2023 marked the beginning of a hard-hitting campaign called Yes I Can. It’s aim was to provide inspiring content that highlighted the importance of strengths-based research AND lived experience. As we move into a busy Quarter Two, it’s our honor to present the follow-up to this campaign, “Yes I Am!”

This new 13-week series will provide a more in-depth movement into the research done on children with FASDs, their caregivers, and their capabilities. These include themes like motivation, relationships to others and oneself, and positive influences. This type of research allows children and caregivers to identify and appreciate the positive aspects of their disability, while working towards adjusting what may be considered a more problematic behavior. Many children with FASDs and their caregivers reported motivations towards similar areas of life; such as being helpful, kind, artistic, and successful with visual and physical activities. One of the most vital aspects of this research is growth– and the desire to maintain it. While neurodiversity might make growth look somewhat distinctive or quirky, it is still importantly a fundamental aspect of identity for those with FASDs.

While Yes I Can utilized the slogan “diagnosis not definition” Yes I Am features “I am ME with an FASD” by means of emphasizing a person-centered and lived-experience approach to motivate and encourage those who fall on this spectrum. We have learned over the last few months what can be, and now it is time to embody and explore these “cans” as “ams.”

We’re so thrilled to be able to continue this journey and help more and more people say Yes I CAN and Yes I AM!

Thank you once again to Dr. Christie Petrenko and colleagues for their work on FASD research.