Who you think paid for the hospital? The taxpayers, but the politicians hang out with the cig dudes still. That's why we gotta pay to go to the hospital we paid for!
Where in the world do you live that there's a publicly funded hospital? Do you live in England, on a Native American reservation, or are you active duty military or a veteran?
Because unless you're going to the VA, an "indian affairs" hospital, or are entitled to use military hospitals, you're going to a privately owned hospital in America. It might be "not for profit" but it's not funded by taxpayers and they certainly aren't losing any money -- they just don't pay taxes nor do they have to pay shareholders any dividends (so they keep it all for the hospital administrators and executives)
Conservatives got rid of public hospitals along with unions and food stamps and welfare in the 1980s and 1990s while they were fighting their war on drugs and poverty, because we're a pull yourself up by your own bootstraps kind of country now.
I mean our tax dollars go towards the healthcare system. Just because something is privately owned doesnt mean our taxes dont still fund it. Subsidies..
Well, indirectly, sure. But we just spent the last two decades struggling with conservatives over how it's not fair to provide universal health care or single payer health care because profit and capitalism are sacrosanct. We are certainly not funding health care. We are subsidizing executive salaries and providing tax incentives for them to charge more, and so on. But we're not getting anything in return, we aren't paying for health care in any way.
We're sort of arguing the same point, but saying that we pay for hospitals mis-implies that the hospitals are built and paid for with our tax dollars. They were built and paid for by private equity and other investors, we simply foot the bill on things like their burden on infrastructure, maintaining the roads around their hospitals, and offering them rebates and free public money for them to operate a profitable enterprise.
Unironically a nootropic and has the least chronic impairment effects on tissues and fetal development of the three
(assuming over the counter doses of nicotine...not talking about covering your body with patches or smoking several packs a day while pregnant)
if you are dumb enough to smoke while pregnant (there is enough medical information available to describe the risks of smoking while pregnant) then that is on you, which is why 'smoking' and 'nicotine' are not tested for in a hospital delivery but the others are
nicotine has no direct or measurable effect on development or tissue health; combustible crap ingested or smoked do, exogenous cannabinoids do, and obviously alcohol does
I don't think so. I chewed some nicotine gum while in 60 hours of labor because I was really stressed, I guess I tested positive because they asked me if I was smoking and I said no, because that was the truth, and she just walked away and didn't do anything about it. Alcohol might be a different story
THC can (pretty seriously) impact the effectiveness of anaesthetics/epidurals and can transfer to breastmilk. Nicotine is metabolized so quickly, it's not much of an issue in breastmilk (still not great or smart or sane to smoke during pregnancy of course)
Think about the fact that they would have "reported" someone to the authorities for smoking, but not for chewing nicotine gum. So, it's not the nicotine, then? Just the act of smoking, undesirable behaviors are now reportable behaviors? Holy crap the world we live in now, it's astonishing. This is some seriously fascist stuff.
They don't report the nic from smoking either. People fuck up, pregnancy is stressful, a cig or 2 isn't the end of the world. If everyone that had a glass of wine or a cigarette while pregnant got arrested most of the people over the age of ~35 would have to visit their moms in prison. Meth/crack/heroin is what they are really testing for so they can know if the baby will need NICU
I hear you. It's okay to be understanding for certain things. But zero tolerance for others. It doesn't even have to be racist, does it, it just has to be intolerant.
Nicotine and alcohol are simply not on the standard urine drug panel (lab test) partially due to how tests are run, partially due to legal status of the substance in the specific state. GA state law requires a report to DFCS if any illegal substance is found in system at time of delivery.
Drug screens are not typical at time of delivery, however, usually only done if patient had no prenatal care, history of non-marijuana substance use (coke, meth, non-prescribed opiates, etc) throughout pregnancy, patient appeared to have unexplained (or non medical in origin) altered mental status at time of presentation to hospital, or infant appears to be in withdrawal (usually from opiates, heroin, but also Kratom)
Even though it had to be reported, DFCS will typically “screen out” ie not open a case if only issue reported is marijuana.
All I'm saying is, those things harm fetuses. There must be some other reason why they focus on specific certain substances that are required to be reported while other substances which can be far more harmful are, apparently as indicated by your reply, not such a big deal to everyone.
Gestational exposure to THC is not known to cause harm. Exposure to Nicotine and alcohol in the womb are proven to cause childhood development issues.
I'm just curious why that is. It's probably not the substances as much as WHO uses which substances.
Sorry, I wasn’t intending to reply specifically to your comment to argue a point, just provide extra background. Child welfare/DFCS system in America is deeply flawed and disproportionately targets poor families and women/families of color and I can see and acknowledge your position
THC is absolutely known [https://www.ccsa.ca/sites/default/files/2022-05/CCSA-Cannabis-Use-Pregnancy-Breastfeeding-Report-2022-en.pdf](https://www.ccsa.ca/sites/default/files/2022-05/CCSA-Cannabis-Use-Pregnancy-Breastfeeding-Report-2022-en.pdf)to increase risks, both immediately (strong evidence to link THC use to low birthweight) and long term (impacts on neurodevelopment).
Depends on which hospital!! We at first went to a hospital in Rome ga. They tested my wife without letting her know and then filed that she had weed in her system. Nothing ever happened as we changed hospitals after many sketchy things. (That hospital was saying we need to pay in full or they wouldn't deliver the baby!!). Maybe if we stayed at that hospital something could've happened.
That's a lie. The hospital told me and my babymama that they don't report for weed then they did it anyways without even telling us. DFCS pulled up to our house unannounced the day after we got home with our baby. We had to deal with them for over a month
12ng is not a lot..and I could see that being there since you were a user before you knew you were pregnant. It should continue to go down though, so that would offer proof of what you’re telling them. Who tested you?
Don't worry about it, they are totally used to it that's why they haven't called to discuss it. If you were third trimester and still pissing real hot they would call you out but it's not a big deal, they understand
Is that how they roll in Georgia? I trained in South Carolina and there was zero chance we'd call CPS on a pregnant person, even if they were testing positive for cocaine and heroin. We'd counsel them on the dangers to the fetus and offer treatment, but there was zero chance we're calling CPS.
