Category: Diagnosis
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The Crisis in FASD Diagnoses: A Call to Action
In the US, we absolutely have a dearth of those qualified to diagnose Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. There are something like nine diagnostic centers across the country. Just doing some quick math, if we consider that 5% of the population has an FASD, and that consideration is on the LOW end, that means that there…
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Screening Pregnant Women for Substance Use: Key Insights
“You don’t want to go on a date with me, do you?” There’s no good way to answer this question. If I do want to go on a date, I’m actually disagreeing with the person asking me. If I don’t, well, you know…saying “You’re correct. I don’t,” is hard. I refer to this as the…
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Would Your Baby Pass The Test?
The number one cause of pregnancy-related deaths in the US is mental health conditions, which includes overdose and poisoning related to substance use disorders.
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Defining Recovery
I am not a person in long-term recovery, but I have not had an alcoholic beverage since August 16, 2015. The last time I was intoxicated was in 2008, I believe. It was while on a wine tour in Italy, and the grappa did me in. Not a good last day in Florence, and I…
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Luck or Fate? Do I Have an FASD?
This blog has been edited from the original. Last week I had the privilege of traveling to Washington, DC, to be part of FASD United’s Impact Week. I met a fellow Wisconsinite, and we started devising a plan for more advocacy in our state; I met with an aide from my Congressman’s office to discuss…
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Cold Cuts, Sushi, and Alcohol
I googled the three questions below and copied the first answer that popped up: “Can I eat cold cuts while I’m pregnant?” “The safest course of action to protect your baby is to avoid deli meats until after pregnancy. If you plan to eat deli meats anyway, we highly suggest cooking them until they are steaming.…
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The Other Face of Stigma
I recently read an article in Women’s Health magazine about a triathlete whose friend suggested she have a growth on her arm looked at. The athlete disregarded the suggestion. Time went by, and now her brothers also expressed concern about the growth. At that point, if I’m recalling the article correctly, the athlete went to…
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How Do YOU Define “Party”?
For the last fourteen years or so, I’ve been doing assessments to determine whether or not people have substance use disorders (SUDs). We all know that the younger a person starts using substances, the more likely that a SUD will develop, so my assessments always include a version of the following questions: “How old were…
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Bias Against Babies
Bias is defined as “prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair.” This topic comes up often regarding testing pregnant patients for misuse of drugs. For example, in April 2023, JAMA reported that “Black patients, regardless of history of substance use,…
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