One in ten smoke in pregnancy

[SoTheMoon]

AIBU to be totally shocked by this?

I honestly thought it was much, much lower. Government target announced today is to get it down to 6%.

It just goes to show what a load of cobblers our society talks about motherhood. "Having a child is like having your heart walking around outside of your body..." Bullshit. People talk as though all mothers have a strong urge to protect their children, would move heaven and earth to do so, etc. In many cases, the opposite is true. Actions speak much louder than words. Some people smoke through pregnancy and are actuallymore worried about being "judged" than stillbirth or cot death.

One of my relatives keeps posting on Facebook about how outraged she is that Charlie Gard's parents have been "stripped of their parental rights", and how the law should recognise that any mother would do anything for her child. She herself smoked through her pregnancies and both of her children ended up in the NICU. Apparently the definition of the word "anything" changed and no one told me.

I don't think stigma stops people admitting it. If they are willing to smoke whist pregnant then they are usually brazen about it as see nothing wrong with it.

Those that see it is wrong I would imagine quit before TTC.

Funny place, your imagination, isn't it Rainbows? I never cease to be startled by the jarring disconnect between your username and the tone of your posts.

Wouldn't it be great if MN could actually help make a difference to that 10% statistic?

I'm assuming the OP of this thread is in response to yesterdays report from ASH. The conclusions were basically that HCP are very good at knowing the risks of smoking in PG but really bad at actually communicating with pregnant smokers or supporting them to quit.

Does that sound familiar at all?

"Having a child is like having your heart walking around outside of your body..." Bullshit. People talk as though all mothers have a strong urge to protect their children

What about those people who do smoke in pregnancy because they can't manage to quit so they cut down substantially instead?

Are you honestly telling me that for the next 18 years plus of parenthood those parents don't have the strong urge to protect their children?

You really think my urge to protect my child I smoked with is any less than my urge is to protect the ones I didn't smoke with?

Sorry that last line is jumbled. I am sure you understand what I mean though.

I've started a thread in site stuff: Please can we have someone really sensible on to do a webchat about smoking in pregnancy?

Thread bumps welcome

I wouldn't be so arrogant and narcissistic as to think of my child as being a heart beating outside of my body.

I am a student midwife, 9 out of 10 women that I see on labour ward who are being induced due to IUGR and/or failing placenta are smokers.

My first was induced because of IUGR. I was and am a non-smoker. I ate healthily and exercised throughout pregnancy.

OTOH I did have an abusive partner who landed us in thousands of pounds of debt when I was about seven months pg..... DC was born very small and has a chronic health condition. I'm really interested to hear about the links between stress and foetal/child health.

I'm assuming the OP of this thread is in response to yesterdays report from ASH. The conclusions were basically that HCP are very good at knowing the risks of smoking in PG but really bad at actually communicating with pregnant smokers or supporting them to quit.

Does that sound familiar at all?

Sounds exactly like the breastfeeding advice/support.

Sounds exactly like the breastfeeding advice/support.

Yup!

They're certainly not fucking dying because of cigarette smoking you mad twat

Tell that to my paediatrician sister - plenty of babies are stillborn or very premature due to their mother smoking during pregnancy, she sees it all the time and finds it heartbreaking.

I do understand addiction, and I know some people have life circumstances that means they deserve applause just for getting through another day, but calling someone a 'mad twat' for being truthful about the potential consequences of smoking during pregnancy is wrong Laurie.

I smoked through all 3 of ours, the midwife suggested I cut down a bit and smoked roll up as fewer harmful chemicals than tailor made fags.

gilly I'm guessing that was a very long time ago, as no midwife in this day and age would suggest anything other than stopping completely.

And if someone is unable to give up?

Reduces the competition for good university places for those of use who did not smoke I suppose.

Hedgehog

That is NOT true. There is no way to KNOW that the cause of the stillbirth is due to smoking.

The causes listed on the NHS website are the list below AND infection.

Only BELOW that are increased risks - this group is having twins, being over 36, having epilepsy, being obese, smoking/drinking or abusing alcohol in pregnancy.

Did you read what FuckyDuck wrote ?

People are not talking statistics are facts like what I've just posted - they're just equating death to smoking.

no midwife in this day and age would suggest anything other than stopping completely

Whereas we need a plan B . Cut down
Reduce
Use an E Cig

Etc etc !

The trouble with cutting down is people tend to hoover each fag they have because they're so nicotine deprived. The result is they tend to take in almost as much CO and tar as when they were smoking their normal amount.

The trick is to supplement nicotine from safer sources - NRT or ecigs - so when you do succumb to a fag you're not clucking. That way you can genuinely reduce your CO intake along with the number of fags you smoke. And if you use an ecig you might find you can contemplate quitting after all. You might even find you quit 'by accident'

Stop smoking services, including those for pregnant women, should be moving towards ecig friendly support, most especially for people who are unwilling / unready / unable to quit altogether, because there is strong and growing evidence that vaping can massively reduce harm. This briefing for midwives on smoking cessation interventions is excellent. It's produced by NCSCT who are the people who train Stop Smoking Practitioners. It's 32 pages but if you don't have time just read Section 3: Act.

Right I just saw another thread and want to check. Earlier posts in this thread complain that it's acceptable to have a coke addiction but not a smoking addiction. We're you talking about coke the white powder or coke the blank fizzy drink? At first I was like woah mumsnetters you wild bunch but now I read a thread about cola addiction and it's starting to finally make sense.

I'm pregnant, I stopped smoking as soon as I got the positive test.
But my god, it's hard, I want a cigarette every.single.day. However I'm also relieved, I know it's terrible for me and have tried and failed to quit for years, so bonus all round.

I can totally see how women can't quit, I'm lucky that I'm in a supportive relationship, have a stable home and food in my fridge. Women who don't have the perfect combination may need those cigarettes just to get through the day. Addiction and mental health are large and complex issues I don't feel anyone can duly judge on.

Women need support from each other, not shame!

AHedgehog

Dd is our youngest at 13, the others are grown up now at 25 and 22.
I know things have changed a lot in recent years, but still it wasn't the dark ages and even with dd the midwives were advocating roll ups rather than tailor made.
Of course they'd advise stopping most of all, even 25 years ago.

No, pretty sure they were talking about the coke you snort.

Tell that to my paediatrician sister - plenty of babies are stillborn or very premature due to their mother smoking during pregnancy, she sees it all the time and finds it heartbreaking.

I assume she understands the difference between correlation and causation. Being a doctor and all. And I can tell you that she absolutely doesn't know that the babies are stillborn due to smoking. Unless she randomly assigned the mothers to smoke or not smoke. In which case her ethics might be curious.

This just makes me so so sad for all those babies. When pp mentioned new borns I nearly couldn't read it. It breaks my heart. Babies are so defenceless and a mother is supposed to be their protector.