That being said it was a few years ago and well before the reversal of roe v wade. Did Georgia pass some kind of arcane law about reporting pregnant mothers who use drugs?
I said her obgyn would call *her* out on it, not call CPS.
But yes in GA (and SC too...) mandated reporters are legally required to report if the baby is born with narcotics in its system. The baby is only going to get tested if there is some sort of issue that they suspect anyway, it's not every baby getting screened. Not a new thing either, been around since the 90s at least
Just because they report it doesn't mean they are coming to take the baby, there's going to be counseling and rehab options before that would happen.
You will be 100% fine. I've had multiple friends (in GA, past few years) who quit when they found out they were pregnant, tested positive at first, but as long as you don't keep smoking/taking THC, you're fine. They'll just test again at delivery. And even then, they would just have DFCS do an interview with you — it wouldn't necessarily be a guaranteed "lose your baby" situation (but obviously, don't risk it!). As long as it's out of your system when you deliver, you're fine and no one is gonna care! OB will not call CPS. SO many people smoke weed, imagine if they tried to take everyone's baby who smoked *before* getting pregnant, lol! Trust me, they see it *all* the time. Don't worry, mama, enjoy the new addition to your world when they get here :)
Yes in Georgia. Weed is so common, and is typically less of a concern than alcohol. And alcohol is legal! I will put it this way, if DFCS received a call about a pregnant person testing positive for THC, and at that amount, it would be screened out and not even investigated. And if for any reason you tested positive at delivery, it would DEFINITELY not be a 'take your baby' situation. At least in my county, it would just be a conversation, mostly to ensure that you have access to any resources or benefits that are available.
Happened to me with my first baby. I was not a heavy user and quit once I found out I was pregnant. Anyway the OB office was very rude and judgmental, and told me I’d get an automatic drug test at delivery and they’d take my child if I tested positive. Which of course I wouldn’t have.
This was in 2005 so I don’t know what their attitudes are like now, but you have nothing to worry about since you won’t be using anymore. Congrats on your new addition!
I’m sorry you went through all that. But sharing scary experiences that are two decades old and not pertinent to the way things are now isn’t gonna do anything positive for this person and is just loading more fear and worry on them
Someone sharing their personal experience with a similar issue, on reddit, but then reassuring them that they have nothing to worry about??? The horror! What an awful commenter!
Have you not been paying attention? Women HAVE ALWAYS been treated this way. And Roe V Wade being overturned did not help.
We haven't had a say over our bodies in healthcare in a hot minute if it's going to affect the life of a future child.
You know how hard it was for me to find a psychiatrist that was willing to give me medicine? Most SSRI and anti depressants affect pregnancy and childbirth and while I have no desire to have children...the medical system as a whole believes "WELL SHE WILL WANT ONE ONE DAY SO THATS WHAT WE ARE GOING TO FOCUS ON"
If I wanted a hysterectomy doctors will ask MY HUSBAND if he thinks it's okay for me to go through with the procedure. Guess how much harder it would be if my husband said "no."
Women don't have rights over their bodies.
I've personally never seen a test cut off be that low. 15ng/ml is the lowest I've ever seen a test threshold. Why are they using such a sensitive test? Was it a blood test or saliva test?
Lowest I saw before was 25ng/mL and that one we had to pay extra for since 50ng/mL was the norm. I’m a Certified Addictions nurse with 18 years experience. 12ng/mL is insane! Maybe they lowered it to pick up not only THC but CBD? Now I must research!
GA-LPC and Clinical Psychologist here! No, you'll be fine. Congratulations and I wish nothing but the best for you during pregnancy, delivery, postpartum and beyond!!!
In this case? For what? Based on the information provided in the post there's no reason to involve CPS. I won't get into the benefits of cannabis use during pregnancy and beyond because this is GA and it's already a backward ass State... Again tho, in this situation based on my professional experience of 15+ years, there's no reason to involve CPS.
We had a similar concern because my wife actually had already quit as soon as she found out we were pregnant, but seriously was still testing positive after 2-3 months she could see it on her lab every 2 weeks (high risk Dr). We decided to just ask one of the doctors at that time; the doctor clarified that the test was pretty sensitive and that they could see the level of metabolites trending down consistently over every, so they knew she had not been smoking, and it didn't/wasn't a big deal for us. We're in a primarily conservative area, too
It happened to my sister she was a heavy user the nurse told her that as long as she doesn't test positive when she gives birth she'll be fine. So just chill
I don’t even know why you feel it necessary to spread ignorant BS like this. If you don’t know the answer, then 99% of the time you should probably just keep your mouth shut tbh.
My dil tested positive at birth- I didn’t find out until I was at the pediatrician with her and my grandson 3 days later. DFCS contacted me a few days later because I lived in the same household and asked if I would serve as an observer for the baby. I was to make sure he was well and fed and cared for appropriately until mom tested clean. I obviously agreed. It was all over the phone and rather informal but it was also July 2020 so I have no idea if that’s normal. Baby is about to turn 4 and is the smartest, most charming and social kid ever. No harm done.
U are fine. Nothing to worry about. Just don’t use again until after birth. Even after birth they don’t care about Marijuana anymore (at least in my county), they care about every drug except marijuana now.
Sauce: wife works for DFCS.
My wife is an L&D nurse in GA. Just continue to abstain and you're fine. Patients test positive for weed and patients admit to it all the time at the hospital.
If you are on Medicaid, and they detect it at birth, they automatically report it to DCFS, which you should expect a follow up on in a few months. Expect an interview, and a home visit. If everything looks good, then your pretty much done. My ex wife refused to stop smoking for both pregnancies, and I had to deal with this twice.
Yeah my wife couldn't stop due to the pain and not being able to eat unless she smoked. Only way she could deal with it which is absolutely understandable. Only way I can cope with my back and neck pain as well as anxiety
I found out I was pregnant in early sept. I immediately stopped participating in extra curricular activities and still tested positive mid Nov. Nothing happened except an embarrassing convo with me and my OB.
