Sjögren’s Foundation encourages ‘action’ on World Sjögren’s Day
Annual day of awareness established for July 23 in honor of Henrik Sjögren
The Sjögren’s Foundation is asking people to make a pledge to take action for World Sjögren’s Day on July 23 to help support the foundation’s research and education programs.
Longtime Sjögren’s Foundation supporter Debby Vivari will donate $2 for the first 5,000 pledges and anyone can make a pledge to honor themselves, others with Sjögren’s, or someone who’s impacted their journey with Sjögren’s disease. With the pledgee’s permission, their name and their honoree’s will appear on the World Sjögren’s Day Honor Wall.
“Throughout July, people pledged to raise awareness or made donations to support our mission — many choosing to honor themselves, a loved one, a caregiver, or a healthcare provider. Nearly 1,000 names are now featured on our Digital Honor Wall, each one representing a story of strength and determination. Thank you to everyone who took part and helped bring more visibility to Sjögren’s,” the foundation stated on its World Sjögren’s Day campaign website.
The annual day was created by the foundation in 2005 to celebrate the birthday of Henrik Sjögren, the Swedish opthamologist who identified the disease in 1933.
“World Sjögren’s Day is meant to put a face on the millions of people who live with this disease or suffer from symptoms and have yet to be diagnosed,” the foundation stated on its website.
Sharing the story of Sjögren’s disease
Sjögren’s is an autoimmune disease that primarily affects woman older than 40. Its symptoms include dry eyes and mouth, and prolonged fatigue. About 4 million Americans have Sjögren’s, though many may not have received a diagnosis yet.
Raising awareness can help people be diagnosed and treated sooner, so the foundation is offering different ways supporters can mark World Sjögren’s Day and help increase visibility for the disease.
One way is to share their story. The journeys of several public figures, including three-time Olympic soccer gold medalist Shannon Boxx, are available on the website. Boxx was diagnosed after experiencing extreme fatigue in 2002. In her video, she encourages the nearly 50% of people with secondary Sjögren’s not to sideline their care.
Another option is to wear blue on July 23. The foundation encourages people to share their blue outfits on social media with the hashtag #WorldSjögrensDay.
Supporters can also pledge to tell five people about Sjögren’s disease, using everyday conversations to help spread the word. The foundation is providing a fact sheet to help support these conversations and downloadable graphics are available in the campaign’s toolkit to help supporters post to social media.
Supporters can also make a donation to support research, education, and awareness through the foundation. All donations will be matched by Amgen, meaning each dollar donated will result in the company giving the same amount, up to $30,000. Last year, the foundation raised more than $80,000 with a similar matching program by Amgen, which is testing an experimental treatment for the disease.
Novartis is the sponsor of this year’s World Sjögren’s Day campaign.
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