FASD Elephant™ Podcast & Blog

If you've struggled with constant lateness, this story is for you!

After sharing a little about Podfest 2018, you can hear a short but not-so-simple experience I had that gave me some surprising insights into being late. Feel free to learn from my mistakes for more of your own parenting peace.

Two mistakes to avoid are clearly labeled in the podcast, but the third is only alluded to. So, I'll state the third mistake clearly here in the show notes: "Stuff Your Own Feelings--MOMENTARILY!" Check out the podcast to learn more about handling chronic lateness.

Join my email list for a free gift and news about new podcast episodes, plus important information for any caregiver whose kids have difficult behaviors to understand and manage. Join here: Free Gift and Newsletter Sign-Up

See www.FASDElephant.com for show notes.

The 2013 FASD Matters Conference in November was a terrific experience! I met a lot of great new folks in the FASD community, and visited with old friends and acquaintances from over the years, too. One busy and interesting fellow I was finally able to meet and interview is Jody Allen Crowe, Executive Director of Healthy Brains for Children in Eagan, MN. This interview leads off the new year and the 2013 podcast relaunch. (You may have noticed there's more FASD blogs and resources on the website, and now the podcasts are starting up again.)

Jody is an educator with innovative ideas and perspective. He first learned about FASD in late 1980s as an elementary school teacher in northern MN, and he started noticing the impact of the condition on students'  learning. Since then, he worked in several educational systems and then founded Healthy Brains for Children in 2008. The mission of Healthy Brains is prevention, and Jody is especially interested in developing actionable FASD prevention activities for high school kids.

Finding few to no activities "out there," Jody came up with the idea of placing pregnancy tests in bars. They started with a bar in Mankato, MN, and since then the impact has been huge with the "Think Before You Drink" campaign. He also authored the book, The Fatal Link (2008), his journey of learning about prenatal alcohol exposure and its relation to potentially devastating effects when left untreated.

Listen in to the podcast to find out more about Jody Allen Crowe, and check out his website: HealthyBrainsforChildren.org

I'm finally getting my act together to finish up the books, chapters, and articles on FASD I've written or started over the years. For a limited time, I'm holding a survey with a chance to win US$5 Starbucks cards or an FASD Elephant™ coffee mug. More information at my recent blog posting or click and fill out my online survey to share your ideas and a chance to win (till January 28, 2014).

As always, contact me at Michael_at_FASDElephant_dot_com or message from the FASD Elephant Facebook Fanpage.

This is a quick podcast announcement that the FASD Elephant™ is relaunching as a podcast AND blog. The podcasts will be more from my perspective as a psychologist, while the blogs will be a mix of psychology and also my experiences as a foster parent.

Try it out and let me know what you think at FASDElepahnt.com and visit me on Facebook at Facebook.com/FASDWheel

Michael

This podcast episode is an excerpt of my part speaking on a panel titled FASD and Suicidality at the 2011 IHS Action Summit for Suicide Prevention held in Scottsdale, AZ.

Here is the basic outline to my talk on the podcast:

There are also two articles on FASD and suicide:Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and suicidality in a healthcare setting, by M.R. BaldwinSuicide attempts among adults with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: clinical considerations, by J.E. Huggins, T. Grant, K. O'Malley, A.P. Streissguth

If you would like a copy of the power point hand-out, please join my FASD News and Tips eNewsletter to receive an electronic download HERE

If you like this podcast, please consider sharing it on Facebook, Twitter or by email with the convenient share buttons. Thank you!

~Michael Harris

Welcome to the FASD Elephant™ Podcast. Today we’re going to continue with the last half of my interview with Morgan Fawcett on May 25th, 2011. More details are in the previous podcast, number 13.

Here are some websites to find more about Morgan, his CDs, and FASD:

The FASD Wheel™ and FASD Elephant™ are now on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube:

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.

Welcome to the FASD Elephant™ Podcast. After a hiatus for way too long, the podcast is back.

I’ve had a very exciting year so far in the world of FASD. A major highlight in February 2011 was four days worth of workshops and talks I gave in Saskatchewan—for The Saskatoon Tribal Council in Saskatoon, for the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region way up in Prince Albert (in February), and for the FASD Support Network of Saskatchewan which had their annual conference called Communities of Hope in Regina.

