babylove

1. babylove Developed by Kentucky’s FASD Prevention Enhancement Site Lmnagle@bluegrass.org www.kyfasd.org

2. meet Tara. runs cross-country works part-time dated Daniel for 2 years doesn’t know she’s five weeks pregnant

3. …and her baby already has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. doesn’t know she’s five weeks pregnant

4. meet Daniel. plays soccer plans to have his own business someday dated Tara for 2 years doesn’t know he’s about to become a dad

5. …and his baby already has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. doesn’t know he’s about to become a dad

6. 82% of teenage pregnancies are unplanned

7. what causes fetal alcohol spectrum disorders?

8. fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are caused when a woman drinks while she’s pregnant

9. fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is an INVISIBLE brain disability… …and it’s 100% preventable.

10. what are some reasons that a woman might drink while she’s pregnant?

11. everybody around me drinks i didn’t know i was pregnant a little bit won’t hurt the baby, right? i drank because: my mom drank when she was pregnant with me and i’m ok i can’t stop drinking people told me it was ok

12. no woman drinks because she wants to hurt her baby.

13. what does it mean to have fetal alcohol spectrum disorders?

14. What Does Your Brain Do For You? Lets you consider all options Reads body languages and cues that aren’t spoken Decides when it’s appropriate to be sarcastic, and when it isn’t Knows how to organize all the steps for a project Remembers the words of a song that you haven’t heard in years Makes a free-throw or stops a soccer goal Reminds you that there are different rules for different situations Looks ahead to predict consequences of decisions Balances work and school schedules

15. Alcohol During Pregnancy Can Create a Lifelong Brain That: …responds slowly ...can’t link cause and effect ...can’t read the emotions or body language of other people ...thinks in a disorganized way ....has trouble moving information from one situation to another ...thinks like the brain of someone much younger …uses poor judgment ...forgets information ...has difficulty with time and money

17. babies with fasd grow into kids, teenagers, adults with fasd… …and it’s 100% preventable. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRQ0iGJ0zXI

18. how much alcohol does it take to hurt the baby’s brain?

19. an unborn baby’s blood alcohol concentration will be the same as mom’s, but for a longer period of time

20. an eight-week old unborn baby is about the size of a raspberry

21. how much alcohol do you think is safe?

22. every single baby reacts differently to alcohol. no one can predict how each baby will be affected.

23. according to research, there is no known safe amount of alcohol for the cells in an unborn baby’s developing brain. not beer. not wine. not a drop of anything.

24. is there a safe time for a pregnant woman to drink alcohol?

26. alcohol can harm: brain kidneys heart bones face ears eyes brain brain brain brain brain brain brain brain alcohol affects whatever is growing at the time

27. according to research, there is no known safe time for a pregnant woman to drink alcohol. the brain grows every single day of the pregnancy

28. the good news: it’s never, ever too late to stop drinking during a pregnancy.

29. can a teenager be addicted to alcohol?

30. anyone can become addicted to alcohol

31. meet Alicia. at age 16, she has physical cravings for alcohol and goes through withdrawal if she doesn’t drink she never thought she’d get addicted – she only drank with her friends on the weekends she didn’t know that she had two strong biological risk factors for addiction: family history high tolerance

33. meet Megan. even though she just found out she’s pregnant, she’s too scared and embarrassed to tell anybody that she can’t stop drinking she wants to have a healthy baby and is trying to stop on her own but her body feels like it will die without alcohol

34. the good news: there is help out there.

35. what if the baby’s father drinks alcohol?

37. alcohol damages the sperm, which can cause physical, mental and behavioral problems in children

38. what about tobacco during pregnancy?

39. smoking during pregnancy cuts off oxygen to the baby, making it harder for cells to grow. it’s a big deal.

40. remember Tara? she didn’t know that alcohol could affect her baby before she even knew she was pregnant.

41. what if he had said: “hey, listen, what if we accidentally got pregnant? we shouldn’t be drinking.”

42. what if her sister had said: “Tara, if you got pregnant, your drinking could hurt your baby even though you didn’t mean for it to happen.”

43. what if her best friend had said: “no one expects to get pregnant, but it happens. don’t make decisions now that you’ll regret forever.”

44. what if her teachers had said: “alcohol is the most damaging substance to a developing baby’s brain. your decisions matter today.”

45. remember Tara? she didn’t know that alcohol could affect her baby before she even knew she was pregnant…

46. remember Tara? …because no one ever told her.

47. who will you tell?

48. “Living It: Stories of Resilience with FASD” http://vimeo.com/14655829

49. “These Nine Months: The Realities of Alcohol and Pregnancy” http://vimeo.com/28009148

50. For more information, visit: www.kyfasd.org