Do you think that heavy drug use during pregnancy disrupts the bonding between mother and baby?

Question

As foster parents, many of our children have been exposed to heavy drug use before birth, and there seems to be a large proportion of these children who experience little to no bond with their natural parents, even their mothers. We currently have 2 children in our care who flat out refuse to even look at their biological mothers on visits, and it got me wondering about this situation and past children we have fostered. We also experience the same situation with our son who was adopted from foster care.

Is there any research or links into this topic?

Answer 1

yes i do

Answer 2

Maybe they just resent being neglected by a drug addict.  

I really don't understand why the state allows visits with active drug users.

That's abuse in itself.

Answer 3

Of course!

Answer 4

My son was born meth addicted, although the doctor said the use was minimal.  His 1st mom held him in the hospital, and would get so frustrated if he cried.  After 11 days, she came to the house to visit him, and he would scream when she held him.  She was immediately quiet when I held him.  I'd never heard of anyone else having this problem, and it sounds like there needs to be research on it.  Also, do you know the types of drugs your kids were exposed to?

Answer 5

I don't think so. Look at how many children that have been abused by their parents and still have a deep seeded love for them.

Answer 6

I think the first poster made some good points.  Where drugs can definitely be a factor I believe there is a lot more to it...there could have been neglect or prior abuse.

Answer 7

While it is possible for the physical factors during pregnancy to play a part in development - mentally and physically, I doubt that this is the main issue with the bonding process.  As a foster parent you must know that there is limited exposure to the natural parent and that even your extended family or friends have more contact with the children than the parent.    Also, as a foster parent - it is up to you to keep the "vibes" to a low hum and certianly any verbal comments - even around a small baby.   The children may end up back with the parent one day and the last thing you'd need or want is to create any issues for the child that don't exsist already.  I respect and appreciate what you are doing and there can never be enough good people in this world to provide a loving home for children.  I am a foster grandparent and have learned the hard way that children pick up on things - even the best kept secrets and you never know how they will process or retain information.   May God bless you and all that you do.

Answer 8

I can speak from experience on this topic.  No...drug use during pregnancy won't *necessarily* interfere with bonding.  My mother refuses to divulge what all she took during her pregnancy with my older sister, and I'm highly doubtful that she toned down her ways in the less than two years between my sister's birth and mine.  I have quite a few mild symptoms of FASD.  I've actually lived my whole life until about 2 years ago thinking I had ADHD, but with some unexplained symptoms.  Now it all makes sense.  

At any rate, I was very bonded to my parents, both of them.  (It's a very UNHEALTHY bond, to be sure, but that bond is there...dammit.)  As a matter of fact, I'm not even angry with my mother for doing drugs while she was pregnant.  She honestly didn't know it would hurt us, she had no intention of hurting us (she probably wasn't really thinking about it anyway, but even if she was, she couldn't have known the extent of the damage), and she was too young at that point to be thinking of abstract concepts like "the future" or her childrens' brains.

What I'm angry with my mom for is not realizing (EVER) what she did, not admitting to it when faced with facts, and for being abusive, controlling, and an all-around general bad mother.  The drugs and alcohol...eh, she was young.  People make mistakes.  It's ok, really.  But she could have at least had the decency to admit she screwed up and tried to make it right.