Carer's Week 06 June – 16 June 2024
Each year Carer's UK and supporting charity's raise awareness about the importance of unpaid carers. This year's focus will be ‘putting carer's on the map‘ – you can find out more by following the link. The ME Association has now become an official sponsor because we believe Carer's Week is a terrific opportunity to reach a wider audience and inform them of the vital role that carer's play in the lives of people with ME/CFS and Long Covid.
I know I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my parents who took care of me at the age of 30, when I couldn't look after myself because of ME/CFS. There was little time to prepare and they, like me, had no real understanding of what was involved or what might be expected. It was a long and horrific learning curve for us all that continued for many years, and they shouldered much of the burden without any direct help from the NHS, social care services, or the DWP.
Through my work with the charity, I also know that many of you are similarly grateful for the vital care and support that you have received from family members and friends. And, while the charity continues its focus on improving healthcare – to ensure that the recommendations in the NICE Guideline on ME/CFS are effectively implemented – we are not going to forget about the carer's who also need support.
We have joined with Age UK, Carers Trust, Carers UK, The MND Association, Oxfam, Rethink Mental Illness, and The Lewy Body Society, to lobby parliament to recognise and support unpaid carers and the massive contribution they make to society.
Carer's Week will mean we can bring ME/CFS and Long Covid to a mainstream audience in an event that is much-covered by the media, and attended by parliamentarians. We will be asking for carer's to attend virtual events and a reception in parliament with us later in June, and we'll keep you informed of developments in the meantime.
If you are a carer for someone with ME/CFS or Long Covid, and would be willing to share your story then please get in touch. There are 3 key areas we are focusing on this year: 1) how caring has affected your own health, 2) your finances, and, 3) your employment.
- Your story could be on either of these topics or all of them.
- Please send an email to Feedback@meassociation.org.uk with your name, age, information about the person you care for, and your own story.
- We'd also greatly appreciate a photograph.
- Please keep stories to 500 words if at all possible.
- If we select your story to feature in Carer's Week publications, we'll seek your express permission beforehand.
Thank you!
Russell Fleming
Head of Communications. The ME Association.
