patient advocate

Lupus Awareness Month: Lupus Warrior Jeanette recaps her D.C. advocacy trip

In honor of Lupus Awareness Month, meet PatientsLikeMe member Jeanette, who recently traveled to the U.S. Capitol to advocate for lupus research funding. (Psst — here are some ideas on how to “Go Purple” this May and raise awareness of lupus!) “I try to help the world,” says Jeanette Alston-Watkins (JeanetteA6872). The full-time working mom of two

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Is seasonal affective disorder real? Some call it “folk psychology”— others say it’s legit

Mental health experts first recognized seasonal affective disorder (SAD) — or depression that follows a seasonal pattern — in 1987. Some recent research has called SAD into question. What’s with the clashing theories? What do U.S. healthcare experts say, as of today? And how do people treat SAD? Read on. Questioning SAD Both culturally and

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Jokiva Bellard's lupus diagnosis

Instagram star Jokiva Bellard on living out loud with lupus: “You have to love yourself – you have to put yourself first”

Jokiva Bellard’s old wardrobe: Hoodies, jogging pants, loose clothes, long sleeves. In a word? “Tomboy. I didn’t want anyone to notice me.” She was covering up skin plaques caused by discoid lupus – which routinely brought stares and prying questions from the public. Then came the facemasks. The model, who hails from New Orleans but

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How to be your best health advocate

PatientsLikeMe is pleased to announce a new collaboration with Cathy Chester, a wife, mother, advocate and the voice behind her blog, “An Empowered Spirit: Living a Healthy and Vibrant Life After 50.” You might’ve already seen Cathy’s #MoreThan story about her diagnosis and how she’s much more than MS. Here, Cathy dives into the importance of being your

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#MoreThan multiple sclerosis: Guest blogger Cathy Chester’s journey as a writer, mom, advocate and optimist

As part of our ongoing #MoreThan series, we’re continuing to highlight patients’ stories of all the ways they’re more than their diagnoses. Here, Cathy Chester – blogger, wife, mother and advocate – shares her diagnosis story and how she’s much more than MS. When I was in my 20s I was thrilled to work for

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“I think there needs to be a national-level dialogue about it”: Eleni Pinnow on depression, suicide and her sister’s story

“Aletha Meyer Pinnow, 31 … died from depression and suicide on Feb. 20, 2016.” So begins the obituary that Eleni Pinnow penned about her sister for the Duluth (Minn.) News Tribune. The candid obit went viral and struck a chord with countless readers – in the mental health community and beyond – so Eleni followed

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Getting “Patients Included” right Part II: Planning a patient-centric event

You may remember Part I of this blog that focused on the experiences of two PatientsLikeMe members who attended the Kidney Health Initiative’s (KHI) workshop, “Understanding patients’ preferences: Stimulating medical device development in kidney disease,” back in August. KHI is a partnership between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Society of

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Getting “Patients Included” right Part I: Two members attend a Kidney Health Initiative workshop

Back in August, the Kidney Health Initiative (KHI), a partnership between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Society of Nephrology (ASN), held a workshop called “Understanding patients’ preferences: Stimulating medical device development in kidney disease.” But this was more than a workshop – it was an event centered around the idea

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The Importance of Open Access: An Interview with Patient Advocate Graham Steel

A native of Glasgow, Scotland, Graham Steel is a longtime “Guest Researcher Member” of PatientsLikeMe.  Following the death of his brother Richard at the age of 33 from a rare condition known as variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD), Graham became involved in patient advocacy work, and most recently, in lobbying for open access to published scientific

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