This Blog was made as a school project for EDU-1155 Support Strategies for FASD class.
This package was made
for foster families but can be adapted to those that work with children who are
affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD),
The way to use this package is to read, learn and
understand what Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is, what causes it and what are
the ways your can help those children in your care. FASD is not a simple thing
to understand and many times there is a lot of frustration when dealing with an
individual with FASD. Patience is an important factor. FASD
is a subject that is not talked about often enough.
Included
in this package is a small printable booklet and a link to a blog that
goes more into detail than the small booklet. Also on the blog there is a link
that allows you to test your knowledge and also has links to other helpful
resources that will provide more information than I have not provided.
When you are looking at working with families in the
foster system there is a chance that you are going to be working with a child
that has FASD. There are many different forms of FASD as it is a spectrum and
no two FASD individuals are going to look the same or act the same but each
child deserves the same care. FASD is a disorder that is in their brain but is
a physical disability, you may not be able to see it, but you can see it
through their behaviours (Rendall, C.,2014). This is not something that the
child did wrong or something that is genetic, it is something that was out of
their control and they need to not be blamed for it. They need to be treated
like any other child. With this disability not being their fault or genetic many wonder how and why, this is a disability that was caused by a choice the birth mother
made well they were in utero. That being
said just because this is a choice that the mother made, the birth mother
should not be treated badly if you have contact with her. This mother may not
have the skills to know different or maybe this was an unplanned pregnancy, not
our place to judge. Our place is to help to the child and the mother to get the
best help they need in life.
FASD
is preventable, but it is
a lifelong disability resulting from prenatal exposure to alcohol that has no
cure. FASD is the umbrella term used to describe a range of disabilities that
may include physical birth defects and health problems including developmental
delays, learning disabilities, memory problems, as well as difficulties in
communicating feelings and understanding consequences. (Government of Alberta, 2013). One thing that you need to
remember as a foster parent is that often when working with an individual with
FASD there is a high frustration level and there is also a high burnout due to
challenges relating to the child’s behavior. Using traditional parenting and
behavioural support strategies does not always work, the harder you try to get
them to do things a certain way the more the child will push away. Frustration
and anger can build because the ways you know are not working. We need to look
at things differently, we need to look and understand why the child is doing
something and how this would be related to their neurological disability. We
need to be doing things differently for each individual child and that is not
always easy but when you take that time to look at things just for each child and
what works best for them it is makes things easier and then you are not
fighting against the grain and having a burnout. (Rendall, C.,2014)
It is also important to
remember these children can sometimes have growth deficiencies but sometimes if
the mother has stopped using alcohol by the second half of the pregnancy the
baby/child maybe normal size at birth and throughout their lives. (Alberta
Learning, 2004).
Sometimes these children in the system are not
diagnosis because there is no proof of substance abuse by the mother well in
utero. Those that have been diagnosed do benefit because they are able to be
interpreted in the right manner and not treated or punished for what is
perceived to be oppositional defiance. When we have the correct information we
can treat these children with the right supports to make their life beneficial,
but when we do not have the diagnosis we need to use our best judgment and try
different things to see what will help this child, sometimes this is a trial
and error process. (Alberta Learning,2004).
This
package was made to help you see different areas of where the child can use
some help and to give you a place to start, this is a field that has much to
share still. The resources are there to help you and anyone else that needs to
understand a little more about FASD.
References:
Alberta
Learning. (2004). Teaching students with
fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Edmonton: Alberta Learning, Special Programs
Branch.
FASD and the Justice System. (2014) Retrieved February 28, 2014, from
FASD and the Justice System. (2014) Retrieved February 28, 2014, from http://fasdjustice.ca/fasd-basics/what-is-fasd.html
Government of Alberta. (2013). Get to know FASD. Retrieved February 28, 2014, from http://fasd.alberta.ca/get-to-know-fasd.aspx
Rendall, C. (2014, Winter). Guidelines for
Intervention Strategies for FASD. Module notes at Lethbridge College,
Lethbridge, AB.
Rendall, C. (2014, Winter). Interventions
for Children with FASD. Module notes at Lethbridge College, Lethbridge, AB.
Understand The Issues for Children with Fetal Alcohol
Spectrum disorder (FASD).(2014)
Retrieved Feb 28,2014 from http://understandingchildrenwithfasd.blogspot.ca/
