You Can Make A Difference During Celiac Awareness Month (May 2013)

Although more people than ever are being diagnosed with celiac or a gluten-sensitivity, many from all corners of the world continue to suffer due to lack of awareness.

As you see by the statistic above, spreading awareness needs to be a 365 day a year event! It’s wonderful though that during Celiac Awareness Month awareness is stepped up a bit, which surely must contribute to more people being diagnosed. How do I spread awareness? Fortunately I have CeliacCorner which I am 100% dedicated to (though I don’t always have 100% of my time to devote to it, I give my best effort when I do!). I would also like to thank the many, wonderful bloggers out there who also selflessly contribute their time and efforts to spread awareness … well done! So you don’t have a blog to spread awareness? No problem – all you need is a voice, and you can use that voice to make a difference in someone’s life. There are many ways to spread awareness, but I think it is best to start at home, with your family members. Continue to speak with parents, children, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins who have been reluctant to get tested. Here is a very moving video from the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness that you may want to share with your family members. This “Family Talk” sheet will help you with your dialog. Move on to friends, people you meet in the grocery aisle and in your doctor’s office. Share your symptoms, explain the seriousness of this auto-immune disease. The other day I was in Panera (not enjoying one of their fresh baked croissants, of course!), and was chatting with the manager about celiac. She asked about my symptoms, and as I was describing them she was continuously nodding because she was experiencing many of them. By the end of the conversation she was convinced she had celiac and planned to make an appointment with her doctor the following week. A simple conversation … but one that can be life changing for the listener. This is one way of spreading awareness!

What else can you do? Visit the pages of all your favorite national celiac organizations to see what they have lined up for the month. The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness has a wonderful (free) TOOL KIT detailing how they will be “celebrating and educating” that you can download!  Be sure to also check out NFCA’s “Blogger Campaign” featuring personal family stories from a few bloggers throughout May .. read my story HERE!

We have a few great Giveaways coming your way! Our (April) Featured Guest Author, Stasie John, generously donated 5 of her children’s book “The Gluten Glitch”. We will be giving away one (signed copy) per week! Click HERE for more details and to enter!

Also, Rudi’s Gluten-Free Bakery is beginning a fantastic Gluten-Free Camp Scholarship Contest over on their Facebook Page, and we will have a really fun Giveaway (courtesy of Rudi’s) to coincide with that! (our Giveaway is now closed, but you can still enter Rudi’s Scholarship Contest!)

So, during May, educate as many people on celiac disease (including your health care professionals if needed), as you can, but remember even if you have reached out to one person, you deserve to celebrate!

Thank you for checking in with CeliacCorner and for all your continued support.

Paula

If you have a suggestion for how to spread awareness, feel free to leave your comment below!