The FASD Success Show

Ep. 181 | Dr. Debbie Michaud: Healing Old Wounds & The Journey from Lived FASD Experience to Doctor

Jeff Noble

What if healing isn’t about fixing what’s broken but finally seeing it clearly?

In this episode of The FASD Success Show, Jeff sits down with Dr. Debbie Michaud, a researcher, advocate, and storyteller whose groundbreaking dissertation Hitchhiking With Mama: Living With FASD, A Collection of Truths explores what happens when we stop trying to fix the past and start understanding it.

Debbie shares her journey of growing up in a family shaped by trauma, addiction, and undiagnosed FASD, and how retracing her childhood with her mother became the key to forgiveness, understanding, and healing. Together, she and Jeff explore what it means to break generational cycles, redefine success, and create peace even when others can’t change.

In This Episode You’ll Hear

• How understanding intersectionality helped Debbie see her mother’s story with       “new eyes”
 • Why healing doesn’t erase the past, it reframes it
 • The road trip that transformed resentment into compassion
 • What Debbie learned about executive functioning, survival, and doing the best        you can with what you have
 • Why you can’t change others, only your role in the story
 • The neuroscience of guilt and why understanding replaces shame with empathy
 • How redefining success can close the gap between expectations and your                family’s capacity

Why It Matters

You can’t fix or change the past, but you can move toward healing and more good days at home.

Dr. Michaud’s story shows that reconciliation doesn’t always mean resolution. It means seeing the people you love, and yourself, through a brain-based, compassionate lens. Because healing isn’t about perfection, it’s about presence, regulation, and connection that lasts.

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