Banding Together for Awareness

Isolation has long been one of the biggest side effects of fibromyalgia. As patients struggle to manage their symptoms, family and friends who don’t understand drift away, workplace relationships shift or even end, and hobbies and beloved pastimes get pushed aside.

But one of the major goals of the National Fibromyalgia Association has always been to build the FM community—to help patients understand that they are not alone.

That sense of community is never stronger than on Fibromyalgia Awareness Day. Commemorated on May 12 each year, Awareness Day is the high point of the NFA calendar, giving the NFA the opportunity to host an event near its Southern California headquarters—and to support people across the country and around the world with their own Awareness Day events—from individuals who pass out informational fliers to support groups that host full-fledged health fairs. This year’s theme, “Make Fibromyalgia Visible,” allows for a lot of creativity in community Awareness Day commemorations.

Kicked off in 2008, the Walk of FAME (Fibromyalgia Awareness Means Everything) has become the NFA’s Awareness Day flagship event. Not only is it a powerful awareness raiser, it’s an event in which FM patients and their supporters can participate no matter where they’re located. Through the NFA’s website, participants can register as “virtual walkers,” sponsor walkers, and establish their own walk teams. 

Individuals and groups can also host their own Walks of FAME, supporting the NFA’s mission, raising awareness of fibromyalgia, and making connections within their own communities. (Click here to find out how you can get involved—even if you’re not up to joining a walk yourself.)

College senior Emily Florian and her team, for instance, are hosting Jog Through the Fibro-Fog in Columbus, Ohio.

“With this event, I want to raise awareness for this illness so people can come to get a grasp of what is really going on,” explains Florian, whose mother has fibromyalgia. “So many people think those with fibromyalgia are faking it or that it is just in their head, so by getting the word out, this will only help others understand more fully. In addition, because there is no cure, any money raised to help research is one step closer to helping those with fibromyalgia!”

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This article was originally published in FMOnline vol. 10, no. 4. To view the other articles in this issue, click on the links below.

In the Spotlight
 Banding Together for Awareness
Proclaim Fibromyalgia Awareness Day
Create Your Own Walk of Fame
Host an Awareness Day Informational Event

In the News
Get Moving
 Problems for Problem Children

NFA News
Awareness Day 2010
Make Fibromyalgia Visible
 Awareness Day the NFA Way
Facebook Fans on the Rise