Children and young people with FASD have many positive attributes. Parents and carers frequently comment on the positive attributes and some of the things they enjoy doing.
People with FASD have challenges.
Every person with FASD will have strengths and difficulties in different areas. This depends on the parts of the brain that have been most damaged by exposure to alcohol. There is no 'one size fits all' for people with FASD and not everyone will experience the same difficulties.
“I can never change the rules on him. If I vary from the routine once, that is his new rule. I have to be extremely consistent.”
“Our kids struggle with a lot of things…”
“I am on standby every hour of the day to respond.”
Jacob, 13, has a special interest in photography and is saving to buy a new camera. He produced a series of Christmas cards and this is his photo of his mum in the garden 'Don't forget to smell the roses'. Jacob entered this photo into the creative artworks competition.
Faith has written a story about her life. She is 11 years old and likes animals, swimming and playing on the trampoline and swing. Faith submitted her story to the creative artworks competition.
FASD is different for everyone. Saige submitted a drawing of how it feels for her. She submitted this drawing to the creative artworks competition. Saige is 11 years old
Sam and Jazpa submitted their story to the creative artworks competition as a video which includes a beautiful photo montage. Jazpa is 11 years old.
Dima's mum Anita presented at the 2nd Australasian FASD Conference. In this video Dima is telling his story of living with FASD.
Ten domains of neurodevelopment (the brain's neurological pathways that influence performance or functioning) are known to be affected by alcohol exposure in pregnancy. The following information links those 10 domains with common difficulties seen in people with FASD and tips for helping to improve skills and manage daily activities.
