Prenatal Substance Exposure

Jan Radford is a Registered Nurse with over 30 years...

Ask the expert: Drug and alcohol exposure

This powerful story was the keynote speech at Growing Together:...

Journey to recovery

Video

FASD: Becoming the sensory detective at home

This video highlights the importance of sensory sensitivities in children...

Publication

| May 17, 2022

All about FASD: A guide for adoptive and permanency families

Download this free digital guide for adoptive and permanency families that covers topics such as FASD 101, seeking an FASD diagnosis, advocating for your child, true stories from adoptees living with...

People with FASD struggle with lifelong behaviour and learning problems. In this article, one young adoptee shares her story of life with FASD. All names have been changed. What assumptions...

| September 1, 2019

My life with FASD

It’s very common for adopted children to be diagnosed with both attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). In this article, adoptive father and FASD advocate...

| December 20, 2017

ADHD and FASD: making sense of the connections

Research reveals that prenatal alcohol exposure impacts the entire body, not just the brain. A whole-body disorder For the past several decades, the widely held assumption in the field of...

| November 21, 2017

FASD: It’s not just the brain

Tim Windle lives in Langley, where he’s a leader in FASD advocacy and education. In this interview, Tim describes the difficult but ultimately successful process of identifying, advocating for, and...

| May 23, 2017

Q&A: Advocating for adults with FASD

The growing body of knowledge about interventions and supports that promote success for people with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs) often overlooks sensory sensitivities, which can compound their other challenges....

| December 23, 2015

Q&A: FASD and the senses

Allison Pooley is the Program Director at the Asante Centre. She assists individuals, family members, and service providers in understanding the diagnostic process as well as the implications for providing...

| July 23, 2015

Q&A with the Asante Centre: FASD and adoption

In this instalment of Q&A, we talk with Western University (Ontario) researcher Ben Laufer about the latest science on FASD and how it influences our genetics. What is epigenetics? Traditionally,...

| May 2, 2015

FASD and epigenetics

Brandan’s story – and mine As the adoptive parent of 10 children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, I know how difficult it can be to access services and develop a...

| March 2, 2015

Many doors, no master key

Jan Radford is a Registered Nurse with over 30 years of experience working with children as a clinician, administrator, researcher and educator. She worked with substance-exposed infants and children for...

| September 16, 2013

Ask the expert: Drug and alcohol exposure

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) is a medical diagnosis given to a child who shows medical and behavioural signs of withdrawal from opiates such as heroin and methadone that are manifested between...

| September 9, 2013

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

| September 6, 2013

Ask the Expert: Jan Radford

In her book, The Face In the Mirror, Marion Crook provides an in-depth examination of teens feelings and perceptions about adoption. She says, “Adopted children need reassurance that they are loved...

| August 12, 2013

Meeting the challenges of parenting a special needs teen

Why did you adopt special needs children? At the time we had three birth children who were boys and we wanted to experience raising daughters. We had fostered special needs...

| August 8, 2013

Q&A: What people ask us about adopting special needs children

Adapted from: Susan Edelstein, Children with Prenatal Alcohol and/or Other Drug Exposure: Weighing the Risks of Adoption. Washington, DC: CWLA Press, 1995. Source: The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute (adoption research...

| August 6, 2013

Tips for families considering NAS or alcohol-affected babies

This information applies to any individual who is functionally dependent on others in some specific areas, and who does not learn from correction, or who does not “get” why people...

| August 6, 2013

What it’s like to live with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

When I met Susan Bell* in her large, Surrey home, I was immediately struck by how ordered and tidy it seemed, especially considering it’s home to several teens. I had...

| August 5, 2013

Are you up to parenting a child with FASD?

This powerful story was the keynote speech at Growing Together: a retreat for parents of persons with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) in January 2010. Hi, my name is Nicolas....

| August 5, 2013

Journey to recovery

An honest account of the fun and frustration involved in growing up with twin brothers who both have FASD. When I was in kindergarten, my parents adopted two-year-old twin brothers....

| October 2, 2009

Siblings with FASD

“Are we scaring you?” the facilitator asked me in a very concerned voice. “Not at all,” I lied. My husband and I had recently brought home a sibling group of...

| October 12, 2005

FASD support group: A parenting lifeline

David Murphy of Abbotsford, is brimming with family pride. There’s him, his wife Nikki, two-year-old Cody, the dog and two cats. Children were always going to be part of the...

| December 8, 2002

Father’s fears quickly resolved after adoption

No large Canadian study has been done on the incidence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effect (also known as partial FAS) in children adopted internationally. However, Sunny Hill...

| June 12, 2000

FAS and international adoption: Know the risks

About six years ago, we decided it was time to start building our family. When the old-fashioned way didn’t work for us, I began researching international adoption. The enormous costs,...

| February 6, 2000

Adopting a special needs child: Our journey

More Toolkits

2SLGBTQIA+

The Belonging Network has welcomed 2SLGBTQIA+ people and celebrated all families for decades. This toolkit has resources for and about 2SLGBTQIA+ parents and caregivers, and children and youth.

Adoptee voices

We believe it’s vital to centre adoptee voices and perspectives. Inspired by the #FlipTheScript campaign founded by adopted people, this toolkit gathers some of our best resources by and for adoptees.

Permanency for youth

This toolkit provides valuable resources to support youth on their journey to permanency. Whether you’re a professional, parent, or caregiver, you’ll find helpful information and insights. Youth looking to learn about permanency? Check out AgedOut.com!