Milton view First step to fundraiser
My name is Pamela Porter and I am the chairperson of FAMS (Families & Friends Affected by Murder & Suicide).
FAMS provides free peer support to people affected by murder, suicide and suicidal behaviours, particularly targeting young adults.
Our wish is that you get behind our Design Our Logo competition, with the winning design to be used for all marketing for next year’s Lets Walk About Suicide event (#LWAS 2019).
We want to put a call out to any schools or youth groups who would like to get involved.
This annual competition encourages young adults to openly talk about suicide with their peers.
FAMS have a team of young volunteers (aged 13 to 30) who have all been personally affected directly by suicides.
Pamela Porter
special mention to Andy Simm and Mick Mccann.
Councillor Bert Thomson
arthritis in the UK.
This can make simple activities like getting dressed, household chores or even picking up cutlery difficult.
I have severe osteoarthritis in my hands, my back and my knees. I’m in excruciating pain on a daily basis and I feel that I’m becoming increasingly dependent on others. This is extremely frustrating because just last year I was working in a job I loved as a special needs teacher.
As well as having a lot of surgery over the years, I’ve lost so much in my day-to-day life that most people take for granted.
I can’t drive, I can’t cook, people have to cut up my meals for me and I can’t wear anything with zips or laces. They may seem like little things that I can’t do but this has a huge impact on my life.
I am sure many people with arthritis will know the all-too-familiar experience of googling symptoms, asking questions on social media and trawling through forums and patient websites for answers about your own or a loved one’s condition and how to manage the symptoms.
Naturally I found this daunting, as it’s hard to decipher what information you can trust, what information is based on scientific evidence and what is based on old wives’ tales. Indeed, if you google the phrase ‘arthritis information’ around 2,480,000 results appear.
Arthritis Research UK’S latest campaign ‘Ask us your question’ calls for those living with arthritis to pose their questions for help finding trusted answers.
I’ve used their helpline several times since it launched last year to ask about pain management and medication.
I would recommend it as you can trust the charity’s information is based on years of knowledge and research, as well as the experiences of thousands of people like me.
So whatever your question is – be it about diet, exercise or pain management – check out the website, which has all the details of their helpline, as well as a wealth of online condition information. Go to www. arthritisresearchuk.org/askus or call 0800 5200 520
Sue Patey