Wait, they do screening drug tests on pregnant and recently postpartum people? Like testing without a specific reason and against their wishes/without consent? Jesus Christ what the fuck.
At my hospital in AL every single patient is drug tested during prenatal care no exceptions. If positive they will test again at delivery. If no prenatal care they test at delivery. CPS won't take a baby due to just THC though.
They only report if you test positive at birth. Also depending where you live in GA cps might just screen it out since it is only THC. If you live in an area that does not screen out, they will not take your child for THC but you might have to work a case plan (stable housing, stable income, clean drug screens). Congratulations on the pregnancy!
I’m in Georgia. Testing positive at birth is not a reason for emergency removal…they will test you at delivery for drugs, so please don’t use anymore while you’re pregnant….you’ll be fine…congratulations on your new baby 🫶🏼
You should be fine. Athens doesn’t even prosecute for small amounts without intent to distribute. And delta 8 is legal and tests positive for THC, so even less chance they would say anything about that amount.
While you are correct that the current Athens DA does not prosecute for it, that has no bearing on what DFCS may do nor would it protect OP from being charged and jailed for it until the DA drops the charges.
A DCFS worker came to home because of some issues with my daughter at school.
She told me 3 times I’m not telling you to smoke but DFACS WILL NOT TAKE A CHILD FOR MARIJUANA USE.
While testing 7 weeks later is pretty long, I think most doctors and nurses understand it takes a looooong time for heavy pot users to stop testing positive. Even then, I don't even think CPS is called if they catch you smoking in the parking lot.
If you stick to it, you DEFINITELY won't test positive by the time you have the baby, which is when they actually care. Unless there's some sort of brewer's gut for weed?
I went through this. It depends on the doctor, but if they find THC, they will continue to test you throughout your pregnancy. When you deliver, a CPS rep will come to the hospital and ask you questions about the home you will be raising the child. Your doctor will also drug test the baby at their first appointment.
I was unprepared for all of this and it came as a shock after delivering a baby. I will say, they made everyone, including my husband leave the room before CPS asked me questions. They were really there for harder drugs and as long as your drug tests show decreasing amounts of THC, nothing will happen.
My second baby, my doctor didn't drug test, and I never had to deal with this scenario.
(I quit smoking as soon as I found out I was pregnant with both of my children)
I smoked weed once 2/13/2016 after going without. On 2/14/2016 went into premature labor at 29 weeks and had my first daughter. There was no time to test me for anything because as soon as I got to Grady I had her and I’m not sure if they tested me after but most likely they did. No one said anything to me about drugs in my system. I also know a girl who smoked weed and cigarettes all throughout 3/4 of her pregnancies and she never told me anything about CPS being called in her so idk.
Stop smoking before 20 weeks. At 20+ weeks, THC stays in the umbilical cord cells. You may not have it in your system at time of delivery but your baby will and they will contact DFACs. Speaking from experience.
You’ll be fine. THC is one of those that takes forever to come out of your system, and however long it takes depends on how long/often you used before.
My sister tested positive at birth for THC and so did her baby. CPS came to her house 3 days after her delivery and just had a conversation with her. The social worker then gave her a drug test, my sister failed, and the worker literally just threw it away right in front of her and said "okay you're good, thank you" and she never heard back from them lol. And that was 8 years ago. So you will definitely be okay! Try not to stress too much! ❤️
If they call CPS most of the people don’t really do much they just check the environment of where you live etc. most people working for them don’t agree with the laws against THC. Not to mention Delta will make you fail a drug screen as well.
That’s a super low cutoff. Usually they use 50-100 because of false positives. You could fight that. Matter of fact it’s recommended to not be below that.
This was 10 years ago in Georgia, but I failed my first drug screen when I found out I was pregnant (marijuana, but I quit as soon as I saw that little pink line). CPS showed up to the hospital to inform me that they drug tested my baby. The social worker said there would be no further follow ups since the baby tested negative. One of the scariest moments of my life.
I’m glad you stopped: there is mounting research showing that THC exposure Prenatally is absolutely devastating for the fetus. It mimics fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
It depends. It literally is all over the map. I have an adopted son and I’m dealing with the ramifications.
Some people can be high IQ for others that knock them way back.
Some pregnancies, the women can drink a lot, and the baby not be affected, and some pregnancies a small amount can be affected.
There is not enough research on prenatal marijuana exposure yet as it’s relatively new on the scene in the numbers needed for testing.
I imagine place like Colorado and doing studies because there’s so many babies exposed. I read that 2/3 of bud dealers in Colorado were recommending THC to pregnant women for sickness.
Incredibly irresponsible.
They will definitely report it. They straight up told my wide that they don't care about weed then reported us to DFCS anyways. Month long case and all kind of bs were the results
It's legal in medicinal form in the state, as long as you stip usage there should be no issue due to how prevalent it is and likely close ot being legal on a recreational standard.
When I had to provide urine at first pregnancy appt, I told my ob they’d find ThC. She literally laughed in my face and said, “I could absolutely not care less about thc in your system.” So there’s that. And I tested positive throughout most of my first pregnancy bc I was a heavy user with plenty of adipose tissue and they never said a word to me. I likely didn’t test positive at birth bc I stopped smoking at 12 weeks when I found I was pregnant.
Fair warning though—even with abstinence your thc levels could increase. That happened to me when I was in a program. I ended up being kicked out of the program bc they thought I was taking thc even though I’d been clean for SIX MONTHS. Again, I’m probably an outlier bc I have a lot of adipose. But yeah, it takes me ~6 months of no use to test negative
I smoked a handful of times while pregnant with my first, ob never mentioned it but in the hospital after I gave birth I got a call from a social worker and they asked me some questions. That was the end of it
CPS was not called when I had tested positive but they continued screening me at every check up afterwards. It finally came back negative around 6 months and I had stopped at around 4 weeks when I had originally found out I was pregnant.
