Smoking When Pregnant

on August 10, 2009 at 12:00 PM

smoking when pregnant I don't want to throw my mom under the bus here, especially after she shared her birth story (of me) with us, but she smoked during her pregnancy. This was common in the early 70s -- remember it was a time when no one wore seat belts, there were no car seats for kids, people even smoked on planes...things were a lot different than they are now. The dangers of these things weren't known. My mom hates that she smoked then knowing now what we know. Don't bash my mom or I will find you. (Kidding! Sort of.)

I never smoked (at least not out of the womb), so I didn't have to worry about quitting when I found out I was pregnant. I did have to quit the sushi and my occasional cocktail, but I do know women who smoked who had a tough time quitting.

I'm sure it isn't easy -- quitting smoking causes headaches and I've heard it's one of the hardest addictions to stop. But mamas quit and that's great news because it's not only bad for baby, but bad for the smoker.

Many women have fessed up to committing a pregnancy sin. Sometimes though, one person's sin is another's guilty pleasure. Not everyone is going to have the same opinion on these things.

What are you thoughts on the subject? If you were a smoker, what tips can you give to others to help quit?

About the author Michele Zipp

loves vintage and will defend skinny jeans to the death though she is highly superstitious and "death" is probably a bad word choice. She has a touch of the hoarding disease and enjoys sleuthing, the worst reality shows, and wearing high heels, even at the playground. She's an AP mom of twins, slightly crunchy but with a pedicure.

Filed Under: pregnancy health

Comments (14)

littleredpony

on Aug 10, 2009 at 12:56 PM

Thankfully I have never been a smoker but I have had to give up a few of "life's little pleasures". No caffine the first few months was hard but now I am due in just a few weeks and I have not picked my Starbuck's habit back up. Sushi was so sad to give up, not only have I had t go without it but so has my family. I sure as heck am not going to let DH and sons go without me! And I will admit that I have had a couple of drinks, I am not a big drinker but I love a little drink when we go out to dinner. I think I have had 5 drinks this whole pregnancy.

I did everything the docs tell you to and none of the things they tell you not to and lost my second born son due to a CHD 5 days after his birth anyway. So I take all the "rules" with a grain of salt. I have had friends fight with smoking and my heart goes out to them. It is a nasty habit I wish no one would pick up, but it happens and I will not judge. But I have held hands, encouraged and even bugged as needed. Not having had an addiction such as smoking I offer no advice, only support and love. My God-son was born early with low birth weight most likely because his mother is a smoker. She feels so bad about it but she did try and was able to go from a pack and a half a day down to 5 a day.

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BellaBear

on Aug 10, 2009 at 2:21 PM

i tried to give it up but I couldnt. Honestly my kids were born healthy , weights everything about them was perfect and still is. combined together they have only been sick (simple colds) 4 times and they are 3 and 2 years old. now when they were born we would change our shirts adn smoke outside. (still do)

Punkylu78

on Aug 10, 2009 at 3:14 PM

I started smoking when I was 12 and I got pregnant with my 1st when I was 28.....that's a long time to quit cold turkey but I did it! I still to this day don't now how I did but when I found out I was pregnant I quit right then! I went a little over 2 yrs and another pregnancy before, sadly, I started again =( I will not do it anywhere near my children so that helps to not get fully back into it and I am starting to work out and trying to get healthy so I can be around along time for my babies, so I am quiting again and for good this time!

I know it's hard and my mom also smoked with both me and my brother and I have a few friends that didn't quit either and I didn't think anything of it till I had my babies. Once I had them I just didn't get how someone couldn't stop for at least 9 months!