A second highlight this year is that I joined a speakers mentoring group led by Bill O’Hanlon (the psychologist who developed Solution-Focused Therapy, a writer extraordinaire, and prolific speaker in New Mexico), Fred Gleeck (a business speaker who really knows how to coach developing speakers on the business side of the art) and Avish Parashar (a very successful corporate trainer who coaches developing speakers and helps with targeting your topic). These guys and my fellow mentees have really been inspirational and I can just feel the jump start to my work in presenting more about FASD but also finally developing my worksheets, charts and books that people keep patiently asking me about.

The final highlight I want to speak of is the topic of this and the next podcast: a recent visit here to Minneapolis by Morgan Fawcett and his grandparents, Sue and Roy Hempel. Here is an excerpt of the press release we created for his visit:

Nineteen year old Morgan Fawcett is an accomplished Tlingit flute player with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). With three albums released, a public speaking career, and a non-profit called One Heart Creations, it seems hard to believe Morgan has any disability. However, he names September 9th, 1991, as his first day of sobriety—the day a judge ordered his mother into alcohol treatment. “That is right,” he says, “My mother drank during her pregnancy, and this is why I raise awareness for FASD.”

 “When I play the flute, it lowers my blood pressure and eases stress away,” says Fawcett. “With FASD, you could have ADHD; but instead of being on Ritalin, I play the flute.”

 “Kids with FASD naturally seek their own ‘medicines’—usually rhythmic or sensory activities that help settle their damaged nervous systems so they can better cope with the ‘ordinary’ stressors of life,” according to Michael Harris, Indian Health Board psychologist who specializes in the disability. However, adults often mistake these medicines for willful misbehavior if odd or inappropriate—e.g., revolving in a swivel chair, pacing, leaving a room, or having a tantrum.

The trick, observes Harris, is for adults to first recognize that the child needs time to settle and regroup, and then to help the child find medicine that works both for the situation and for the child. For Fawcett, the flute is his medicine and his grandparents, Sue and Roy Hempel, perceived that and support it, so he can handle challenges that may be just minor hassles for those without FASD.

For teaching youth and professionals alike to use music and art as a medicine and enjoyable alterative to drugs, alcohol and video games, the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome will induct Fawcett into the “Tom and Linda Daschle FASD Hall of Fame” in June 2011.

Morgan gave talks to each class at a local American Indian magnet school, gave a lecture and concert at my workplace for the public, and honored students in the Warriors Circle groups with an original song, “Legacy,” at the elders’ and family luncheon for students.

I listened to him present about a dozen times to classrooms ranging from High-Five pre-kindergarten to eighth graders in the middle school. It was simply inspirational, to the say the least, to hear him and his grandmother tailor his message to such a wide developmental range. It was just amazing to watch the younger kids settle and focus when he started his presentations with a flute song and then how the older kids asked him tough and thoughtful questions about his disability, his life, and his medicine. People stayed to listen and talk to him for an extra hour after the public lecture and concert at my workplace.

It was also terrific to meet his grandmother, Sue Hempel, who contributed so well during the presentations and supported Morgan as his “external brain,” keeping him on track and providing support and additional stories and information tailored to the different ages. His grandfather Roy was also a great support in the background and part of Morgan’s team of support.

Along the way, I was able to interview Morgan and record it for the podcast. The interview covers topics that have not been normally addressed in the articles about Morgan you may find on the internet, as I wanted to focus on his experiences of transitions, moments of insight and connections, and what medicines he found helpful along the way in order to give listeners insight into what might help others with FASD be and feel successful. This includes having a family and their support, asking the right questions, and becoming strong in his Tlingit culture.

Half the interview is on this podcast, and the remaining will be released in another week or so. The show notes on the website has information about Morgan, how to purchase his CDs, and the name of his websites and contact data. Let me just say though, if you need a speaker for your FASD event, call them up. You will be inspired and glad you did.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.

This is a supplementary hand-out that outlines all the information provided in Podcast #012 (FASD School Intervention: Getting Back to Ready). You may download this from the website, rss feed, or through your podcast player (e.g., iTunes).

Please feel free to make and distribute copies, but please do not alter it in any way. If you have questions or comments, then contact me at Michael_at_FASDElephant_dot_com.

Students with FASD sometimes have “melt-downs” in school. These melt-downs can baffle and anger teachers, staff, and parents, but they are simply the student’s way of showing that they cannot cope with what is being asked of them or with what is going on at the moment.

When a melt-down begins, all goals should change to “getting back to ready,” rather than trying to force compliance (which usually worsens the melt-down). Try the steps suggested in this podcast, and a free PDF hand-out comes with it in episode #012a.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.