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 Holder has been on his bicycle since May 20th, and
will be riding from Topsail, North Carolina to Los Angeles,
California.
Holder is a sociology major at University of North Carolina Chapel
Hill. His trek across the country is part of his Morehead-Cain
Scholar studies, which is an undergrad equivalent to the Rhodes
Scholarship.
Holder is raising awareness and doing research for FASD, not only to
further his education, but to bring into focus the number of
children that are born annually with FASD. Holder experienced the
impact of the disorders first hand through his two adopted brothers.
Both born with FASD, they have struggled through life with various
issues. Because FASD is not widely discussed, it is a little known
and often misdiagnosed disorder that comes with embarrassment for
the families as well as the young people who are suffering. Because
it is a disorder that comes from alcohol abuse immediately prior to
and during pregnancy, Holder says that blame is often placed on the
mother for the sufferings of the children. Holder says that isn’t
always reasonable because in many cases, the mothers are pregnant
without knowing right away.
Holder came into Lincoln Sunday evening to spend the night with the
Patrick Hake family. Hake, who teaches Physical Education and
Drivers Education at Lincoln Community High School explained that he
and his family had met the Holder family about a year ago at an
Attachment Camp. The camp is a specialized program for families with
foster and or adopted children. Hake said that his family and the
Holders became friends at the camp and have stayed in touch.
Holder’s original plan for Sunday was to bike through Champaign and
into the Bloomington/ Normal area. He was also riding with the
intent of staying over with people he knows or people that are a
part of his research. Knowing the Hakes, Holder accepted the offer
of an overnight stay and altered his course slightly to ride into
Lincoln on Sunday.
Hake said that in addition to raising awareness, Holder is doing
research on the topic of FASD and his trek across the country has
several ‘zigs and zags’ in it so that he can make those connections.
While Hake is not part of the research, as friends of the Holder
family, he and his family welcomed the opportunity to shelter the
young man for a night.
On Monday morning, Holder rode his bicycle from the Hake home to
Kickapoo Creek Park where he would meet up with a Bloomington
television station for an interview.
While there he had the opportunity to visit with people in the park
and share why he was traveling across country this summer.
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Holder shared facts about FASD such as the information found on
his website:
FASD is “America's most invisible disability that is
two-and-a-half times more common than autism,” and “FASDs
affect five percent of Americans and are largely stigmatized. In Ohio alone,
five percent of the population is 584,500 people and that doesn't include their
families.”
Information posted by the Centers for Disease Control expand a
bit on FASD
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) are a group of
conditions that can occur in a person whose mother drank alcohol during
pregnancy. These effects can include physical problems and problems with
behavior and learning. Often, a person with an FASD has a mix of these problems.
There is no known safe amount of alcohol during pregnancy or when trying to get
pregnant. There is also no safe time to drink during pregnancy. Alcohol can
cause problems for a developing baby throughout pregnancy, including before a
woman knows she’s pregnant. All types of alcohol are equally harmful, including
all wines and beer.
To prevent a child from having an FASD, a woman should not drink alcohol while
she is pregnant, or might be pregnant. This is because a woman could get
pregnant and not know for up to four to six weeks.
If a woman is drinking alcohol during pregnancy, it is never too late to stop
drinking. Because brain growth takes place throughout pregnancy, the sooner a
woman stops drinking the better it will be for her and her baby.
Signs and Symptoms
FASDs refer to a collection of diagnoses that represent the range of effects
that can happen to a person whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. These
conditions can affect each person in different ways, and can range from mild to
severe.
A person with an FASD might have:
Low body weight
Poor coordination
Hyperactive behavior
Difficulty with attention
Poor memory
Difficulty in school (especially with math)
Learning disabilities
Speech and language delays
Intellectual disability or low IQ
Poor reasoning and judgment skills
Sleep and sucking problems as a baby
Vision or hearing problems
Problems with the heart, kidneys, or bones
Shorter-than-average height
Small head size
Abnormal facial features, such as a smooth ridge between the nose and upper lip
(this ridge is called the philtrum)
After visiting with people at the park on Monday, Holder continued on his ride
across the country. Holder is riding alone with only the supplies he can carry
on his bike. He says that he is riding about 100 miles per day. In total his
trek from North Carolina to California including the zigs and zags will be about
4,000 miles. He hopes to be in Los Angeles by mid-July.
Holder has a website with a go fund me account to benefit North Carolina FASD
and a link to his Instagram and Facebook pages. To visit that website
click here.
[Nila Smith with photos by Patrick Hake]
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