International Ataxia Awareness Day (IAAD) is celebrated every 25th of September of each year. Various individuals and Ataxia organisations around the world get together to promote and raise the level of awareness about this rare disease.
What better way to get involved in the fight against Ataxia than IAAD? The leading agency dedicated in this outreach effort is NAF, but your help and involvement is also needed! So, we are calling individuals and organisations to unite through planning events and/or awareness campaigns for IAAD.
Bamboo Sleep Comfort for Ataxia Support
Ataxia is a term for a rare group of disorders that affect coordination, balance, and speech. Ataxia can come in different forms that can also affect people in many different ways.
The disease can affect anybody, regardless of age. It doesn’t discriminate based on race or sex, either. Studies propose that among the people living in the UK, around 10,000 are affected with some form of ataxia. Some types of ataxia can be treated; however, in most cases, there is still no cure.
People who suffer from ataxia can experience discomfort and pain associated with the daily strain that their bodies endure. This stress comes from accomplishing – or trying to accomplish – just the basic daily activities that those without the disease take for granted.
By using bamboo sleep comfort products, these people can experience relief from these daily stresses. The shredded memory foam bamboo pillow, for instance, is designed to conform to individual needs to provide the support that the head, neck and shoulders need during sleep. This, in turn, allows the spine to return to proper alignment as the body rests to reduce strain and relieve pain. The mattress topper helps promote alignment and relieve pain as well by providing additional support to the body in the right areas to lessen the strain placed on pressure points created by the body’s weight bearing down on itself.
Ataxia Awareness
Recently, a survey asking about the awareness of the disease showed that only 10% of the people in UK know about ataxia. That is why every 25th of September of every year we encourage our friends to involve themselves and help us tell others who will also tell others and still others more about ataxia.
Take advantage of International Ataxia Awareness Day (IAAD) in order to promote change. It is imperative for us to tell everybody what ataxia is, and why there is a need to understand the condition.
By increasing ataxia awareness, an effective cognisance of the condition is passed on by GPs and therapists to the general public or the average person. If more people know about the disease, then more will be encouraged to fund research to find a cure. Also, having a better understanding will result in fewer misunderstandings about the lives of people affected by the disease.
There are many ways for you to help in spreading the word about ataxia. We suggest you download the impactful posters featured in a campaign last year and encourage you to get permission to post them at your work place, school, GP practice, and home. There are also fliers available for download and printing which outline a description of the disease. The booklet Our Ataxia: What’s That? furnishes more comprehensive information about ataxia.
NAF would be pleased to know the ways in which you have told the world about ataxia. Please email NAF at fundraiser@ataxia.org.uk – they would be glad to share your support with their members.