Cannabis and pregnancy...Your opinions

My husband and I have recently decided to start our family. We are both excited and plan ideally to have a natural home birth and a natural as possible pregnancy. My question to the experienced Mamas is what about cannabis and fetal development. I have done much research on this subject and still not clear as to what I personally should do. I smoke a lot and have everyday for 17 years, I use cannabis to manage other health issues I have. I am finding the idea of giving it up totally during pregnancy daunting and impossible. I am interested in others experiences with this subject.

 

My best girl friends doctor told her that using canniabus during pregnancy is ok. He said there should'nt be any side affects and it's better then smoking cig's. She now has a 2 year who is VERY healthy and VERY VERY smart.
Good luck!

 

there is no evidence showing yet the effects of pot on fetuses BUT they say smoking a joint is like smoking a pack of cigarettes so keep that in mind. The damage it may do on a childs lungs could be bad since your a regular smoker. Some also say to smoke a tiny bit while in your first trimester could help you with morning sickness. Since your a long time smoker maybe you should try to cut down before hand and keep it very minimal during... I personally have not smoked pot with my pregnancies but I have some friends who swear by it for morning sickness. Good luck!

***I want to add since you asked for opinions why I chose not to smoke while pregnant. Since there is no hard evidence of it being good or bad I'd rather not and allow my child the opportunity to experiment within their life when they grow up rather than have them born with problems that could have easily been preventable by me. Just my opinion.

 

I say - why risk it?

If you want healthy kids - then don't bother with it. You don't want to feel guilty if your kid is born with the slightest dysfunction anyway.

I think smoking anything during pregnancy is pretty fucking stupid. Seriously, there are things you DON'T push the odds with.

If you have a health reason to smoke pot, then you probably shouldn't have kids until it resolves itself.

 

I am not the same gender as an 'experienced mommy', neither am I an expert, but you should seek an expert to help you out.

 

I think drugs should be steered clear of during pregnancy.

 

my mom smoked pot every day when she was pregnant with me and there's nothing seriously wrong with me, same with my sister. but i would encourage you to keep it at a minimum just to be careful.

 

Ditto what she said. Your body is a sacred vessel for a new life and should be treated as such.

 

ANYTHING you do can affect your baby...remember, he/she is a little person inside of you...smoking to you, might me suffocating to him/her.

 

It may not cause harm, but in some states, dr.s can drug test w/o consent. In mine they do.

 

Depends on how you want to face your pregnancy. Just about everything in our lives could be a potential for harm for a baby, Pollution, junk food, caffine, medicine, etc...it is just about weighing the pros and cons and finding a good balance.

The super-stressed mother might cause more harm to her baby than the mom who smokes to mellow out or something. Morning sickness not letting you keep anything down could be worse than a few hits of a joint used to keep your food in the tummy.

There is nothing a woman can do to have a perfect pregnancy. Every woman is exposed to things that may be harmful to the baby. Some women choose to pig out on junk food when pregnant, should we consider them bad mothers because they ingested a snickers bar every day of their pregnancy? When it comes to something like pot, where studies have shown little effect (especially compared to other drugs) I would just try to strike a balance to do what's best for the health and comfort of you and your child.

 

I say you rely on your *own* doctor for advice, instead of random people on the internet.

 

I wholeheartedly agree.

 

I avoided anything I thought at all that could possibly harm my babies during pregnancy. No caffeine, barely any junk food, and of course, absolutely no smoking. Putting the health of my unborn children was more important to me than indulgence.

 

She's just looking for opinions ans experiences, nothing wrong with talking to other women about choices during pregnancy. I don't recall her asking us for medical advice...

 

Just because one person grew up fine with with a mother who smoked pot when she was pregnant does not mean that it's safe. Ancedotal evidence can be pulled out to prove any point.

I agree with all of those who said not to risk it. Your child's health should be first priority, not your own comfort.

 

I more thoroughly agree with THIS post. Yes, you need to be cautious and good for you for doing your research.

However, there are some occasions where the benefits outweigh the negatives. Some women suffer severe headaches throughout their pregnancies, and without access to pain medications that allow them to function, maybe a bit of marijuana would be beneficial in that instance. Or in an instance where your morning sickness is so severe that you can't eat anything.

To a point, your own comfort is trumped by the presence of that little person inside of you. But when you become so umcomfortable that you can't function in daily life or your quality of life is suffering, then something needs to be done.

I agree that you should drastically curb your intake now and maybe only smoke a small bit while pregnant. But in doing my own research about weed and pregnancy, I used some of the cigarette facts in my own way. Smoking cigarettes and marijuana have the same affect as far as inhalation is concerned. Your baby is learning to breathe inside of you and cutting off oxygen supply for even small periods of time can really mess with their tiny developing lungs.

I think the THC is not harmful in any meaningful way, so maybe look into ingesting it instead of smoking it. Would cut down on tons of the risks associated with the inhalation part of it.

But also, pay attention to your body. If your fetus is generally really active, but in the event of your smoking, the baby doesn't move near as much as normal, stop smoking.

 

When I have a kid... I think I may smoke pot. Only organic, homegrown stuff... Not any nasty chemically grown bullshit.

My boyfriend's sister smoked pot thoughout her kid's pregnancies, and the kids were learning sign language before age one, and now the middle one has been on high honor roll since the 6th grade.

Of course, I'm gonna research it all, and see whats up with it all.... It's really interesting, though.

 

I think its a bad idea.

 

I really do appreciate everyones input. Of course this is just a small unoffical part of my research, I do plan on consulting with professionals to ensure the well being of my child. Hearing personal opinions is what I asked for, whether they agree or not. Thanks for all the feedback.