Lounging by the pool on a cruise along the Mexican Riviera, sipping rum and Coke, in 2004, Heidi Case didn't know she was pregnant. Like nearly half of all pregnancies in the U.S., hers was unplanned. It wasn't until her son, Jacob, was 7 years old that she realized her drinking had damaged his brain.
Heidi, who says she was a binge drinker for only a short time of life, shared her experience in the hope that more women will understand the risks of drinking when they could be pregnant.
Heidi says telling the story also helps herself.
I've had a lot of time to process. And the hardest thing is just knowing that it won't ever go away. It's not something that can be fixed.