Support for mothers and children impacted by substance use: being effective and addressing challenges

Children of mothers who have used substances during pregnancy, and those who reside in households impacted by substance use by parents or others, have significant long-term developmental, physical, emotional, behavioral, and educational challenges. This chapter identifies the pathways between substance use and these outcomes for children, and the interventions that can effectively disrupt these for improved results for parents and their children. Comprehensive programs that integrate substance use treatment with interventions for building parenting skills, emotional regulation, and reflective functioning, that are attachment- and trauma-informed and use salutogenic and strengths-based approaches, are effective. However, such programs do not always reach or engage the families who need them. Systems are needed to support effective programs through providing warm and welcoming, non-stigmatizing, non-judgmental service environments, address the broader needs of families, and focus on promoting healthy outcomes through providing positive experiences for mothers and babies impacted by substance use.