by Lisa Van Allen, PhD, Chair of RSDSA’s Advocacy Committee
Throughout the month of September, RSDSA will participate in the US Pain Foundation’s #ThisIsPain awareness campaign on social media and we invite you to join us! Here are seven ways to raise awareness about chronic pain and CRPS:
Spread Awareness: U.S. Pain Foundation will share #ThisIsPain statistics and graphics on their social media channels each day. Consider sharing those on your social media channels and tell the story of how this neuro-inflammatory syndrome regularly impacts your pain. Help both organizations amplify the voices behind the numbers!
Tell Your Story: Submit an op-ed to your local news outlet—or send it to U.S. Pain and RSDSA. Please note that select stories may be featured on the U.S. Pain and/or RSDSA website and social platforms to spotlight lived experience.
Read & Share Weekly Articles: Each week, U.S. Pain will publish a new article highlighting key findings from their national survey. Consider sharing them to spark awareness and conversation!
Explore and Provide Data: Review U.S. Pain’s survey findings to understand the scope of pain in America and also consider taking RSDSA’s community survey so we can better understand what the CRPS community wants to see and hear from us.
Build Community: Join one of RSDSA support groups. We recently updated our support group list to ensure we are providing the most updated information to the community.
Advocate for Change: Contact your elected officials about policies affecting pain care. Share data with your congressional representatives and ask them to support funding for pain research.
Validate Someone’s Pain: Sometimes the most powerful action is simply listening. Reach out and remind someone with CRPS that they are seen, heard, and believed.
As you post on social media, be sure to use the hashtags #ThisIsPain along with #CRPS.