Women in Recovery Discuss Parenting While Addicted to Cocaine

Abstract

Women addicted to cocaine who are parenting children need strong encouragement from the healthcare system to begin a recovery program and also to gain parenting skills. Discussions of child development and parenting stresses should be included during the recovery process from addiction because lack of parenting knowledge might be a major barrier for them. This study can help nurses to provide improved care for women who are parenting children while using cocaine or other drugs.

The Effects of American Sign Language on General Self-Efficacy and Anxiety Among Mothers in a Residential Rehabilitation Facility for Drug Addiction and Substance Abuse

“…During their discussion of efforts to be good parents, all the women identified behaviors that they wanted to change. Five themes emerged, lack of structure (consistency in providing structure for their children), abandonment (leaving their children while using drugs), impatience/anger (sometimes leading to violent episodes with children), knowledge (the need for more information concerning parenting), and repeating dysfunctional patterns from their family of origin (Coyer, 2003). Implications of this study support the opportunity for treatment programs and nursing professionals to promote successful adaptation to the role of parenting.…”

“…Stressful experiences such as a constantly crying infant or an infant not focusing may impair confidence and create discomfort in the parenting role and produce maladaptive coping strategies, such as a relapse to drug use (Johnson & Rosen, 1990;Kelley, 1998;Rossetti, 2000;Velez et al, 2004;Zickler, 1999). High levels of stress can influence the way a woman approaches parenting (Brazelton, & Greenspan, 2000;Velez et al, 2004) and there is a need to teach parental skills to help reduce the anxiety from these stresses (Coyer, 2003).…”

“…Lack of parenting knowledge and misconceptions concerning parenting practices for the ID/SA mother can be due to a history of poor parental role modeling (Camp, & Finkelstein, 1997;Coyer, 2003;Velez et al, 2004). Residential treatment programs for ID/SA mothers that include their children have been demonstrated to be an effective intervention (Finkelstein, 1994;Social Care Institute for Excellence, 2005).…”

“…High levels of stress can influence the way a woman approaches parenting (Brazelton, & Greenspan, 2000;Velez et al, 2004) and there is a need to teach parental skills to help reduce the anxiety from these stresses (Coyer, 2003). Literature reports that residential treatment programs for the ID/SA mother that specifically addresses her needs have proven to be beneficial (Ashley, Marsden & Brady, 2003); they facilitate mother infant interaction, improve communication skills and increase the mother's knowledge of self-care and relaxation (Porter & Porter, 2004).…”

“…The benefits of hypothesis 2 being supported, is important because parenting-related anxiety can produce maladaptive coping strategies, such as a relapse into drug use (Kelley, 1998;Velez, et al, 2004). Confidence in being a more effective parent will lower the vulnerability to stress and there is a need to teach parental skills to help reduce the anxiety from these stresses (Coyer, 2003). The literature review discussed difficulties in language and speech development for the infant exposed to ID/SA in utero (Bandstra et al 2002;Pulsif, Butz, O'Reilly& Belcher, 2008).…”