health and wellness of not only the fetus, but that of the mother. The harmful effects of medications, alcohol and illegal drugs on an unborn child can be devastating and can have significant consequences to its use. Sometimes the effects can be faced and treated, and other times the outcome is a lifelong challenge. During the prenatal period, it is important that new mothers are informed of the different types of abuse, how they may affect the fetus, and the adverse conditions their child may be faced with before and after birth.

It is my opinion that punishing these women for addictive behavior is not the answer, especially when considering the severe overcrowding of the prison system nationwide and the strain on the economy already caused by this. My own view is that addiction not a crime, but is a disease and needs to be treated as such. These women don’t become pregnant and then become addicts, but they are addicts who become pregnant. The American Public Health Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the March of Dimes and the American Medical Association, -- are all against punishing addicted pregnant women. Treating addicted, pregnant women and their babies can create many complicated issues, both legally and ethically. In states where reporting the drug use of the pregnant woman is mandated, many are concerned about the significant negative outcome that might be

Through the years, substance misuse in the United States has turned into an industrious issue influencing numerous people. In 2008, it was assessed that 17.8 million Americans beyond 18 years old where substance subordinate. Women who use medications during pregnancy can have an enduring impact on fetal. Medications can have an impact of maternal and child wellbeing, yet there are a lot of different variables, which influence it, poor social environment, nourishment, cleanliness, and sexual abuse. Regenerative interruption connected with heroin utilization has been shown in both and women and even low dosages of opiates can impede ordinary ovarian capacity and ovulation. The harm that goes hand in hand with substance utilization comes either straightforwardly from the impact of the medication itself or from issues identified with development and/or unexpected labor. The entanglements of jumbling components clamorous way of life, poor nourishment, liquor utilization and cigarette smoking influence the appraisal of the impacts of cocaine in pregnancy. In obstetric practice, 100% of pregnant women utilizing cocaine or heroin are cigarette smokers. Cigarette smoking is presumably the most well known manifestation of substance utilizes and is noteworthy corresponding considering ladies who use unlawful medications. Babies whose moms smoked in pregnancy have a tendency to have lower conception weights and diminished length, cranial and thoracic

When a woman uses heroin while pregnant, her baby is at risk for many challenging effects that will ultimately follow him or her as they grow into an adult. As heroin enters a mother’s system, the drug crosses into the child through the placenta (“Heroin Addiction”, n.d.). While a baby is in utero, a mother’s substance abuse can cause a fetus to grow at a slower rate, lead to the rupturing of the membranes surrounding the baby that results in premature labor, and cause a possible stillbirth, which means the fetus dies in the womb (“An Overview of Heroin”, n.d.). Substance abuse can also cause the placenta to separate from the uterine wall leading to dangerous heavy bleeding, which is a threat to both mother and child (“Heroin and Pregnancy,” 2015). Along with possible placenta abruption, the use of heroin can lead to the intrauterine passage of meconium (“Opioid Abuse,” 2012). After labor and delivery, the effects

Drug-addicted women are the stakeholders in this dilemma. Drug-addicted or former drug-addicted women are being pressured into thinking that controlling their fertility is the only way in which to not be considered a horrible person or bad mothers. No one should be allowed to try to persuade women to give up their reproductive rights. Just because some women choose to use drugs or alcohol does not mean that they are not responsible enough to make proper health or parenting decisions on their own, they especially do not need monetary incentives to make sound decisions. “Evidence suggests that women who use drugs do not need to be paid to limit or end their fertility” (Olsen, 2014). Preferably, programs should try to minimize the barriers that these women have to face in order to obtain information. Organizations should be non-discriminating and non judgmental towards women’s reproductive health.

While both Methadone and Suboxone Treatment have both proven to be very successful in helping the admitted opiate addicts achieve recovery, having the option of Methadone treatment available to the addicted pregnant Mothers, gives them the choice to bring a healthy baby into this world. It is a choice that is only safe with Methadone treatment and not with Suboxne. This is a choice addicted woman did not have before Methadone, and will not have again, should they remove Methadone from the market. And although the community thinks having the clinics brings crime into the neighborhood, they need to consider that every day when the 600

The National Health Institute (NIH) explains that addictive drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine, barbiturates, diazepam, and opiates consumed during pregnancy pass from mother to the fetus by crossing the placenta. This causes the baby to become addicted to these drugs along with the mother. Once born, the newborn no longer receives these drugs which then results in NAS (“Neonatal abstinence syndrome”, 2012a).