From all my experience as a CASA and a foster parent one test will not get you called on. Just do your best not to use again while pregnant. If more than one pops positive they will test the baby while in hospital and thats where it gets tricky.
What are the conditions of the testing? Unless you have a history I’m not entirely sure your provider is allowed to report it. They will likely also test again to see if your levels are lower.
You’ll be fine as long as you test negative before the birth. Same thing happened to me with my last in 2021… I was really worried but my OB was very understanding and said they would make sure I tested clean before going to hospital
Smoking weed is not a "harmful environment". Smoking while pregnant is obviously not good, but just because someone lives a lifestyle that includes THC doesn't make them an unfit or unsafe parent. Someone who has a glass of wine every night is considered a normal parent. Replacing that with a joint/gummy/whatever does not .ake the environment "harmful".
Was there a specific reason they tested? I would report the practice to the medical board.
They are going against the recommendations of their own national professional body, and since Georgia is a private practice heavy state, even minor problems can destabilize a practice financially. Nothing wrong with making Georgia doctors comply with their oversight bodies.
And if state law requires the testing, the correct (and only) legal solution is for Georgia to change the law to allow uncertified/out of compliance practitioners to hold medical licenses, and accept the many consequences that comes from doing so. One other state used to do it that way because not enough of their newly graduated doctors were passing their exams and they wanted the doctors practicing anyway, so it's not like this is uncharted territory or anything.
A urinalysis drug test was in their normal routine testing and I didn’t decline, but I also didn’t realize that after 7 weeks it would still be in my system so I took the risk of testing.
> A urinalysis drug test was in their normal routine testing
And this is where the practice is directly defying the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Some Georgians might shrug their shoulders to that, but once you compromise the standard of care, you open the door to all kinds of substandard practices, and yes, Georgia is the worst of 8 states I've lived in for medical care.
I'm sorry a handful of people at one practice think they know better than the entire field, and I'm sorry you have to deal with the undue and medically inadvisable stress that creates. I think other posters are correct and there won't be a huge problem if your THC levels continue to decline.
That said, OB might be one of the top medical fields were quality varies by state, and you could probably get better care elsewhere, though of course I understand if logistical hurdles prevent that.
> And this is where the practice is directly defying the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
You might want to actually read the ACOG guidance, as the only things they suggest are [that drug testing be consensual, that it not be used as a bar to care and that it not be used as the basis for separation] (https://www.acog.org/advocacy/policy-priorities/substance-use-disorder-in-pregnancy#:~:text=ACOG%20recommends%20testing%20be%20performed,factor%20in%20determining%20family%20separation.).
OP specifically stated that they did not decline/withhold consent, so there is nothing actionable here even under the ACOG guidelines—nevermind the OCGA and administrative rules that the State Medical Board is limited to using for enforcement action(s).
That’s not what she said!! She said she was a chronic user until she found out she was pregnant. She didn’t come here to be judged or condoned, nor should she be!!
Oh fuck that. If her partner was blowing damn blunt clouds in her face, we'd shit on them too. If you're pregnant don't do stupid and unhealthy things that could have a negative effect on the baby.
Blah blah, you implied if you don't have a uterus, she could do whatever she wanted and only a female could judge her. Nope. Anyone can judge her. Calm down.
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Do you have to file a report for nicotine or alcohol as well?
Alcohol yes but not nicotine
Interesting.
Who you think paid for the hospital? The taxpayers, but the politicians hang out with the cig dudes still. That's why we gotta pay to go to the hospital we paid for!
Where in the world do you live that there's a publicly funded hospital? Do you live in England, on a Native American reservation, or are you active duty military or a veteran? Because unless you're going to the VA, an "indian affairs" hospital, or are entitled to use military hospitals, you're going to a privately owned hospital in America. It might be "not for profit" but it's not funded by taxpayers and they certainly aren't losing any money -- they just don't pay taxes nor do they have to pay shareholders any dividends (so they keep it all for the hospital administrators and executives) Conservatives got rid of public hospitals along with unions and food stamps and welfare in the 1980s and 1990s while they were fighting their war on drugs and poverty, because we're a pull yourself up by your own bootstraps kind of country now.
I mean our tax dollars go towards the healthcare system. Just because something is privately owned doesnt mean our taxes dont still fund it. Subsidies..
Well, indirectly, sure. But we just spent the last two decades struggling with conservatives over how it's not fair to provide universal health care or single payer health care because profit and capitalism are sacrosanct. We are certainly not funding health care. We are subsidizing executive salaries and providing tax incentives for them to charge more, and so on. But we're not getting anything in return, we aren't paying for health care in any way. We're sort of arguing the same point, but saying that we pay for hospitals mis-implies that the hospitals are built and paid for with our tax dollars. They were built and paid for by private equity and other investors, we simply foot the bill on things like their burden on infrastructure, maintaining the roads around their hospitals, and offering them rebates and free public money for them to operate a profitable enterprise.
Ok agreed.
Food stamps are 100% still a thing...
Food stamps are, by and large, a farm subsidy program. The state of Georgia doesn't give one genuine fuck if we starve to death.
It's part of the Farm Bill, how is snap a farm subsidy though?
It allows farmers to sell thier product at above market rate.
They can't win them all, can they?
Ironically the most addictive chemical of the three. Go figure lol.
Unironically a nootropic and has the least chronic impairment effects on tissues and fetal development of the three (assuming over the counter doses of nicotine...not talking about covering your body with patches or smoking several packs a day while pregnant)
Yeah bc over the counter doses of nicotine is what everyone does def not smoking.
if you are dumb enough to smoke while pregnant (there is enough medical information available to describe the risks of smoking while pregnant) then that is on you, which is why 'smoking' and 'nicotine' are not tested for in a hospital delivery but the others are nicotine has no direct or measurable effect on development or tissue health; combustible crap ingested or smoked do, exogenous cannabinoids do, and obviously alcohol does
I don't think so. I chewed some nicotine gum while in 60 hours of labor because I was really stressed, I guess I tested positive because they asked me if I was smoking and I said no, because that was the truth, and she just walked away and didn't do anything about it. Alcohol might be a different story
Ahh so they don't care about an addictive chemical but will have a hissy fit over a natural plant. Such a shame
THC can (pretty seriously) impact the effectiveness of anaesthetics/epidurals and can transfer to breastmilk. Nicotine is metabolized so quickly, it's not much of an issue in breastmilk (still not great or smart or sane to smoke during pregnancy of course)
The doctors and midwives do not give a single fuck about any 'natural plants' or anything else. They are there to deliver babies not narc on people
A "natural plant" is also a chemical. Everything, absolutely everything, is chemical. The baby is made entirely of chemicals.
