• Transitions to adulthood
• Goals
• Realistic
• Hope
Most persons with FASD have very normal desires:
• To marry
• To have children
• To have money
• To eat
• To have a place to live
• To have good health
• To have free time/recreation
• To be normal
We have identified basic areas that need to be put into place before an individual is able to live on their own. They will fail if these areas are not figured out ahead of time. These needs can either be met by the person or by assistance. But these areas must be met. If they do not have a plan they will fall victim to those areas. Use these lists to teach from.
The areas:
• Money
o Rent
o Clothing
o Medical
o Transportation
o Food
o Recreation
o Giving
• Eating
• Hygiene
• Place to live
• Relationships
o Marriage
o Co-workers
o Friends
- “Friends are people who help you move towards your life goals”
- “Friends are not people who encourage you to drink, do drugs, steal, lie, cheat, sneak, have immoral sex, stay home from work, etc.”
• Medical
o Insurance
o Or medical card
- Lack of this can mean failure. If you get sick you can have medical bills which will make it so you can’t live on your own
- Being sick could cause you to lose your job, therefore losing your money, which could make it so you can’t live on your own
• Recreation/Free time
• Sexuality
o Sex is for married couples only. It may feel good even if you are not married but it causes a lot of confusion and frustrations, it complicates relationships and can cause hard feelings.
o You must decide what you are going to do about it. This area can get you into legal trouble or can cause you to lose your job. This area can cause you trouble socially.
o An unplanned pregnancy can cause you great financial strain.
• FASD percentages (We do not teach this to discourage, but to teach them how to avoid these problems if possible.)
o 90% have mental health issues
o 80% need assisted living
o 80% can’t keep a job
o 70% are victims of violence
o 60% disrupted school experience
o 60% get into trouble over sexual issues
o 50% experience institutional confinement
o a high suicide rate coupled with early death because of abuse or poor judgment
• Faith
Other weaknesses
Ask your parents, teachers, and people you can trust what areas of your life they think would keep you from being able to live on your own. Ask them to be honest. (Areas such as impulsivity, vulnerability, not learning from past mistakes, confusion, etc.) Be sure to add these to your goals list.