Healing Mother and Baby: Supporting Pregnant and Parenting People Through Recovery

In Rhode Island, about 100 babies are born each year with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a condition in which a baby experiences symptoms of withdrawal due to the cessation of opioids or other substances they were exposed to in utero.  Some babies with NAS receive medication in the hospital and may not be able to go home right away.  Exposure to drugs like heroin or fentanyl may result in the baby going into foster care.  Parent Support Network of Rhode Island’s Healing Mother and Baby Program helps mothers and babies stay together. Peer recovery support specialists (also called “coaches”) with lived experience connect pregnant and parenting people to local treatment and recovery services; help them develop a long-term, individualized plan; and support them on their path to recovery.  This week’s guest experts are Katie Gonzalez, a certified peer recovery support specialist supervisor at PSNRI, and Margo Katz from the Division of Community Health and Equity at the Rhode Island Department of Health. Gonzalez shares her personal story of recovery, as well as some of the success stories she has seen in the Healing Mother and Baby Program. Download this week’s episode to learn more.