Figure 6.

Role of brain changes in the relationship between drug use and parenting. Drug use is known to cause a number of brain changes (teal boxes and arrows). These changes can influence each other (red double-tipped arrows) by either amplifying or diminishing alterations depending on the behavioral and biological context. Importantly, these changes have independently been shown to contribute to parental care behaviors and when disrupted by drug use, results in reduced sensitivity to the rewarding value of infants and heightened stress. The stress response may be sufficient to trigger drug craving leading to continued drug use and relapse in abstinent mothers. In addition, drug seeking to reduce stress may also perpetuate the cycle of neglect.