Women who are addicted to prescription medications take their addiction to a whole new level of harm when they become pregnant during their addiction. According to nurses, the babies who were addicted to drugs were generally born addicted to crack, heroin, or crystal meth due to their mothers’ untreated addiction during prenatal development. Nurses report now that more than half of the babies they treat for addiction are suffering from prescription drug addiction, addicted to everything from methadone to OxyContin to Percocet and Vicodin.

White House Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske recently toured a pediatric care unit facility in order to get a firsthand look at the effects of a mother’s prescription drug addiction on the babies born addicted.

Said Kerlikowske: “The most important part, I think, is the education and the awareness. Young people don’t perceive prescription drugs as dangerous. People don’t remember or think about what is in their medicine cabinets.”

One of the problems is that many mothers who become pregnant while living with an active addiction aren’t expecting to get pregnant and therefore are not prepared. Once they are pregnant, attempting to undergo an abrupt prescription drug detox will mostly likely mean a miscarriage, and many don’t want to take that risk, preferring to wait until their baby is born to begin the process of detox.

Another problem is that many doctors don’t necessarily recognize the signs of prescription drug addiction among the mothers they treat. Women who are physically dependent upon a prescription painkiller or an anti-anxiety medication may not realize that their dependence will hurt their child – and they may not report their use of the drug to their OB out of fear that the doctor will make them stop taking the drug.

Treatment of babies born addicted to prescription drugs becomes the priority in the face of unexpected pregnancies and the increasing rate of prescription drug addiction among the population. Even if the mother cannot or will not decrease her dose during the pregnancy, it’s important to report the drug usage as early as possible so that the baby can be monitored throughout the pregnancy and preparations can be made in advance for the baby’s care after birth. Every baby will react differently depending upon the dosage of the mother’s addiction and other factors, but it’s important to plan for the worst case scenario – in some cases, newborns will spend the first couple months of their lives in the NICU as they heal.

If you are struggling with prescription drug addiction,  contact us today at The Canyon. We can help you make the changes necessary to live a healthy life.

Tags: babies born addicted, baby prescription drug addiction, Prescription Drug Addiction, prescription painkiller addiction

   

About Valeria W.

       

Valeria W. likes to consider herself "an encyclopedia" of addiction and rehab knowledge. Valeria lives to hear from people who have been positively influenced by her work - and sought out drug or alcohol rehab help as a result of the information she has provided.

Also written by: Valeria W.