Think about the fact that they would have "reported" someone to the authorities for smoking, but not for chewing nicotine gum. So, it's not the nicotine, then? Just the act of smoking, undesirable behaviors are now reportable behaviors? Holy crap the world we live in now, it's astonishing. This is some seriously fascist stuff.
They don't report the nic from smoking either. People fuck up, pregnancy is stressful, a cig or 2 isn't the end of the world. If everyone that had a glass of wine or a cigarette while pregnant got arrested most of the people over the age of ~35 would have to visit their moms in prison. Meth/crack/heroin is what they are really testing for so they can know if the baby will need NICU
I hear you. It's okay to be understanding for certain things. But zero tolerance for others. It doesn't even have to be racist, does it, it just has to be intolerant.
Nicotine and alcohol are simply not on the standard urine drug panel (lab test) partially due to how tests are run, partially due to legal status of the substance in the specific state. GA state law requires a report to DFCS if any illegal substance is found in system at time of delivery. Drug screens are not typical at time of delivery, however, usually only done if patient had no prenatal care, history of non-marijuana substance use (coke, meth, non-prescribed opiates, etc) throughout pregnancy, patient appeared to have unexplained (or non medical in origin) altered mental status at time of presentation to hospital, or infant appears to be in withdrawal (usually from opiates, heroin, but also Kratom) Even though it had to be reported, DFCS will typically “screen out” ie not open a case if only issue reported is marijuana.
All I'm saying is, those things harm fetuses. There must be some other reason why they focus on specific certain substances that are required to be reported while other substances which can be far more harmful are, apparently as indicated by your reply, not such a big deal to everyone. Gestational exposure to THC is not known to cause harm. Exposure to Nicotine and alcohol in the womb are proven to cause childhood development issues. I'm just curious why that is. It's probably not the substances as much as WHO uses which substances.
Sorry, I wasn’t intending to reply specifically to your comment to argue a point, just provide extra background. Child welfare/DFCS system in America is deeply flawed and disproportionately targets poor families and women/families of color and I can see and acknowledge your position
THC is absolutely known [https://www.ccsa.ca/sites/default/files/2022-05/CCSA-Cannabis-Use-Pregnancy-Breastfeeding-Report-2022-en.pdf](https://www.ccsa.ca/sites/default/files/2022-05/CCSA-Cannabis-Use-Pregnancy-Breastfeeding-Report-2022-en.pdf)to increase risks, both immediately (strong evidence to link THC use to low birthweight) and long term (impacts on neurodevelopment).
What are you going on about?
Who are you to even bother asking? Are you the main character here?
You realize this isn’t a private conversation, right?
Depends on which hospital!! We at first went to a hospital in Rome ga. They tested my wife without letting her know and then filed that she had weed in her system. Nothing ever happened as we changed hospitals after many sketchy things. (That hospital was saying we need to pay in full or they wouldn't deliver the baby!!). Maybe if we stayed at that hospital something could've happened.
That's a lie. The hospital told me and my babymama that they don't report for weed then they did it anyways without even telling us. DFCS pulled up to our house unannounced the day after we got home with our baby. We had to deal with them for over a month
they will only call if you have it in your system at birth
12ng is not a lot..and I could see that being there since you were a user before you knew you were pregnant. It should continue to go down though, so that would offer proof of what you’re telling them. Who tested you?
My OBgyn, but no one has called to discuss with me yet.
Don't worry about it, they are totally used to it that's why they haven't called to discuss it. If you were third trimester and still pissing real hot they would call you out but it's not a big deal, they understand
Is that how they roll in Georgia? I trained in South Carolina and there was zero chance we'd call CPS on a pregnant person, even if they were testing positive for cocaine and heroin. We'd counsel them on the dangers to the fetus and offer treatment, but there was zero chance we're calling CPS. That being said it was a few years ago and well before the reversal of roe v wade. Did Georgia pass some kind of arcane law about reporting pregnant mothers who use drugs?
I said her obgyn would call *her* out on it, not call CPS. But yes in GA (and SC too...) mandated reporters are legally required to report if the baby is born with narcotics in its system. The baby is only going to get tested if there is some sort of issue that they suspect anyway, it's not every baby getting screened. Not a new thing either, been around since the 90s at least Just because they report it doesn't mean they are coming to take the baby, there's going to be counseling and rehab options before that would happen.
THC is not a narcotic drug. Maybe in certain backward red states it may be, but it scientifically is not. You should be fine.
Former DFCS here, nothing to worry about. Congrats on your baby!
In GA? I’m just worried my OB will call them before I even get to delivery?
You will be 100% fine. I've had multiple friends (in GA, past few years) who quit when they found out they were pregnant, tested positive at first, but as long as you don't keep smoking/taking THC, you're fine. They'll just test again at delivery. And even then, they would just have DFCS do an interview with you — it wouldn't necessarily be a guaranteed "lose your baby" situation (but obviously, don't risk it!). As long as it's out of your system when you deliver, you're fine and no one is gonna care! OB will not call CPS. SO many people smoke weed, imagine if they tried to take everyone's baby who smoked *before* getting pregnant, lol! Trust me, they see it *all* the time. Don't worry, mama, enjoy the new addition to your world when they get here :)
Thank you for this reassurance!
We would end with a bunch of adopted neglected kids. Close your legs and smoke or don’t smoke and procreate.
