The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges has just agreed to open up a spot in their conference this March for a presentation on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, and I have the privilege of making that presentation.

This is a good thing. New (and better) research is showing a 2-5 % prevalence of FASD, and just about all of it goes unrecognized. For those of us whose mothers drank during pregnancy, this means difficulty with planning, poor memory (especially for what we're supposed to be doing--like--what the heck was I going to get here in the kitchen?), much worse judgment than you'd expect....and a whole raft of other screwinesses. This condition often gets diagnosed as AD/HD as many of the symptoms overlap.

So you can imagine why this might be important for the judicial system to understand, especially in dependency and delinquency courts. I've become something of an expert on the subject and serve as consultant on two State teams...but most of my work in the field is unpaid.

And NCJFCJ doesn't pay its speakers' expenses. So I'm asking for some Wacco creativity to help me raise money for plane ticket, hotel, and if there's any left over, for registration so I can actually attend the conference.

Thank you for any and all suggestions!

If anyone wants more info on FASD, my website might be helpful:
www.vpweb.com

Kathy