Frederick MD FASD Task Force

09/06/2026

09/06/2026

🎉 A PROCLAMATION FOR FASD AWARENESS! 🎉

We are incredibly proud to share some exciting news from the Frederick FASD Task Force! 💙❤️

Today, the City of Frederick officially recognized September 9, 2026, as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Awareness Day in the City of Frederick! 🏛️

We are deeply grateful to Mayor Michael O’Connor and the Frederick City Council for recognizing the importance of raising awareness, increasing understanding, and supporting individuals and families affected by FASD.

This proclamation is more than a piece of paper—it is a powerful step toward greater awareness, compassion, understanding, and support for the many individuals and families living with FASD in our community. 💙

✨ September 9th is FASD Awareness Day!
✨ September is FASD Awareness Month!

Help us spread the word! Share this post, talk about FASD, learn something new, and help us create a community where individuals with FASD are understood, supported, and celebrated for their strengths. 💙

Thank you, City of Frederick, for standing with us! 🎉

09/06/2026

FASD does not end when childhood ends. It is a permanent brain-based disability.

In adulthood, expectations grow at the same time that support and supervision often disappear. School may end abruptly, and even for those who did not have a positive school experience, it provided structure, routine, reminders, and adults who were responsible for monitoring progress.

When that structure is removed without a thoughtful transition plan and a new system of adult support, life can become even more difficult. The person has not suddenly acquired the executive functioning, adaptive skills, memory, judgment, or emotional regulation expected of an adult simply because they reached a certain age.

It is critical for:

~ IEP teams to begin transition planning early, based on the student’s actual functioning and support needs, not age-based expectations.

~ Social workers and adult service providers to understand the neurological differences associated with FASD and recognize when a person needs more structure, repetition, guidance, and practical assistance.

~ Mental health providers to understand why traditional talk therapy may not be accessible or effective without adaptation. Treatment may need to be concrete, structured, repetitive, relationship-based, and supported outside the therapy session.

~ Justice system professionals to consider the person’s functional capacity, including comprehension, memory, suggestibility, impulse control, ability to anticipate consequences, and ability to participate meaningfully in legal proceedings.

~ Medical providers to understand FASD, its common co-occurring conditions, and the possibility that the person may need information communicated in a different way, additional processing time, help remembering instructions, and support following through with care.

Adulthood does not make FASD disappear. It changes the systems responsible for recognizing it and providing appropriate support. Those systems need to be prepared to recognize and support FASD. They currently are not.

Please follow along this month to learn more about FASD.

Printable pdf: https://f.mtr.cool/o7semckzcc

09/06/2026

Most people don’t realize how common Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) really is. Current research indicates FASD is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Based on prevalence estimates in the general population, there are more people with FASD than the combined number of people with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome and Tourette Syndrome.

This isn’t about comparing or classifying different disabilities. It’s about prevalence - and highlighting the enormous gap between how common FASD is and how little it is recognized, understood, diagnosed and supported.

There are millions of people around the world with FASD. It’s time for the world to be FASD aware. And then it’s time to turn awareness into action.

09/05/2026

❤️ September is FASD Awareness Month! ❤️

This month, let’s lead by example and support those affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

09/05/2026

September is National Baby Safety Month.

During pregnancy, alcohol can affect fetal development, including the developing brain and other organs. Going alcohol-free during pregnancy is the safest option.

To learn more about how alcohol can affect fetal development and find supportive, trusted information and resources, visit: https://ow.ly/lFCl50ZG8Oc.

09/05/2026

09/05/2026

Families need understanding, too

Caregivers often carry invisible stress, advocacy responsibilities, appointments, paperwork, and worry about their child’s future. They do not need quick assumptions or judgment; they need people who listen, believe them, and offer practical help. A supportive community can lighten a burden that is too often carried alone.

09/05/2026

Did you know...?

Most people living with Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) do not have visible facial features. Around 90% of people living with FASD have no obvious physical signs, making the disability largely invisible.

09/04/2026