Pot Use during pregnancy?

Question

I have seen many opinions about pot use during pregnancy and it seems to me that the people who are answering do not have any experience in either area ( pot smoking or pregnancy) which makes me wonder about something. Is there anyone out there who knows of a case were a child was born with problems because the mother smoked pot?? I am not looking for something that someone got out of a book or from a website. I want to hear from someone with first hand experience. Either someone who did it themselves or knows someone who did and can advise how the baby turned out. Also not looking for anyones opinion, just true results. Not talking about drinking and smoking or smoking cigs and pot because we already know that those things contribute to defects; strictly pot only. I think that this is a valid question that is worth answering and may shed some light. Again, not asking about what you would do if you were pregnant because what you would do is not the issue.

Answer 1

I don't have direct experience, but my ex-boyfriend's ex-wife was recommended by her GYN to smoke a little because she was carrying a huge baby and her back was in alot of pain. Tristan was born at 12 lbs 8 oz or something, and his ex-wife is 5'5'' and pre-pregnancy 120 lbs. Baby was born healthy and 3 years later he is showing to be perfectly normal.

It's russian roulette, whether you're perfectly healthy and normal and do everything right or smoke a little dope.

You can do everything right and have a baby with countless birth defects.

You can do everything wrong and have a perfectly healthy baby.

It's all the luck of the draw.

I was adopted so I don't know how true it is, but according to my adoptive parents, my mother smoked pot AND cigarettes (just asked my mom) while she was pregnant with me. I was born full term but I weighed 5 lbs 2 oz. Probably from the cigarettes. Then again, I'm 5'2'' and weigh 105 now. I'm not exactly brain dead, I am DYSLEXIC but it runs in the family. Even being dyslexic, I don't exactly need to run spell check every other word. I started walking earlier than my mom's biological children, I started talking earlier, and I started reading earlier. I have true dyslexia, not cop-out laziness dyslexia.

Each child is different.

I'm not aware of any actual research studies on this, unfortunately. It's something that deserves more attention because marijuana use isn't exactly uncommon. More accurately, I'm not aware of any actual research studies with good control groups and accurate information regarding moderate use. Of course heavy use of anything is bad. Eating hamburgers every day is bad. Smoking pot every day is bad. It's not a rocket science, people.

There is also a significant difference between smoking just enough to help you fall asleep, or help your back pains, or help ease your stomach, and smoking til you're a retarded monkey. If you smoke that much pot, no sh.it there's going to be problems. But just like anything, in moderation, it's not the end of the world. Get a grip folks.

Answer 2

I am a recovered pot smoker. Yes I loved it, And yes I would still do it in a second. I love it. But I love my kids more. I smoked pot with my first. She had many ear infections, I had to have tubes put in her ears. She is now 5. She has always had an under wieght problem. Her bones are not as strong. She always complaines that they hurt.

I also have a 4 year old that I did not smoke pot with. She holds weight great, and has never had a bad ear infection. I believe that when I smoked pot I contributed to my older daughter having a harder time. I hate to admit it, but I have gone threw rehab and counceling, and I am proud that I have changed. I suggest that if you are pregnant and are smoking pot, then you stop. I would hope that no one does what I did. I am now totally quite. I will not ever smoke again. Just because I see what my daughter has to go threw. It is not worth it. It may be hard at the time, but it is worth your kids life. Everything they say in the books and websites is true. It is really sad. I am glad that my daughter does not have as many problems as she could have. I thank god for that.

Answer 3

I have a gf thats sister smoked pot while she was prego, so this answer is 2nd hand and may not be all acurate :S. Her baby was born early and underweight. He spent a week in an incubator before he was aloud to go home. I havent heard of much since so I dont know if he has had any longer term effects. I dont know if she smoked cigs at the same time, but I do know that she smoked a lot of pot. Good luck, I hope this helps.

Answer 4

I had a good friend who smoked pot heavily while pregnant. Her baby came out okay, but is very slow now. And doesnt talk. They are sure she has a learning disability. I know another girl who smoked her pregnancy and her baby came out with a deformed foot, (two toes stuck together) Im sure it is possible for a baby to come out healthy, but I have not seen anything good from it. I will never understand why people risk it, even if the risk is small. Even though I believe it is big. From what I have seen. Good question.

