In 2023, the United States recorded over 80,000 deaths from fentanyl overdoses. An increasing number of infants exposed in utero are being born dependent. In Ohio, a center is helping them through withdrawal.

Brigid’s Path: A Sanctuary of Healing for Newborns Affected by Addiction

Walking through the doors of Brigid’s Path, a specialized care center for newborns exposed to drugs during pregnancy, one is immediately struck by the peaceful atmosphere. Located in the suburbs of Dayton, Ohio, this unique facility is designed to provide a calm and nurturing environment. Soft pastel-colored walls, gentle lighting, and hushed voices create a soothing space where the only interruptions come from the quiet sighs of content infants or the soft exchanges between nurses and parents.

This is not a typical neonatal care unit. Open since 2017, Brigid’s Path is dedicated to minimizing distress from the moment a baby enters the world. For infants undergoing withdrawal, excessive crying can worsen symptoms, making it even harder to manage their delicate condition.

A Safe Haven for Infants and Mothers

On the day of my visit, six newborns were under the care of the Brigid’s Path team. Nurses and volunteers work around the clock to provide comfort and support. Each baby has their own private room, a stark contrast to crowded hospital nurseries.

Among the patient mothers is Chelsea, a mother gently preparing a bottle for her three-month-old son, Carter. As she feeds him, she communicates using sign language—a tender moment that, at first glance, seems ordinary. But Chelsea’s journey has been anything but.

“I was homeless and using marijuana. When I was referred here, I didn’t know what to expect, but I immediately felt safe. The doctor reassured me that Carter was healthy,” says Chelsea, a 39-year-old mother exhausted from a sleepless night tending to her son.

Her past is filled with grief, depression, disability, domestic abuse, and substance use, but here, no one questions her history. At Brigid’s Path, the focus is on healing and moving forward.

The Opioid Crisis: A Devastating Toll

These infants are the innocent victims of a nationwide opioid epidemic. In 2023, an estimated 81,083 people in the U.S. died from opioid overdoses, according to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).

The crisis began in the 1990s with the overprescription of painkillers, worsened in 2010 when those addicted turned to heroin. By the time fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid, entered the streets, overdose deaths skyrocketed. Declared a public health emergency in 2017, the epidemic has only worsened. In 2024, Portland declared a state of emergency as a new, fourth wave of the crisis emerged—fueled by fentanyl mixed with stimulants like methamphetamine and cocaine.

Tragically, the crisis extends to newborns. According to the NCHS, one baby is diagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) every 24 minutes in the U.S.

A Different Approach to Care

Lisa Jasin, a neonatal nurse at Dayton Children’s Hospital, has witnessed this crisis firsthand.

“At first, doctors told mothers that opioid use was safe during pregnancy. But by 2010, nurses were seeing more and more babies in withdrawal,” she recalls.

Brigid’s Path was founded as a response to this growing need. Jill Kingston, the center’s founder, was inspired to act after caring for a baby in foster care in 2013.

“The first baby I fostered weighed less than 2 kg (4.4 lbs) and had been exposed to heroin. When I fed him, he vomited everything and briefly stopped breathing. I had no training and had to learn everything on my own,” she remembers.

Seeing the gap in care, she created Brigid’s Path—the first center of its kind in Ohio. Named after Saint Brigid of Ireland, the patron saint of newborns, the facility even includes a small chapel where mothers often go to pump breast milk.

Monitoring and Comforting Withdrawal Symptoms

At Brigid’s Path, both nurses and parents keep a close eye on monitors tracking each baby’s heart rate. Withdrawal symptoms include:

🔹 Tremors
🔹 Irritability
🔹 Digestive issues
🔹 Sleep disturbances
🔹 High-pitched, inconsolable crying

Every three hours, nurses conduct an assessment using the Finnegan Score, a clinical tool that measures withdrawal severity.

“If the score exceeds eight in two consecutive evaluations, we call the doctor to determine if medication is needed,”explains nurse Shelly Decker.

Some infants receive methadone, buprenorphine, or morphine—common treatments started in the hospital. However, Brigid’s Path minimizes medication use, prioritizing comfort-focused care instead.

“We don’t fully understand the long-term effects of these medications, so we use them only when absolutely necessary,”adds Lisa Jasin.

A Place of Transformation: 250 Families Helped

Decades of experience have shown that these babies thrive in calm, nurturing environments.

“Sometimes, they need to be held in a dark room for days,” says Jasin. “Babies who scored 16 or 17 in intensive care drop below 8 here—proving that comfort care works without heavy medication.”

Volunteers are trained to rock infants for hours at a time, providing the human touch so crucial to their healing.

“A typical neonatal ward is noisy, with alarms and bright lights,” explains Shelly Decker, who worked in a traditional NICU before joining Brigid’s Path. “Here, the babies are calmer, sleep better, and the families notice an immediate difference. Mothers bond more easily with their babies—without feeling judged.”

Brigid’s Path not only supports newborns but also guides mothers toward stability. Their stay can last up to 90 days, during which they receive help with employment, housing, and social services.

The results speak for themselves:
✅ 85% of babies leave with family members rather than entering foster care.
✅ 250 families have received support since the center’s founding.

For Chelsea, Brigid’s Path has been life-changing.

“I feel more confident, more secure in taking care of Carter. I’m not going back to drugs,” she affirms.

Stories of Hope and Heartbreak

Karen, another mother, continues to visit the center years after her son, Isaiah, was treated there.

“Seeing my baby suffer was unbearable—I knew it was my fault. I recognized the withdrawal symptoms because I had been through them myself,” she says.

Now six years old, Isaiah is thriving—he loves baseball, riding his scooter, and dancing to Michael Jackson.

“This place changes lives!” Karen exclaims.

Not every story has a happy ending.

“I remember a mother of twins who was deeply involved in their care. One day, without warning, social services took them away. That was devastating,” says Kingston.

To provide long-term support, Brigid’s Path plans to expand by building individual homes for families in need—ensuring that more babies like Calvin, Carter, and Isaiah have a chance to heal in a loving environment.

Brigid’s Path stands as a beacon of hope, proving that even in the midst of crisis, compassionate care can make all the difference.