 M.E. Awareness Day Each year ‘ME Awareness’ Week is officially recognised. It being the week of 11th - 17th May 2009. In order to shed light on ME/CFS/FM May 12th is designated International M.E. Awareness Day. This date was chosen to commemorate the birth date of Florence Nightingale, the British nurse who inspired the founding of the International Red Cross. A lot of people think M.E is a fairly new disease but it was believed that Florence Nightingale suffered from a paralysing M.E./CFS-like illness in her mid thirties and spent the last fifty years of her life virtually bedridden. Despite her illness, Florence Nightingale managed to found the first ever School of Nursing. It is fitting that the ‘Lady of the Lamp’ now shines as a ray of inspiration and hope to victims of ME/CFS from the 20th into the 21st century. It offers an ideal opportunity to have a united approach across the world to promote awareness and understanding of ME/CFS/FM. Awareness Day activities take place worldwide in an effort to increase awareness of M.E. and allow patients and charities to educate the general public, healthcare professionals and government officials. One of the most difficult aspects of having ME/CFS/FM is that most of the symptoms are invisible, which makes it hard for others to understand what living with this illness is really like. That’s one of the reasons Awareness Day is so important in promoting general awareness, further research and promote better understanding of the condition. In particular to Health and Welfare provision. Help and support is paramount to people with ME/CFS/FM. Please come and donate and have a chat at one of our fundraising sessions, on Tuesday 12th May, at Mayfield Garden Centre, Glebe Lane, 10 -12 pm. or from 2 - 4 pm at Somerfield Supermarket, Roxburgh Street. All welcome! The Support Group and M.E. Awareness was recently mentioned in the local newspapers. See here: http://www.berwickshire-news.co.uk/news/New-support-group-for-Borders.5239331.jp There is a blue ribbon to promote M.E. Awareness, produced by BRAME (Blue Ribbon for the Awareness of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) Tel:01493393717 www.brame.org 
So if you see someone wearing a blue ribbon you will know that they have some knowledge of M.E. and that people are starting to sit up and take notice! Scottish Charity Number-SC 034122.
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