http://www.neurodevnet.ca/news/fasd-stigma-why-do-women-drink-when-pregnant

FASD & Stigma: Why Do Women Drink When Pregnant?

February 26, 2016

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an entirely preventable form of brain damage. Increased awareness has meant a woman’s decision to consume alcohol during pregnancy has become highly stigmatized, and as a result, individual circumstances that surround the choice to drink are rarely explored or understood.

“This is unfortunate because alcohol use in pregnancy is a highly complex issue, complicated by the fact that many women consume alcohol prior to finding out they are pregnant,” says Sue Kobus, a research associate within NeuroDevNet’s FASD Research Group. Kobus has produced a new video that addresses stigma through the lens of Colette Philcox, the birth mother of a boy with FASD whose partner coerced her into drinking with him when she was pregnant. To refuse was to endure a beating.

“We just want to raise awareness so that these women aren’t judged because then the child is judged,” Sue explains. “There can’t be blame and shame put on these women – it’s the child that suffers in the end.”

Neuroethics experts Dr. Judy Illes and Dr. Emily Bell delve into the impacts of blaming and shaming: mothers are hesitant to disclose their alcohol consumption, and children are misjudged and stigmatized for their behaviour. Without confirmation of maternal drinking, physicians are unable to definitively diagnose FASD or to recommend appropriate treatment. Ultimately this impacts the child’s wellbeing and life course.

“Awareness campaigns aim to prevent the only known cause of FASD, drinking during pregnancy,” observes Dr. Bell. “In doing so, however, they may also unintentionally increase the blame towards biological mothers and impact the broader experiences of all those affected by FASD. For example, if such campaigns fail to address social factors surrounding alcohol consumption or neglect circumstances surrounding the behaviour (i.e., when a woman drinks before realizing she is pregnant), they could cause anxiety for women or increase reluctance to seek medical care for their pregnancy or drinking.”

“This video speaks to the vulnerable, high-risk segment of the population where FASD is a huge problem,” says Dr. James Reynolds, NeuroDevNet associate scientific director and co-lead of the Network’s FASD Research Group, based at Queen’s University. “This is the segment of the population where stigma and blame are felt the most, and where the greatest amount of work needs to be done to increase awareness and understanding.”

Watch the full video here: https://vimeo.com/156886402