COVID-19

April 24, 2020

Our prayers are that you are enjoying the promise of spring, warmth of the sunshine and the smell of the earth as she puts forth new life!
There is so much information available on the internet about FASD with courses from CANFASD.ca as well as numerous groups and group chats providing opportunity to discuss issues related to FASD, we will focus on one thing at the time as we begin this new process of touching base with you, individuals and families impacted with FASD in the Mackenzie Region of Alberta.
With the encouragement to stay at home, to not be in close contact with anyone but immediate family to prevent the spread of the virus, many of us say “Welcome to our world!” As families who have individuals impacted with FASD and as the individuals become adults, our means to survive a world where it is difficult to interpret what other people say and do, where rules or guidelines can be interpreted in various ways, where noise is constant, and where everyone wants to tell you how to think and what to do, we have learned many years ago that the best place for our families is at home!
Our world is overwhelming, and our children have been helping us learn this for years! Many of us learned it by trying to “control” the behaviours of an overwhelmed or frustrated child during a family gathering, a shopping trip or what was thought to be a simple picnic in the back yard with not even 15 people! What we did learn over time is that the “bad behaviour” that so many people pointed out to us so we would learn to “control our children,” is actually the only way in that moment that our children could communicate “Help me! I’m over whelmed! I don’t know how to react! There is too much noise!” and so on.
Many families learned that the safest place for the child is often at home where environments can be controlled (for the most part), where the children know the routines and expectations, where we learned to say what we mean and mean what we say and follow through.
Through this post we will try to offer information on how to rethink behaviours we are seeing, strategies on supporting home education and perhaps even some activities that will help to redirect behaviours.
For all those in our region who now have the stress of the water rising on the Peace on top of the Pandemic, our thoughts and prayers are with you! Thank you for staying in touch with our frontline Coaches and let us know if there is anything we can do to help.