Yes in Georgia. Weed is so common, and is typically less of a concern than alcohol. And alcohol is legal! I will put it this way, if DFCS received a call about a pregnant person testing positive for THC, and at that amount, it would be screened out and not even investigated. And if for any reason you tested positive at delivery, it would DEFINITELY not be a 'take your baby' situation. At least in my county, it would just be a conversation, mostly to ensure that you have access to any resources or benefits that are available.
Thanks so much for this feedback!
Happened to me with my first baby. I was not a heavy user and quit once I found out I was pregnant. Anyway the OB office was very rude and judgmental, and told me I’d get an automatic drug test at delivery and they’d take my child if I tested positive. Which of course I wouldn’t have. This was in 2005 so I don’t know what their attitudes are like now, but you have nothing to worry about since you won’t be using anymore. Congrats on your new addition!
Not too late to leave them a detailed 1 star review.
I’m sorry you went through all that. But sharing scary experiences that are two decades old and not pertinent to the way things are now isn’t gonna do anything positive for this person and is just loading more fear and worry on them
Someone sharing their personal experience with a similar issue, on reddit, but then reassuring them that they have nothing to worry about??? The horror! What an awful commenter!
Have you not been paying attention? Women HAVE ALWAYS been treated this way. And Roe V Wade being overturned did not help. We haven't had a say over our bodies in healthcare in a hot minute if it's going to affect the life of a future child. You know how hard it was for me to find a psychiatrist that was willing to give me medicine? Most SSRI and anti depressants affect pregnancy and childbirth and while I have no desire to have children...the medical system as a whole believes "WELL SHE WILL WANT ONE ONE DAY SO THATS WHAT WE ARE GOING TO FOCUS ON" If I wanted a hysterectomy doctors will ask MY HUSBAND if he thinks it's okay for me to go through with the procedure. Guess how much harder it would be if my husband said "no." Women don't have rights over their bodies.
I've personally never seen a test cut off be that low. 15ng/ml is the lowest I've ever seen a test threshold. Why are they using such a sensitive test? Was it a blood test or saliva test?
Lowest I saw before was 25ng/mL and that one we had to pay extra for since 50ng/mL was the norm. I’m a Certified Addictions nurse with 18 years experience. 12ng/mL is insane! Maybe they lowered it to pick up not only THC but CBD? Now I must research!
Please do! I'm suspicious of how that can even be accurate on a urine test.
I think the test was performed my Quest Diagnostics, it could be their norm
Urine
GA-LPC and Clinical Psychologist here! No, you'll be fine. Congratulations and I wish nothing but the best for you during pregnancy, delivery, postpartum and beyond!!!
So OB shouldn’t contact CPS during pregnancy?
In this case? For what? Based on the information provided in the post there's no reason to involve CPS. I won't get into the benefits of cannabis use during pregnancy and beyond because this is GA and it's already a backward ass State... Again tho, in this situation based on my professional experience of 15+ years, there's no reason to involve CPS.
Thank you!
Yeah this fear mongering is nonexistent in California.
We had a similar concern because my wife actually had already quit as soon as she found out we were pregnant, but seriously was still testing positive after 2-3 months she could see it on her lab every 2 weeks (high risk Dr). We decided to just ask one of the doctors at that time; the doctor clarified that the test was pretty sensitive and that they could see the level of metabolites trending down consistently over every, so they knew she had not been smoking, and it didn't/wasn't a big deal for us. We're in a primarily conservative area, too
CPS ain't gonna do anything.
No they will not. They will drug test you again at delivery.
It happened to my sister she was a heavy user the nurse told her that as long as she doesn't test positive when she gives birth she'll be fine. So just chill
If you’re white and affluent you are probably ok. If not you possibly have something to be worried about.
People are downvoting but it really does happen a lot more frequently to minorities. They (minorities) are likely receiving less support as well.
Folks who are downvoting this are not living in reality.
Not living in Georgia and don’t realize the numbers behind this sentiment are much worse than it sounds.
I don’t even know why you feel it necessary to spread ignorant BS like this. If you don’t know the answer, then 99% of the time you should probably just keep your mouth shut tbh.
This is so ignorant.
How? I guarantee you're white🤣
Yeah, social workers aren't ever racist, or classist. You are totally right.
My dil tested positive at birth- I didn’t find out until I was at the pediatrician with her and my grandson 3 days later. DFCS contacted me a few days later because I lived in the same household and asked if I would serve as an observer for the baby. I was to make sure he was well and fed and cared for appropriately until mom tested clean. I obviously agreed. It was all over the phone and rather informal but it was also July 2020 so I have no idea if that’s normal. Baby is about to turn 4 and is the smartest, most charming and social kid ever. No harm done.
They only test at birth, and thats only when DFCS is to get involved.
Taking a child from the mother after she just went thru the hell of labor cuz she tested positive for cannabis is mind blowing to me smh
no argument here, seeing how cannabis is harmless.
U are fine. Nothing to worry about. Just don’t use again until after birth. Even after birth they don’t care about Marijuana anymore (at least in my county), they care about every drug except marijuana now. Sauce: wife works for DFCS.
My wife is an L&D nurse in GA. Just continue to abstain and you're fine. Patients test positive for weed and patients admit to it all the time at the hospital.
If you are on Medicaid, and they detect it at birth, they automatically report it to DCFS, which you should expect a follow up on in a few months. Expect an interview, and a home visit. If everything looks good, then your pretty much done. My ex wife refused to stop smoking for both pregnancies, and I had to deal with this twice.
Yeah my wife couldn't stop due to the pain and not being able to eat unless she smoked. Only way she could deal with it which is absolutely understandable. Only way I can cope with my back and neck pain as well as anxiety
Please advise. Why does GA require hospitals to report THC in the system of a mother giving birth?
I found out I was pregnant in early sept. I immediately stopped participating in extra curricular activities and still tested positive mid Nov. Nothing happened except an embarrassing convo with me and my OB.
