IAAM Establishes World AUTOIMMUNE Arthritis Day (WAAD)- A Day to Differentiate Autoimmune Arthritis Diseases from "Arthritis". January 2012

In January 2012 IAAM established the 1st day aimed to combat the misunderstandings that surround Autoimmune Arthritis diseases.  Hosted online, this 36 hour event will include Awareness Posts to share, educational materials, patient profiles, a live Online Radio Show and more.  Are YOU ready to learn how you can participate?  Visit www.WorldAutoimmuneArthritisDay.org, www.facebook.com/WorldAutoimmuneArthritisDay and www.twitter.com/WAutoimmuneAD now!


IAAM's Media Awareness Hotline Helps Spur Retraction from 
Dr. Phil- Obesity is not a precursor to Autoimmune Arthritis
October 2011

On September 23rd's episode of "Overweight or Underfed", Dr. Phil McGraw made a statement suggesting that 'childhood obesity could lead to adult diseases like Rheumatoid Arthritis'.  Rheumatoid Arthritis is an autoimmune disease that affects the joints, connective and soft tissues, and sometimes organs.  It is caused by a faulty immune system, influenced by genetics and/or environmental influences.  Osteoarthritis, otherwise known as "arthritis", is degenerative and only affects the weight bearing joints.  It is caused by age, wear and tear or injury.  This is the type of arthritis that can be caused by weight putting excessive stress on the joints.

Immediately following this broadcast, IAAM put a Call to Action in motion, reaching out to the Autoimmune Arthritis world to reach a minimum of 500 letters requesting a retraction.  Volunteers worked diligently for 3 days, emailing, posting on social media sites and asking bloggers to get the word out to the community.  The following week, after learning of this grassroots campaign, MyRACentral contacted IAAM to feature in an article that was to be published about this subject on the morning of World Arthritis Day 2011.  That morning IAAM was contacted with information that the article would not be published due to a retraction agreement that would be posted later that day on Dr. Phil's official blog.  A combination of factors, including IAAM's mission to involve the public, brought a resolve to this matter.  Thank you, Dr. Phil...we applaud you!


World Arthritis Day 2011- What's "Your Number"?
October 2011

The International Autoimmune Arthritis Movement was created in part to unite the world of Autoimmune Arthritis.  It was also created primarily to raise awareness about the differences between "arthritis" and the type of arthritis that is autoimmune in nature.  So IAAM chose to do an event that brought together bloggers and social media page administrators in all areas of the diseases they advocate for most.  Bloggers were encouraged to write their stories of onset, specifically mentioning age, which is typically young, and their general health when diagnosed.  At the end of the blog they instructors readers to visit facebook and post their "Number" in their status. They were also invited to visit the IAAM public Facebook page, where Founders and Volunteers hosting a live event for 30 hours.  The Host, Tiffany, Founder and CEO, even slept in her living room for the night, just to ensure she could post at least every 2 hours for the people tuning in from different parts of the world.

'Your numbers" are a combination of three numbers all Autoimmune Arthritis patients have:
#of weight at time of onset - #of age at onset - #of current age.
So an example of a 40 year old, who was 35 at onset and weighed approximately 145 pounds would read as: 145-35-40.  Patients were asked to message friends and family, asking them to post their numbers in their honor.  And for those sufferers who choose to remain "invisible" (typically due to work security or personal reasons) IAAM posted XX-XX-XX in their status for an hour in their honor.


At the end of the event, IAAM revealed the meaning to the public:  “My Numbers” was an awareness initiative  designed to highlight two of the biggest misconceptions about Autoimmune Arthritis.  One, that these diseases are related to older age and two, that they can be caused by excessive weight. Autoimmune Arthritis diseases are systemic, autoimmune illnesses that recommend low grade chemotherapy as the first line of treatment. Average age of onset in children is 7-9, in adults 20-40. They affect joints, connective and soft tissues, and even organs. Most people affected with these diseases are in healthy shape at time of onset, but if they cannot afford the treatments (approximately $2k a month out of pocket in the US) they risk becoming completely disabled within 10 years from onset. It is thought to be caused by genetics or environmental factors. Osteoarthritis, otherwise known as “arthritis”, is a degenerative condition that affects only the weight bearing joints. It is caused by wear and tear, injury, or age. Weight gain can result in this type of arthritis. The “Numbers” represent: Weight at Onset/Age of Onset/Current Age. As you can see, these are young diseases, happening to relatively healthy people, who may be experiencing disability at a very young age."

Overall the event was a huge success.  Did it catch on as well as the infamous breast cancer awareness event? No. But it did bring the world of autoimmune arthritis together for a day and some awareness was made!




IAAM Leaders Selected for the American College of Rheumatology's Capitol Hill Fly-in
September 2011
On September 20-21st, Tiffany Westrich, Founder and CEO, Tami Caskey Brown, Co-Founder, and Katie Emmerson, Volunteer, for the second year in a row, headed to Washington DC as selected Patient Advocates for the American College of Rheumatology.  Their participation will help to educate Congress on the value of the rheumatology subspecialty and the impact arthritis and rheumatic conditions have on ones' quality of life.  Each IAAM representative was partnered with a rheumatologist and other medical professionals, spending the day on Capitol Hill where they met with members of Congress from their individual states. 

IAAM will continue the contact with the representatives in their own jurisdictions, providing information that can be helpful in understanding the needs of Autoimmune Arthritis Patients.  In addition, Katie has started an initiative to feature patient story a month, complete with profile and interview, in order to assist in understanding the effect of these diseases.  IAAM will be sponsoring this program under our Awareness umbrella.

Pictures of the event coming soon.


IAAM Becomes an Official 501c3 Nonprofit!
May 2011

What started as a sole declaration of awareness in the living room of a small apartment in Los Angeles, CA, has officially become a nonprofit!  In 2009 a "movement" began, with four major goals in mind- to create an organization that grouped together a very specific strand of diseases, all with similar symptoms, onset, and treatment options.  The idea was to create a bridge of like diseases, so that awareness may finally come to fruition.  Until IAAM, the "Autoimmune Arthritis diseases", as they were coined, were either represented in organizations that catered to the masses or were included under the umbrella of very specific conditions.  Now there is a bridge that focuses on those that are most similar, even though they may not necessarily come from the same disease family.  The mission is simple- bring this small group of like diseases together in order to promote stronger awareness, address wellness options for a primarily younger onset, become a hub to unite all different nonprofits under one umbrella, and create a platform where the volunteer can become the leader.  There is still work to do, but we are on our way!