Most children and especially most adults with a fetal alcohol syndrome disorder will never be diagnosed. “Probably 1 percent of individuals who are walking around the state of Alaska right now who have this disability, 1 percent are getting a diagnosis and the other 99 percent are not,” said Marilyn Pierce-Bulger, a nurse practitioner and […]
4 families seek to confront, understand FASD
Second of two parts. Read part one, What You Don’t Know About Drinking and Pregnancy: Four Mothers Tell Their Stories. Such an easy baby. Serenity only cried when someone held her. She looked healthy enough, her mother thought. A nine-pound newborn with a wisp of blond hair and cloudless blue eyes. But so quiet. What […]
Diagnosing FAS and FASD
Four experts work as a team to diagnose a child with FAS. A psychologist, a medical professional, a speech pathologist and an occupational therapist examine the child in a process that can last from hours to months. Diagnosing FAS is more complicated than simply looking for physical features caused by alcohol, although those can […]
What you don’t know about drinking and pregnancy: Four mothers tell their stories
About the time of her divorce, Susan Essary started meeting friends for beers and whiskey on the weekends. She normally only drank on holidays, Essary said, but two cans of Miller and two shots of Jack Daniels made it easier to talk. She vented about co-workers, her ex’s nosy family and the […]
How Much Can I Drink?
Confused as to whether any amount of alcohol is safe for an expecting mom to drink? You’re not alone. Recent, well-publicized studies from researchers in Denmark downplay the risks of consuming alcohol during pregnancy. Such a suggestion is wrong, according to Dr. Susan Astley, a University of Washington fetal alcohol syndrome expert and […]
Is it Autism or FASD?
Autism or FASD? Autism and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are different disabilities with some similar symptoms. The causes of autism are not fully known, though most scientists agree genetics plays a role. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, including fetal alcohol syndrome, can only be found in children whose mothers drank during pregnancy. The […]
Alcohol & Me: Five things you should know about FASD
If you think FASD doesn’t affect you and your family, Deb Evensen wants you to think again. Evensen has been educating Alaskans about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders for more than 30 years. She works with school districts and organizations across Alaska and the U.S. to address the issue. In this video, she explains the five […]
“It’s not something that can be fixed”
Lounging by the pool on a cruise along the Mexican Riviera, sipping rum and Coke, in 2004, Heidi Case didn’t know she was pregnant. Like nearly half of all pregnancies in the U.S., hers was unplanned. It wasn’t until her son, Jacob, was 7 years old that she realized her drinking had damaged his brain. […]
“My goal in life is to give her the best life she can have”
Helen Benson changed her life while staying at a shelter for abused women. Pregnant with her daughter, Serenity, she turned away from a lifestyle of alcohol and drugs that she was desperate to overcome. Now sober for seven years, other challenges remain. In 2012, Serenity was diagnosed with partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. For Helen it […]