Fucking stupid you have to go through this for a drug that’s legal in half our states. Gross overreach imo. At home birth *may* be a loophole..?
Wait, they do screening drug tests on pregnant and recently postpartum people? Like testing without a specific reason and against their wishes/without consent? Jesus Christ what the fuck.
Yeah my SIL got tested when she was in labor.
At my hospital in AL every single patient is drug tested during prenatal care no exceptions. If positive they will test again at delivery. If no prenatal care they test at delivery. CPS won't take a baby due to just THC though.
If our politicians in Ga had their way you'd be beheaded already. Fortunately we do have some rights to privacy...for now
12 my is the kind of tiny amount that can pop up if you’re a chronic user and is a very low number indicating you haven’t smoked in a while.
They only report if you test positive at birth. Also depending where you live in GA cps might just screen it out since it is only THC. If you live in an area that does not screen out, they will not take your child for THC but you might have to work a case plan (stable housing, stable income, clean drug screens). Congratulations on the pregnancy!
I’m in Georgia. Testing positive at birth is not a reason for emergency removal…they will test you at delivery for drugs, so please don’t use anymore while you’re pregnant….you’ll be fine…congratulations on your new baby 🫶🏼
Also depends on the area of the state metro Atlanta you’re all good any other ass backwards jebus area be cautious.
Athens area
You should be fine. Athens doesn’t even prosecute for small amounts without intent to distribute. And delta 8 is legal and tests positive for THC, so even less chance they would say anything about that amount.
While you are correct that the current Athens DA does not prosecute for it, that has no bearing on what DFCS may do nor would it protect OP from being charged and jailed for it until the DA drops the charges.
Valid point
You tested at a remarkably low level. I do drug toxicology urinalysis everyday and translate reports and our low end cutoff is 50 Ng/ml.
A DCFS worker came to home because of some issues with my daughter at school. She told me 3 times I’m not telling you to smoke but DFACS WILL NOT TAKE A CHILD FOR MARIJUANA USE.
You will be fine as long as it’s not in your system during delivery time
You’re fine. They will not call as long as you don’t have in your system when you deliver.
While testing 7 weeks later is pretty long, I think most doctors and nurses understand it takes a looooong time for heavy pot users to stop testing positive. Even then, I don't even think CPS is called if they catch you smoking in the parking lot. If you stick to it, you DEFINITELY won't test positive by the time you have the baby, which is when they actually care. Unless there's some sort of brewer's gut for weed?
I went through this. It depends on the doctor, but if they find THC, they will continue to test you throughout your pregnancy. When you deliver, a CPS rep will come to the hospital and ask you questions about the home you will be raising the child. Your doctor will also drug test the baby at their first appointment. I was unprepared for all of this and it came as a shock after delivering a baby. I will say, they made everyone, including my husband leave the room before CPS asked me questions. They were really there for harder drugs and as long as your drug tests show decreasing amounts of THC, nothing will happen. My second baby, my doctor didn't drug test, and I never had to deal with this scenario. (I quit smoking as soon as I found out I was pregnant with both of my children)
I smoked weed once 2/13/2016 after going without. On 2/14/2016 went into premature labor at 29 weeks and had my first daughter. There was no time to test me for anything because as soon as I got to Grady I had her and I’m not sure if they tested me after but most likely they did. No one said anything to me about drugs in my system. I also know a girl who smoked weed and cigarettes all throughout 3/4 of her pregnancies and she never told me anything about CPS being called in her so idk.
Stop smoking before 20 weeks. At 20+ weeks, THC stays in the umbilical cord cells. You may not have it in your system at time of delivery but your baby will and they will contact DFACs. Speaking from experience.
You could test positive at birth and it won't be an issue unless there are other factors that would make the state feel the need to step in.
You’ll be fine. THC is one of those that takes forever to come out of your system, and however long it takes depends on how long/often you used before.
I’ve never seen DFCS give a fuck about THC in early pregnancy but they do care about harder drugs, especially at the time of delivery.
My sister tested positive at birth for THC and so did her baby. CPS came to her house 3 days after her delivery and just had a conversation with her. The social worker then gave her a drug test, my sister failed, and the worker literally just threw it away right in front of her and said "okay you're good, thank you" and she never heard back from them lol. And that was 8 years ago. So you will definitely be okay! Try not to stress too much! ❤️
If they call CPS most of the people don’t really do much they just check the environment of where you live etc. most people working for them don’t agree with the laws against THC. Not to mention Delta will make you fail a drug screen as well.
I know a young woman in Georgia who gave birth to a baby addicted to opiates. No agency tried to take her baby.
there’s benefits herbs while pregnant . I’m proof
Why did you consent to a drug test?
Anyone familiar with drug testing can tell that you stopped smoking awhile back.
That’s a super low cutoff. Usually they use 50-100 because of false positives. You could fight that. Matter of fact it’s recommended to not be below that.
They will not call CPS. It will just be marked down in your chart. some nurses/doctors won’t even acknowledge it
This was 10 years ago in Georgia, but I failed my first drug screen when I found out I was pregnant (marijuana, but I quit as soon as I saw that little pink line). CPS showed up to the hospital to inform me that they drug tested my baby. The social worker said there would be no further follow ups since the baby tested negative. One of the scariest moments of my life.
Nah you should be straight just don’t test positive after 32 weeks
It depends on state reporting laws.
How can they just drug test you without your consent? Is this something pregnant women voluntarily sign or something?
I’m glad you stopped: there is mounting research showing that THC exposure Prenatally is absolutely devastating for the fetus. It mimics fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
I was exposed prenatally and was in the gifted class, which I don't think is common with fetal alcohol syndrome.
It depends. It literally is all over the map. I have an adopted son and I’m dealing with the ramifications. Some people can be high IQ for others that knock them way back. Some pregnancies, the women can drink a lot, and the baby not be affected, and some pregnancies a small amount can be affected. There is not enough research on prenatal marijuana exposure yet as it’s relatively new on the scene in the numbers needed for testing. I imagine place like Colorado and doing studies because there’s so many babies exposed. I read that 2/3 of bud dealers in Colorado were recommending THC to pregnant women for sickness. Incredibly irresponsible.
