Aimee Schiefelbein, Quit Coach, Service Delivery:

Most people in my personal life know I work as a tobacco Quit Coach. I am often the person that gets to hear the stories of triumph and struggle of those who want to quit smoking. Sometimes friends or family come to me in exasperation because they really want to help someone else quit but have no idea how to communicate their support effectively. It was during one of these discussions with a non-smoking friend (I will call her Kay) that I learned a little bit more about her and got permission to share her story. Kay disclosed  to me that her mother was actively trying to quit and she wanted to find out from me how to best support her in this process. We had a discussion about possible ways she could bring this up with her mother...but what really struck me was what Kay disclosed to me a week later about how that conversation went.

Kay confessed that the conversation with her mother took a turn towards a disclosure that took a lot of strength and bravery on her mother's part. She confessed that she smoked for the duration of her pregnancy with Kay over 30 years ago. Back in those days smoking was more acceptable and not as much was known about smoking and the health impact to mother and baby. At that time her mother thought that because Kay came out relatively okay (with all ten fingers and toes and cute as ever) that everything was okay and she effectively "dodged a bullet." What she later learned in the process of preparing to quit and doing research on smoking was that smoking during and after pregnancy could potentially have had an even greater consequence on Kay's development. Her mother tearfully recalled the guilt she felt for not having the knowledge or tools to quit during her pregnancy or afterwards. Fortunately in the end, this conversation turned out to be a point of connection for Kay and her mother and it brought them both empathy and understanding for each other. Kay shared with me that she was able to reassure her mother that what's most important was that she was quitting now. I thought she handled this conversation very well, because quitting is a process and it often requires looking forward and not backwards and getting caught in guilt.

That got me thinking...Many pregnant smokers I speak with today know some of the health consequences of smoking during pregnancy. Smoking can be a leading cause of low birth weight, miscarriage, premature birth, and an increase in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Quitting smoking can dramatically reduce the risk of these complications. A recent study published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, finds the children of mothers who smoked during pregnancy, particularly boys, had a higher risk of poorer coordination and physical control later in life. The results indicate smoking may impact the development of the brain of the fetus.

I thought about Kay's story as I read this study. I thought about how little we knew 30 years ago and how much more we know now. Every year more evidence is uncovered linking smoking to disease and complications for both mother and baby. What will they uncover next?

For me, the important piece to remember in Kay's story is this: it is never too late to quit. Any cigarette not smoked is less harm done. It's important for smokers to be aware of the health impact of smoking and not to let it bog them down so that they can't move forward and take the first step towards quitting. Women and their babies deserve to be healthy, which is why at Free & Clear we train Quit Coaches in how to address such sensitive issues and be an informed source of support to our pregnant callers. If you're ready to call, we're ready to help.