The Mother-Baby Prenatal Group: Nurturing Reflective Functioning in a MethadoneMaintenance Clinic

This paper describes the rationale and curriculum for an attachment-based
intervention for pregnant women who attend an outpatient methadone-maintenance
clinic. Maternal drug use has been associated with negative prenatal internal
representations and problems in mutual regulation after birth. Maternal attachment
status during pregnancy has been correlated with subsequent security of infant
attachment. Recent studies suggest maternal reflective functioning as a key mediator in
attachment. The focus of the 6-week Mother-Baby Prenatal Group is to provide a safe
space in which to develop and nurture reflective functioning to support secure maternalfetal and maternal-infant attachment relationships.
KEY WORDS: Maternal-infant attachment, mentalization, reflective functioning,
maternal substance abuse, prenatal intervention