Hi! My name is Steve.

“As people with FASDs, we always take the long way to get to the simplest thing,” he said. “I want to offer hope.”

And he has. His book, The Long Way to Simple received a Mom's Choice Gold Award for Best Adult Non-Fiction.

Stephen Neafcy spent 43 years of his life thinking he was a loser. He dropped out of high school because he could barely understand a thing he learned. He ended up in trouble with the law because he stole things that caught his fancy. Inner peace was impossible to find.

Then, in 1996, his sister took him to the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Clinic in Seattle, where a doctor diagnosed him with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, or FASD. Neafcy had brain damage. Finally, in middle age, he had an explanation as to why his life had been a living hell for so long.

“I was born drunk,” said Neafcy, who recently wrote a book on FASD and how to live with it. “I never knew what I was doing. I couldn’t remember anything. It was just like being drunk, when you forget where your keys are.”

His book, “The Long Way to Simple, 50 Years of Living, Laughing and Loving with FASDs” (click the book to order from Amazon!) offers a lighthearted look at what it’s like living with FASD. The breezy read provides practical advice on living with the disorder or taking care of someone who has it. It is a perfect simple workbook for teens and young adults to transition into adulthood without feeling alone.

My Gift to you of Six FREE SAMPLE PAGES from my book.

We started to read it together and I just don't want to put it down. Steve, if you could only hear Chalsee as I read with her say Mom that is what happens to me ---she smiles and tells people see my new book, Steve wrote it and he knows what I am going to face growing up because he's been there - it will be easier for me with Steve's help.

--Shelley, Wisconsin

Steve - congratulations on a well done accomplishment. The 2007 National Teen-Adult Life in the FASlane conference birthed a voice for adults - valued and referred to at the camp as EXPERTS with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. Your life provides us an "Expert Witness" of success. Your book, written from a person with FASD's language and perspective gives insight to those of us who walk alongside others who have these brain challenges. Thank you Steve for your courage to put this on paper so all can grow and share your experiences.

--Jodee Kulp, Minnesota

Stephen and Barb Neafcy have brought the painful truths of how difficult it is to fit in when one has a FASD to light in this delightful book. The strategies Stephen outlines herein for coping with his stresses would help just about anyone, but to an adult struggling with a FASD, they may just be a lifeline. I see their book as an eye-opener for many who have yet to be clear that prenatal exposure to alcohol changes lives irrepairably. Stephen discusses his coping strategies with candor and with grace. I am very grateful to the authors and the publishers for the creation of this book and have purchased a copy for my son who is also affected.

-- Dianne Kerchner, California

A little bit about me:

I was very thin as an infant and was, from what I understand held back from being born until the doctor could arrive. I also understand my late mother had a hard time with bringing me into the world. I was very slow at learning how to crawl and everything was very difficult for me to pick up and learn. I was still wetting the bed at age 12 and had so many bad habits like biting my nails, which I still do today. I was always confused and never seem to fit in with peers my age. I was a very poor student in school and could not retain anything I was being taught (keep in mind I was presumed to be a normal child, I was never placed in special education class!) I was very easily lead to do anything right or wrong and even with being told that this activity was inappropriate behavior, this never clicked in! I kept doing the same inappropriate behavior over and over again - stealing, lying, "playing doctor!" I always was seen hanging around younger children. I felt I had nothing to prove around younger kids and I was relaxed. I also felt this way with adults, but when it came to peers my own age I was so nervous I had to compete and this scared me to death! I would rather go upstairs to what I call my cocoon (my room) and turn on my music and get lost in the words Simon and Garfunkel music was a favorite to get lost in "I Am a Rock" and "Homeward Bound" are two I listened to a lot! I would fade away into a world of my own!

Click here to read a poem I wrote called "The Alcohol's The Blame For It All" and you an read more about me on Teresa Kellerman's wonderful site called FAS-STARS where you can meet people who live with FASDs or read more about Stephen Neafcy

Love In Christ

Stephen J. Neafcy

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