Fetal Alcohol Syndrome?

Question

My best friends baby was born as a fetal alcohol syndrome baby and now is about to turn 21 in a couple of months and wants to go out and drink with her friends? How would drinking affect her now and if its not a good idea then how would you explain to her why she can't drink? My best friend is in a major dilemma now.

Answer 1

FAS effects the following in adults as well as children:

Children with FASDs might have the following characteristics or exhibit the following behaviors:

    * Small size for gestational age or small stature in relation to peers

    * Facial abnormalities such as small eye openings

    * Poor coordination

    * Hyperactive behavior

    * Learning disabilities

    * Developmental disabilities (e.g., speech and language delays)

    * Mental retardation or low IQ

    * Problems with daily living

    * Poor reasoning and judgment skills

    * Sleep and sucking disturbances in infancy

If she already has a low IQ or poor judgment, drinking alcohol will only make her decision making skills worse.

However, the reality is that she is an adult and can do as she pleases. If she does not know that she has FAS, then this is a really bad time to mention it because she probably is not mature enough to deal with it on her 21st birthday.

If that is the case and she has had poor judgment in the past, you can ask her to recall the times that her judgment was poor and explain that alcohol will make things that much more difficult. Try to get her to agree to limit herself to no more than 2 drinks with food. Ask her friends to urge her to limit her drinking if she can't do it herself. Friends can be more helpful than parents at times.

I wouldn't want her first drink to be on a night out with friends. Consider allowing her to have a supervised drink to see how she handles it. Then you will know how much to worry and she will know how it feels without being in an unsupervised situation.

Answer 2

Your best friend and/or her daughter should go see their doctor. This is a medical condition and should be dealt with professionally. I'm sure theres a lot of variation in FAS patients, so hearing accounts from other FAS patients might not be very helpful. Also, FAS patients have a very high chance of drug/alcohol abuse and issues like this should definitely be dealt out with professionals.