Mandatory Drug Testing for All Pregnant Women Is the Stupidest Idea Ever

dinsdag 17 september 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Adriana Velez 2 hours ago

Great news for women expecting babies in Indiana: Drug tests for everyone! Cheers! Indiana's attorney general Greg Zoeller is proposing mandatory drug testing for all pregnant women and girls. It's about money, supposedly. Zoeller says screening pregnant women for drugs could save the state $30 million in hospital fees for treating infants with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) -- babies born addicted to drugs, in other words.

Okay ... if this highly intrusive abuse of human rights really were in the interest of helping drug-dependent women and girls get treatment, I could see how it might be almost justifiable. But come on, can you think of any other group of people who are subject to mandatory drug testing without probable cause? If you were pregnant, would you be okay with this?

Apparently Indiana doesn't have the greatest history in the way it treats pregnant women with drug dependency. You're more likely to get criminalized than to get help, which means another baby in the system and another woman in prison. And that sounds more expensive.

I worry that if at-risk women and girls know drug testing is mandatory during pregnancy, they'll be less likely to seek the treatment they need throughout their pregnancy. Because they're not seeing a doctor (which is already a big problem among low-income women especially), other health problems will go untreated, resulting in problems with delivery and health issues for their babies. All this because they're afraid a drug test will land them in jail.

I'm sure plenty of women will read this and say, "Well, if you're not taking drugs, you have nothing to worry about." But I can't be that selfish and short-sighted.

What is it about being pregnant that suddenly makes you less of a human in some people's eyes? Why don't we trust pregnant women? Why are they treated more like property or dependents? I hope AG Zoeller's proposal fails.

Do you think there should be mandatory drug testing for pregnant women and girls?

Image via Jeremy/Flickr

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Adriana Velez

is a staff writer who dabbles in food, parenting, news, entertainment, molecular biology, and anything else that that pops into her head. She lives with her elementary school-aged son in Brooklyn, land of urban farms and artisan everything.  

More
?

reacties | | Read More...

Wife Tells Marine Husband She’s Pregnant in Most Adorable Way (VIDEO)

dinsdag 3 september 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Nicole Fabian-Weber 2 hours ago

What could possibly be more exciting than being reunited with your Marine husband after his at-sea period? Oh, I know! Getting to tell him you're pregnant in a super adorable, super creative way -- and getting his epic reaction on tape!

You have to check out this incredibly touching video of a military wife surprising her husband with the news that they're expecting a baby. Oh, and the onesie apparently says "Daddy's Hero" on it. You'll know what I'm talking about after you watch.

Check it out:

Is this great or what? Love that this woman did this -- and positively love her husband's awesome reaction. Congrats, you guys!

How adorable is this?!

Image via kelseyjulian/YouTube

Click "Like" if you love someone in the military!
?

reacties | | Read More...

Did Cop Who Punched 'Pregnant' Woman Use Too Much Force?

vrijdag 30 augustus 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Rebecca Stokes 13 hours ago

The police have issued a statement regarding their recent controversial arrest of a 16-year-old teen boy and his 21-year-old sister, Brenda Hardaway, who claims to be pregnant. The story garnered public notice when a video was released of the sister being arrested with what appears to be an undue amount of violence. In the video, she tells the officer she is pregnant as he attempts to cuff her. Eventually, the officer punches her in the head and moves her forcibly to the ground. The Rochester Police argue this claim, saying that their officers acted with "tremendous restraint."

The reason the officers gave for their arrest tactics? They claim that the pregnant woman had pointed a can of pepper spray at them. However, if that is indeed what took place, it wasn't captured on the video which later made its way to YouTube.

Police officers find themselves in high-risk situations every day. Many have lost their lives as they try to do their job and keep the streets safe. Seen from that perspective, you could argue that the police officer was doing what he saw necessary to prevent harm.

Of course, there are times when forceful methods can and should be used when apprehending suspects. If a woman is pointing a gun at a crowd, would you expect the police to keep their hands off of her simply because she is pregnant? No. You wouldn't.