In the United States, we have a culture that accepts the use of some substances over others, regardless of the negative affects of the “acceptable” drugs. For instance, it is socially acceptable to drink alcohol, eat sugar, and, while no longer as in vogue, smoke cigarettes. From a public health standpoint, these substances are also dangerous and can have debilitating affects on both children and adults. What is more, while narcotics use during pregnancy can lead to NAS at birth, there has been no conclusive evidence of lasting negative effects across the lifespan (Goldensohn & Levy, 2014; Miller, 2015). However, the use of other substances, such as alcohol, can be devastating and carry much more risk, leading some reporters to believe that the law has more to do with the people using these substances than the substances themselves (Todd, 2014). In any case, the punishment of mothers who suffer from addiction when they should be receiving support and treatment is a large moral failing on the part of policymakers. Arguments around whether the woman should be held responsible for her addiction overlook possible systemic barriers that led to her substance use as well as the fact that drug addiction is a treatable illness (Todd, 2014). In creating and invoking this law, policymakers are essentially turning their backs on some of the most vulnerable people in our society, expectant mothers, and using their resulting arrests as evidence of corrupt principles, deserving of punishment and

In today’s society people are talking about babies being born to drugs, and how could a mother do that to their unborn child. Drug addiction is a very serious issue that needs more research. We are still learning the effects of substance abuse. One problem that needs to be looked at is are there enough Rehabilitation Centers, to help the women who are addicted to these different street drugs. Also doctor and nurses should not judge these women but instead give them the best prenatal care that can be provided. We need to see what harm and side affects it has on the mother and baby, so that we can be able to understand better how to treat these women and get them off drugs before they do harm their babies.

The rationality of those who support the punishment of addicted mothers focus on the idea that maternal conduct could lead to potential detrimental effects upon the fetus and that prosecution of such behavior would serve as both retribution for the fetus and as a deterrent. Whereas those who advocate for the pregnant women view this rational as not only impermissible but also unconstitutional as in current legal standing the fetus has no rights that usurp those of the pregnant woman (Stone-Manista, 2009, pp.823-856). Advocates also suggests that the breadth of forces that lead to drug use in pregnant women have a prevalent cultural and social foundation that the proponents for deterrence and retribution ignore in favor of strict scrutiny. This conflict between women’s rights and fetal rights has caused a paradigm in the prosecution of pregnant drug users as the interpretation of criminal sanctions argues over the definition of ‘child’ as encompassing fetuses in the definition would then lay the foundation for punishment for a woman’s conduct during pregnancy (Stone-Magnets, 2009, pp.823-856). Though currently it is unconstitutional and legally impermissible to prosecute women with state child abuse statutes in regards to drug use during pregnancy; advocates of fetal rights continue to follow

I have worked in a maternity center for over 3.5 years now as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA). Through my experience I have witnessed first-hand the impact of maternal drugs, alcohol, and tobacco use during pregnancy has on newborns. It makes me wonder if certain interventions took place during a woman’s pregnancy, then maybe her likelihood of engaging in substance use would cease or decrease. I frequently concern myself with how these often new mothers will manage both their baby’s care as well as their own when they leave the hospital. Some women I care for come from homes where they have been abused, the father of the baby is not involved in their lives, or they lack any other form of social support.

Many women, including teens, abuse drugs while they are pregnant. This rate is especially high to those who are homeless, underprivileged, or live in a broken home. In order for drug abusers to even have a chance at beating their addiction they have to have support whether it’s family, friends, or boyfriend/spouse. They must also let the abuser now all the consequences to themselves and the unborn child. There are many consequences when using drugs during pregnancy such as miscarriage, health risks to baby, and health risks to the mother. And learning disabilities and brain damage to the fetus.

Maternal substance abuse accounts for problematic health concerns in infants, according Forray (2016), “5.9% of pregnant women use illicit drugs, with usage age ranging from 15-44 years of age” (p.3).  Types of illicit substances used during pregnancy consist of Cocaine, Marijuana, Methamphetamine, Heroin, and an array of other illicit substances.  …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. For my immersion experience I choose to focus on the population of women who uses illicit drugs during pregnancy.

If the parent had been drug free or “clean” for a certain amount of years, they would no longer be a hazard for their young children because drugs would not be their number one priority (Raising Children Network, 2014). At debate.org, people have stated that those who do drugs whilst pregnant should not be prosecuted. This is because they won’t have an understanding of what is actually happening to the baby when they take the drug. Rather than being prosecuted, they should be educated (Debate.org, 2014). Children who have grown up with parents who have an addiction have grown up without using drugs (Levinson, 2014). Survey result show that 50% of survey participants stated that drug addicts should be allowed because they have rights and it depends on the situation and how bad their addiction is. 25% said that the children should be taken away only if the parent is causing harm to their child. 50% of people said that the child won’t follow in the parents footsteps because they may not allow them to take the drugs. They also stated that seeing their parents go through withdrawals and addictions will help them to strive for a better life (shown in figure