Only trained professionals can make an FASD diagnosis. FASD is often misdiagnosed because many of the characteristics look the same as mental health disorders.
Signs to look for that may indicate the need for an FASD assessment include:
- Sleeping and sucking problems as a baby
- Hearing or vision problems
- Difficulty in school; especially in math
- Poor coordination and fine motor skills
- Sensitivity to light, touch, sound
- Tremulousness (uncontrollable twitching or tremors)
- Hyperactive behavior
- Difficulty paying attention
- Impulsivity
- Poor memory
- Poor reasoning and judgment skills
- Perceptual Problems
- Difficulty reading the social cues of others
- Difficulty retrieving CNS information when stressed
- Diminished Intelligence
- Better expressive language than receptive language
- Facial features (small eye openings, smooth philtrum, thin upper lip
