how long does it take for narcotics to get out of an unborn baby's system

[Cilla8211]

my friend is 33 weeks pregnant with her 1st child, she has many health problems and was prescribed pain medication before she found out she was pregnant, after she found out she was pregnant she stopped taking the medication for about 2 months, then the pain got so bad that she had to take atleast 1pain pill a day just to be able to bear the pain, she hasnt told ANYONE, not even her doctor, because she's afraid that they will look down on her. She's stopping again before her baby arrives, I was just wondering how long it would take for the narcotics to leave the unborn baby's system?

[N2018]

Will opiates be out of an unborn babys system in 3 months?

[martikadragoon]

The medication I take is something i'll be taking up til I deliver, it's called Norco. It's about like vicoden but 2x stronger for a back injury. and actually my pain mgmt dr just switched me to something a bit stronger but a smaller dose.

Degenerative disk disease is a horrible thing to have (my mom has it and so does my gma). I also have arthritis which causes me issues.
She should be under care of a Pain Management Clinic.... they can decide what's safest for her to take. any narcotic pain meds have the risk of dependancy in baby but the symptoms can be manageable after birth, and withdrawals can be handled.

1 pill a day wont likely affect a child majorly so I doubt baby will go through any serious withdrawal problems.  She has a preexisting prescription. as long as she has that, from ANY point as long as it's in her name she won't have any trouble from her doctors.

And if they are smart at all, they're going to understand the amount of pain she's in and has been in and offer to treat her pain better.

The bigger she gets, the more pain she'll be in most likely. she needs good pain control because pain will cause her body stress, it can drive her blood pressure up and it can do the same to baby. Chronic pain ***** to have.

[Ashelen]

I'm not sure, but I think there's something the doctors can prescribe for her that would be safe to take past 35wks....she should definitely check. They may choose to do a c-section since it sounds like it wouldn't be possible for her to deliver with those kinds of problems....I know she's scared but if she has a prescription she should have no fear to tell her doctor and maybe he can work with her to determine the safest course from here.

[Cilla8211]

she's 19 and has degenerative disk disease, austio authuritis, RLS, and 2 ruptured disk in her back

[Ashelen]

Generally the recommended cut-off is after 35 wks you should stop taking pain medicine, because you never know how close to 35 wks you'll deliver and your system needs time to clear. I was given dilaudid to take for my kidney stones at 34 wks, but I stopped taking them at 35 wks even though I still had 2 stones to pass, because I wanted my system to be clear before the baby came. It was agonizingly painful, but I knew I was making the right decision for the baby and your friend is making the best choice too. As long as she stops by about 35 wks she should be fine, and I don't think she should be afraid to tell her doctor, but she also shouldn't have waited so long to tell him. What sort of pain does your friend have, if I may ask? there are all sorts of medicine-free alternative methods for dealing with pain that can help. Good luck :)

[martikadragoon]

it takes up to 30 days for the meds to be out of the system. they can test muconion if they have reason. she was prescribed the meds so its ok.. Don't worry about it. as long as you have a  script your alright.

[NicMom]

No judgement, but she should tell her doctor about the pain and they can write a script for a safe for pregnacy pain pill. I took vicodin for a bladder infection and then again for a back injury. I think the meds only stay in the babies system as long as it stays in mom's. Again there are pain meds that can be used while pregnant, but she should talk to a dr to find one that works for her.