Mama0f3grlz

on Aug 10, 2009 at 9:07 PM

My MIL smoked during her whole pregnancy with my DH and he is almost 26 years old and suffers everyday from her decision. He has severe asthma, he cannot go a day without using an inhaler and has chronic lung infections every few months. He has been told by doctors that this is a direct by-product of his mother smoking during her pregnancy. He has never so much as put a cigarette to his lips and yet he suffers from a decision that he did not make. I'm glad some of you said that you smoked and your babies were still healthy but not everyone is so lucky. If you do smoke while pregnant, I encourage you to PLEASE stop, even if only for 9 months. It is NEVER okay to smoke around a child, there is damage being done that you don't even know about. I'm not trying to be judgmental, I've watched my MIL try so many times to quit and has just been too addicted to put them down. I know that it's not easy but you have to be willing to put your child first, even if just for a few months. Do anything that's necessary to keep those precious babies healthy and safe. Low birth rate is scary enough but it is not the only health problem that you are potentially plaguing your child with. If you had ever seen my DH with one of his lung infections, you'd throw down those cigarettes and stomp on them.

RVTMommy

on Aug 10, 2009 at 11:43 PM

I am a smoker, have been since I was 16 (I'm 25 now)... I HATE that I am, its a very addictive and disgusting habit... that said, I quit cold turkey within 2 weeks of finding out I was pregnant, both times. For me, being pregnant was THE ONLY way I could quit. I looked at it like my babies didn't have the choice to get up and walk away if they didn't like it, they were exposed to everything that I exposed them to.... I couldn't be that selfish to expose them to cigarettes before they were even born, it wasn't fair to them. Unfortunately I started again after each of my children were born but at least I was able to quit long enough to give them the best start possible.

Ms.Lake

on Aug 11, 2009 at 12:58 AM

I smoked for about 5 years before getting pregnant with my baby (I'm 18 weeks) and I quit cold turkey. I have to say that the morning sickness definitely helped since as soon as I smelled a cigarette I headed for the toilet!! A little further down the line I found myself occasionally craving a cigarette but I never smoked one. I found that if I imagined myself blowing smoke toward an infant it disgusted me so much that I ' want to smoke anymore( since I imagined that by smoking, that's what I was doing). I know it sounds weird, but it really worked for me!! Good luck to everyone trying to quit, I know it's tough but YOU CAN DO IT :)

Will3orEmsmom

on Aug 11, 2009 at 1:31 AM

I smoked for six years, and it was a big part of my daily routine. Two weeks ago I found out I was pregnant - I was already seven weeks along then. I quit cold turkey, and my SO has only slipped up twice.
It's only been two weeks, I know, but I'm proud of myself. It's been a long time since I've gone that long. It's hard being around family (they all smoke and think it's silly that I quit just because I'm pregnant - seriously) but anytime I get the urge to smoke, I just remember that little inch long baby that is relying on me to keep them safe. I can't stand the idea of them struggling for breath because I felt like smoking.

Samantha_1629

on Aug 11, 2009 at 11:03 AM

I had been a smoker for four years when I found out I was pregnant. I quit cold turkey. It was easy. I knew I wanted the best for my child and so it was easy to quit. I felt that if I smoked and then something was wrong with my baby, I would be to blame. My daughter is almost 4 years old and has no health problems at all. I never started back. I don't plan on starting back. My sister is pregnant. She quit. It is possible and worth it.

mmmommy0207

on Aug 11, 2009 at 2:04 PM

My mom came to visit me a few weekends ago, and she mentioned some of the details from when she had me. I guess back then you could smoke in the delivery rooms! (I'm 25) It's amazing when you think of some of the cultural differences between then and now!

NAldinger

on Aug 11, 2009 at 2:32 PM

I started smoking when I was 16.
I found out I was pregnant when I was 27.
That's 11 years of nicotine, sometimes a pack a day if I pulled an all-nighter at the clubs.
When I saw that "+" on the home pregnancy test, I had my last cigarette. I knew that I didn't HAVE to stop, but I wanted to. Knowing that I was responsible for the health and well-being of another person, made cigarettes very unappetizing.

How I quit cold turkey?
Baby Carrots. I purchased a bag with some ranch dip. Everytime I felt the urge, I would eat baby carrots with the dip. I went through 2 bags in a month. While I was driving, I would bring DumDums to relieve the hand-to-mouth fixation.

It worked! I've been cigarette free since March 2007 and that equals approximately $2,000 in savings since then.

Definitely worth it, not even if just for a health risk.