- Kay Shaw, 32, was addicted to heroin for 10 years smoking £200-a-day
- When pregnant with her third child she was unable to break her addiction
- When baby daughter Billie was born she was immediately taken into care
- Baby Billie was healthy and not addicted to heroin despite mother’s abuse
- For four more years her mother continued to abuse the drug
- But at the age of 27 she decided to turn her life around and banish the drugs
- Ms Shaw has been clean for the last five years and now wants to help others
- She has since had another son Kenzie, now two, in May 2012
- She said: ‘I’m so angry that I put drugs before my baby but I hope that one day I can make up for my mistakes’
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A heroin addict pregnant with her third child continued to smoke the class A drug up until the birth of her daughter, powerless to stop her 10-year habit.
Kay Shaw smoked £200 of heroin a day at the height of her addiction.
Such was the hold the drug had over her, the 32-year-old was unable to break free of its grasp when she became pregnant with Billie.
Ashamed of her actions now she is clean, Ms Shaw said ‘it’s disgusting but it happens’.
Her daughter was born four weeks premature, and was immediately taken into care by social services.
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Former heroin addict Kay Shaw, now 32, continued to smoke the class A drug while pregnant with her third child. She is pictured with her son Kenzie, two, who was born after she got clean
At the height of her addiction, Ms Shaw was smoking £200-worth of the class A drug each day
The mother-of-four gave birth to her daughter Billie in February 2006. She was four weeks premature and was immediately taken into care. While she is in contact with her older sons Kye, 16, and Louis, 15, Ms Shaw (pictured with partner Ryan) is hoping to be reuninted with her daughter
HOW DOES HEROIN IMPACT A BABY?
Drugs, including heroin, can pass through the placenta to reach an unborn baby.
Heroin can slow down the baby’s growth and have an effect on its brain development.
It can also cause the baby to have breathing difficulties after birth.
One of the most serious problems heroin causes for the baby is withdrawal symptoms after birth.
If the baby develops these, it will need special care in hospital.
As the baby gets older, he or she may be at increased risk of behavioural problems and intelligence could also be affected.
Trying to give up heroin during pregnancy can be dangerous and result in miscarriage, premature birth or stillbirth.
As a result, pregnant women who want to give up the drug need to be monitored on a drug treatment programme.
Source: The BabyCentre
Now Ms Shaw, who has been clean for the last five years, wants to warn others about the dangers of the class A drug.
She said: ‘I cried every day when I was pregnant and taking drugs because I felt so guilty.
‘I’m so ashamed of taking heroin during my pregnancy, but when you’re addicted to something it’s so hard. I think it’s disgusting but it happens.’
‘Just because you’re pregnant you can’t stop just like that.
‘I’m so angry that I put drugs before my baby but I hope that one day I can make up for my mistakes.
‘I
want to show people that heroin is an evil drug that can wreck your
life, but it is possible to battle back from the brink – I’m living
proof of that.
‘I was worried about the harm I was doing the baby but I wasn’t the first to do it and I won’t be the last.
‘I’ve since had a baby boy, Kenzie, and I feel like I’ve been given a second chance.’
The mother-of-four grew up in West Yorkshire with her mother, older brother and sister.
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