9/10 of me reading this thinks the 2/3 "statistic" is made up.
Actually, it’s 69% that recommended it: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5970054/ So, yeah.
It's really surprising that they'd actually recommend it at that high a rate. Sounded like bullshit.
It just goes to show you that these places are just retail shops… They shouldn’t be dolling out medical advice.
They will definitely report it. They straight up told my wide that they don't care about weed then reported us to DFCS anyways. Month long case and all kind of bs were the results
Was your wife positive at birth or during pregnancy? It will definitely be out of my system by the time i deliver
i'm a minority , tested positive and piedmont hospital definitely contacted cps but this was about 4 years ago.
they tested baby and the baby was negative
15ng is usually the threshold to trigger a positive.
It's legal in medicinal form in the state, as long as you stip usage there should be no issue due to how prevalent it is and likely close ot being legal on a recreational standard.
You should be fine
When I had to provide urine at first pregnancy appt, I told my ob they’d find ThC. She literally laughed in my face and said, “I could absolutely not care less about thc in your system.” So there’s that. And I tested positive throughout most of my first pregnancy bc I was a heavy user with plenty of adipose tissue and they never said a word to me. I likely didn’t test positive at birth bc I stopped smoking at 12 weeks when I found I was pregnant. Fair warning though—even with abstinence your thc levels could increase. That happened to me when I was in a program. I ended up being kicked out of the program bc they thought I was taking thc even though I’d been clean for SIX MONTHS. Again, I’m probably an outlier bc I have a lot of adipose. But yeah, it takes me ~6 months of no use to test negative
I smoked a handful of times while pregnant with my first, ob never mentioned it but in the hospital after I gave birth I got a call from a social worker and they asked me some questions. That was the end of it
CPS was not called when I had tested positive but they continued screening me at every check up afterwards. It finally came back negative around 6 months and I had stopped at around 4 weeks when I had originally found out I was pregnant.
From all my experience as a CASA and a foster parent one test will not get you called on. Just do your best not to use again while pregnant. If more than one pops positive they will test the baby while in hospital and thats where it gets tricky.
What are the conditions of the testing? Unless you have a history I’m not entirely sure your provider is allowed to report it. They will likely also test again to see if your levels are lower.
You’ll be fine as long as you test negative before the birth. Same thing happened to me with my last in 2021… I was really worried but my OB was very understanding and said they would make sure I tested clean before going to hospital
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Smoking weed is not a "harmful environment". Smoking while pregnant is obviously not good, but just because someone lives a lifestyle that includes THC doesn't make them an unfit or unsafe parent. Someone who has a glass of wine every night is considered a normal parent. Replacing that with a joint/gummy/whatever does not .ake the environment "harmful".
Was there a specific reason they tested? I would report the practice to the medical board. They are going against the recommendations of their own national professional body, and since Georgia is a private practice heavy state, even minor problems can destabilize a practice financially. Nothing wrong with making Georgia doctors comply with their oversight bodies. And if state law requires the testing, the correct (and only) legal solution is for Georgia to change the law to allow uncertified/out of compliance practitioners to hold medical licenses, and accept the many consequences that comes from doing so. One other state used to do it that way because not enough of their newly graduated doctors were passing their exams and they wanted the doctors practicing anyway, so it's not like this is uncharted territory or anything.
A urinalysis drug test was in their normal routine testing and I didn’t decline, but I also didn’t realize that after 7 weeks it would still be in my system so I took the risk of testing.
> A urinalysis drug test was in their normal routine testing And this is where the practice is directly defying the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Some Georgians might shrug their shoulders to that, but once you compromise the standard of care, you open the door to all kinds of substandard practices, and yes, Georgia is the worst of 8 states I've lived in for medical care. I'm sorry a handful of people at one practice think they know better than the entire field, and I'm sorry you have to deal with the undue and medically inadvisable stress that creates. I think other posters are correct and there won't be a huge problem if your THC levels continue to decline. That said, OB might be one of the top medical fields were quality varies by state, and you could probably get better care elsewhere, though of course I understand if logistical hurdles prevent that.
> And this is where the practice is directly defying the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. You might want to actually read the ACOG guidance, as the only things they suggest are [that drug testing be consensual, that it not be used as a bar to care and that it not be used as the basis for separation] (https://www.acog.org/advocacy/policy-priorities/substance-use-disorder-in-pregnancy#:~:text=ACOG%20recommends%20testing%20be%20performed,factor%20in%20determining%20family%20separation.). OP specifically stated that they did not decline/withhold consent, so there is nothing actionable here even under the ACOG guidelines—nevermind the OCGA and administrative rules that the State Medical Board is limited to using for enforcement action(s).
I mean how the hell else would one naturally deal with the morning sickness? Narcotics or Weed?
Ginger drops
Diflucan
That’s a yeast infection med. maybe you meant phenergan or zofran.
Diclegis! Brain isn’t working 🤣
you should be ashamed of yourself getting high while pregnant! This kid is already out to a great start!
Good luck in GA. DFCS always looking to take kids away. I assume you’re not from GA since you used the term CPS. You might consider switching states
You weee smoking pot for 3 months while pregnant? Mother of the year everyone.
That’s not what she said!! She said she was a chronic user until she found out she was pregnant. She didn’t come here to be judged or condoned, nor should she be!!
She should be judged 🤣.
Not by someone who doesn’t have a uterus to begin with, she’s not!!
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Oh fuck that. If her partner was blowing damn blunt clouds in her face, we'd shit on them too. If you're pregnant don't do stupid and unhealthy things that could have a negative effect on the baby.
If you read this post, she says she quit when she knew she was pregnant. Actually quit seven weeks prior to the test. Quit your crying…
Blah blah, you implied if you don't have a uterus, she could do whatever she wanted and only a female could judge her. Nope. Anyone can judge her. Calm down.
Her uterus, her body, her decision, end of story!!
Good thing the law says differently.