M.E. Awareness Campaign: The Effects Of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

In 2017 I created the “Effects of ME” campaign for ME Awareness month in May. Quotes were collected from patients about how ME affects their daily life and I then used those quotes anonymously to create impactful graphics which the community could share during the online awareness campaigns.

The campaign continues to run to this day, with new quotes trickling in all the time. The graphics have been very well received in the M.E. community and continue to be shared widely. People relate to the quotes and it makes expressing their experience so much easier. I hope you will find this collection useful for your own advocacy efforts too.

The Effects Of M.E. Quotes

Click on the above examples to zoom in.

You are welcome to share these images online or print them out to share at events.

How It Works

You simply fill in a short form online, it will probably take less than 5 minutes.

Then, once I’ve received your contribution, I will create a graphic with your words and add it to the public collection.

If you’d like to submit your quote to the public collection, click the button below:

PLEASE NOTE: Please keep in mind that I make these graphics manually, I am just one person and I too have Severe ME, so your quote may not appear in the collection right away. I reserve the right to discontinue this campaign at any time. I thank you for your patience and understanding. – Char (Chronically Hopeful)

Using These Graphics For Advocacy

Please note that by submitting your quote, you agree that your words will be shared anonymously, by me and others, on social media and possibly on printed posters as part of the M.E. awareness campaigns.

Please visit this page to read the full terms of use if you have intentions of using these graphics anywhere other than on social media.

Your Privacy

This campaign is completely anonymous, I will not use any of your identifying information on the graphics I make.

If you do not wish to use your real name in the form, you may use a nickname or initials.

Your email address will not be shared publicly, it is only needed to contact you about your quote, if necessary, and to send the completed graphic to you.

Translating These Campaigns

I am working with a group of volunteers who are translating my graphics into various languages. I am so excited about this project! It will equip so many more people to raise awareness by helping them express their experience of M.E. in their own language.

The idea came about after I was approached by a few different M.E. advocates asking if they could translate my posts and graphics to better connect with their audiences. So I opened it up and asked for volunteers to come forward and they have!

The work is only just getting started, but I’m hopeful that by the time Awareness Month 2020 rolls by, we will have a diverse collection of awareness resources in various languages. In the meantime, as each campaign is translated, I will add links to the galleries here as well as create albums on social media for easy sharing.

Volunteer Translators Needed

If you speak another language and would like to volunteer as a translator, please email me and I’ll send you all the details.

I understand that health might be an issue for many, so rest assured, you can work at your own pace. Your health must come first.

Click here to email me!

How To Print Your Poster For Events

Many have asked about printing these graphics out to display at awareness events. So I have tested it, the poster came out nice and big, covering most of the page. Here’s how I did it:

Double click the image to open it, then select the following menu options

File
Print…
Select A4 (or whatever your page size is)
Select Fit To Page (so it fills the page without spilling over)
Print

Another option would be to insert the picture into a Word document, adjust size, margins, etc and print it.

Contribute To Other Awareness Campaigns

I have a few other awareness campaigns you may be interested in contributing towards. Below you will see examples for each campaign and a link to find out more. I hope you will consider contributing to each one.

Personalised #MillionsMissing Posters

In 2019 I created the “Personalised Millions Missing Posters” campaign for ME Awareness month in May. People were asked to share their stories and photos, how long they’ve been ill and what they are missing out on due to M.E. Over 360 people with M.E. sent in their stories and the collection keeps growing!

The “Severe ME Is…” Campaign

In 2018 I created the “Severe ME is…” campaign for Severe ME Day in August. For this campaign, the severely affected are asked to complete the sentence “Severe ME is…” in their own words. The response I got was heartbreaking. A very honest account of the suffering this illness causes. Participants remain anonymous and must be housebound or bedridden to participate in this series.

These images are free to share online and can be found here.

Thank You!

I’d like to thank all who have contributed to these awareness campaigns, whether online or at live events. Your willingness to open up and be honest about the devastating effects of this condition is truly appreciated. I know your stories are helping many. They help the public understand us better and this helps eliminate stigma, abuse and neglect. It also helps other people with M.E. know that they are not alone. So thank you for sharing.

Share Your Whole Story

If you’d like to share your whole story in more detail, I’d love to feature you as a Warrior of The Week here on Chronically Hopeful and across all my social media channels.

Visit this page to see how you can be featured.

Once again, you may remain anonymous if you prefer not to be identified when sharing your story.