But watching the video a second time, it's harder to believe that this was an instance where the correct amount of force was used. Even if the woman did threaten him with pepper spray, she was well subdued after the fact. The punching and subsequent behavior just seems like it was driven by panic and anger.

Do you think the officer used too much force in this case?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rebecca Stokes

Rebecca is a writer who lives in Brooklyn with her cats. She is probably even at this moment spilling food on herself.

More
?

reacties | | Read More...

Woman Wakes Up From Coma to Find Out She Is Three Months Pregnant

maandag 26 augustus 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Sasha Brown-Worsham 6 hours ago

In an amazing story out of England, a woman woke up from a coma to discover that she was 12 weeks pregnant with a child who managed to miraculously survive the moped crash that put his mother in the hospital. Now, her baby is 12 weeks old and despite massive head injuries that left her unable to remember the previous three years of her life (including who the father was), Gemma Holmes is thrilled to have a healthy son.

The details are almost too grim to believe. Holmes was tossed from her moped into a lamppost and was not expected to survive the traumatic crash. Her mother was told she was 12 weeks pregnant and advised to make the decision to terminate. But it was not a decision her mother felt comfortable making.

Miraculously, Holmes pulled through and was able to continue the pregnancy and give birth to a healthy son through C-section. She named her son Ruben Miracle. The reasons are obvious.

"I just thought that if this little baby inside me had managed to survive the awful crash then he was meant to be," Gemma told The Daily Mail. 

It was not an easy pregnancy, either. She was unable to take high dose pain killer for her accident because she was with child so she endured a lot of pain because of it. Still, she persevered.

I will never complain about pregnancy again. Both she and her son are so lucky, but I am in awe of a woman who was so brave and did so much to bring her child into the world. Good for her.

It is also amazing that her mother kept the faith and believed enough not to terminate the pregnancy. She is a huge part of the reason baby Ruben exists. It takes an awful lot of faith to make that leap, but what a good decision.

I can't even imagine the pain she might have felt upon waking to hear she was pregnant and her mother decided to terminate. This story is a true miracle, something we don't get to hear every day.

What an amazing little boy.

Would you have made that same decision if you were the mom?

Image via Aslak Raanes /Flickr

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sasha Brown-Worsham

can't decide whether she is a mother, writer, or runner, but is usually all three at some point each day. She has written for dozens of print magazines, newspapers, and websites. She rarely ever writes on bathroom walls.

More
?

reacties | | Read More...

Pregnant 'Twerking' Is All the Rage -- Are You Doing It? (VIDEO)

vrijdag 16 augustus 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Mary Fischer 16 hours ago

It's the latest dance craze that probably won't be going away anytime soon -- and apparently it's gotten so popular that even pregnant women are twerking and posting videos of themselves shaking their thing.

Yep -- twerking. As in wiggling their hips, jiggling their butts, and thrusting their pelvises in and out.

You gotta love it. Check it out.

Ahh! All I have to say is -- mama's got some serious moves!

Let's face it -- pregnancy is probably the least sexy period of time in any woman's life, or at least it was for me. Once I got past the first trimester, I felt like a big, sweaty blimp who bordered on the lines of being totally repulsive. Sexy definitely wasn't a word that was in my vocabulary at that point in time -- but maybe I would've felt a little differently if I'd gotten my twerk on?

If nothing else, at least shaking it in front of the camera would've brought a little more fun and excitement into those long days -- and I'm sure my husband and I would get a huge kick out of watching the clips now. (Though he'd probably never let me live them down.)

At least today's twerking moms-to-be have an awesome pregnancy memento to bust out at the most inappropriate time to embarrass the heck out of their kids down the road. OMG -- can you imagine the looks on their teenager's faces if they bust out the videos on prom night?

That would be classic.

Have you twerked during your pregnancy?

Image via ABCNews

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mary Fischer

is the writer behind The Mommyologist, and the mom of a future famous comedian. Her current loves include cosmopolitans, reality TV, and shoes that don't pinch her feet.

More
?

reacties | | Read More...