Answer 5

I am not a pot smoker, or at least not any more. When I was pregnant with my son, I was very uncomfortable and didnt get a lot of sleep. He was so over active that I would just sit and cry. My brother, and husband who smoke, both told me that taking a few drags would help calm me, and as long as I didnt smoke joint after joint, I would be okay. I talked to my doctor about this, and she agreed. She said that she would normally discourage smoking pot, but that it wouldnt hurt anything if I smoked a little, to see if it helped. I went home that night and sat in pain again, then finally broke. I smoked off a joint with my brother, husband and friend, and after a bit I was able to sleep with out problems. My son is now 16 months old and is fine, the doctors have no concerns with anything.

With all that said, in little amounts is not going to hurt. I would not suggest that smoking all day long and a joint to yourself is a good thing.

Answer 6

A friend of mine smoked quite a bit of pot while she was pregnant and she had a healthy baby girl. Seems now though, that she is developing a little slower than some of the other kids her age. I do know that every child develops differently, but its taking her alot longer. It may be family genes as well, If someone or yourself is doing this, it does have its bad points, so I would advise against it.

Answer 7

i smoked pot with three of my children and even told my doctor i told him it was great for morning sickness and nausea throughout the day. i also asked him what were the risks of damage to the baby? there is no concrete information that pot effects the baby any different than cigarettes. i am a smoker and the risks with cigarettes are low birth weight, premature labor, decrease in oxygen intake, note these are risks not guarentees, and these are worst case scenario risks. there has never been a reported death of a fetus from smoking pot. if you are brave ask your dr. he cannot disclose your information but be careful sharing this info with other people especially those who disagree with you on smoking pot,(because pot is a drug everyone will believe you are harming your baby, there are alot more prescription drugs that can harm your baby far worse.)because this could cause you some legal issues especially if you have other children.it's amazing how something perfectly legal-alcohol causes so many deaths each year. but the illegal- pot has so many benefits to one's life and has never killed anyone directly.

Answer 8

Let me tell you this. My parents smoked pot while my Mom was pregnant with us in the 70's (I have two younger brothers). My cousin's were born in the 80's (two younger cousins) and their parents smoked pot while my aunt was pregnant. I am the oldest of the five kids and also the only girl. I am also the only one that hasn't been in trouble with the law as an adult. While we were all born healthy for the most part, all five of us had severe ear and sinus infections as little ones. I still battle ear and sinus infections to this day. All five of us have been on some sort of anti-depressant medication at some point in our lives and one cousin is a raging alcoholic. The three youngest are pot smoking fools now. I am not. I have never tried it and never will. My point is pot may or may not have affected us while we were embryos,fetuses, newborns or children. Pot has definitely affected us as we have gotten older. I hope that this helps you in your quest for information.

Answer 9

Hi, I am a Mom to 3. When I was pregnant with my 2nd I probably took a couple of hits about 3 separate times throughout the last 4 months of my pregnancy. My son was behind in everything and was diagnosed with Central Auditory Processing Disorder. It is a developmental disorder. My girlfriend was major stonehenge and imbibed regularly throughout her pregnancy ( but won't let her kids eat sugar, carbs, and only drink soy milk. like- WTF?) Her son turned out fine. My son is now 11 and still recieves minimal special services at school. I spoke with my doctor after grieving terribly, and she said that little of usage would not cause any harm. I always thought maybe she was just trying to make me feel better. My Mom and Dad were always open about their 'hippie' days. My Mom said they did a lot of qualudes (sp?) back then, and smoke cigs/weed and drank alcohol while pregnant because they didn't know any better. My siblings and I turned out just fine. I still feel guilt, and had no problem not imbibing when I was pregnant with my 3rd. I just looked at it this way: What is 9 months out of your life to ensure a healthy baby, really? That's nothing. I will never know the truth, but do still hold myself accountable for making such a selfish idiotic decision. Even the specialists I've taken him to said there was no way I caused his problems. But still....

Answer 10

i did know of a mother who did smoke during her entire pregnany and full time while she was breastfeeding and let me tell you i personally think there was something wrong with that baby. it cried all the time. and i mean ALL THE TIME! the only thing that kept that baby from crying was jumping up and down violently on the edge of a bed while holding it. once you stopped, the baby started screaming again. i don't care how asleep you thought the baby was, she would wake up. She would suck the nipple for a sec, cry, suck some more, and then cry. she never ate a whole meal all the way through.

i love babies, and consider myself very skilled in taking the crankiest baby and calming him/her down. but that one child was the only one that wouldn't stop. and she was the same way with her own mother.

whether is was the pot or not, i'm not a doctor. but i do feel that contributed to her behavior.