Along with blog posts, social media chats, and rockin' our red in support, traditional media such as television and radio can help sickle cell awareness efforts reach an even wider audience, an audience that may not know the truths about SCD. Here are three examples...
How Sickle Cell Inspired This Writer’s Debut Novel
A rare disease in the U.S., sickle cell affects about 100,000 total people. In Nigeria, however, the occurrence of SCD isn't as uncommon; in fact, more than 40 million Nigerians carry sickle cell trait and more than 150,000 babies are born with sickle cell disease...
6 Instagram Accounts Every Sickle Cell Warrior Should Follow for Overall Wellness Inspo
Welcome to April, also known as National Minority Health Month -- "a time to learn more about the health status of racial and ethnic minority populations in the U.S.," as stated by the Department of Health and Human Services. To kick things off, we've rounded up a few...
4 Symptoms of Sickle Cell Crisis Everyone Should Know About
Even though celebrities such as T-Boz and the late Prodigy have spoken freely about living with sickle cell disease, the awareness they create is always short-lived, while other rare diseases go on to have ice bucket challenges and make major headlines for multiple...
Self-Care Must-Haves for the Sickle Cell Warrior
As a sickle cell warrior (or the friend, family, or caretaker of one), sometimes it can feel like you're always in fight mode -- fighting a crisis, fighting stress so it doesn't become a crisis, fighting for your life. Battling it out all the time is exhausting, and...
How Sickle Cell Gene Mutation was Recently Traced to One Shared Ancestor
We've known for decades that sickle cell disease stems from a gene mutation that helped protect people from contracting malaria. And now, as of last Thursday (March 8), when this study was published in the American Journal of Human Genetics, we've learned that every...
Best Friends Capture the Real Face of Sickle Cell with New Documentary, “Spilled Milk”
We always hear platitudes about how you don't have to be rich or famous or a certain age to make an impact on people's lives -- and Jaqai Mickelsen and Omar Beach are proving that to be true with their new documentary "Spilled Milk." Best friends since the early '90s...
Rare Disease Day is Here. Find an Event Near You.
The most common of the rare diseases, sickle cell affects about 100,000 Americans. Even so, there's still a lot to be done on the research front to fully understand it, how to treat it more effectively, and potentially, how to find a cure. Your participation in Rare...
This UK-Based Org. Uses Stories to Promote Successful Change in Healthcare
"Everybody has a story. And there's something to be learned from every experience." - Oprah One of the most effective ways of connecting with others can be through storytelling. It allows us to envision ourselves in similar circumstances as the people in the stories...
Boston School District Finally Recognizes Sickle Cell Disease as Impeding a Student’s Education
Last week, the Boston Globe reported that the Boston, Massachusetts public school system has officially decided to recognize sickle cell disease as a disability that can affect a child's education. For a condition that has been known to exist for more than 100 years,...
How Jordin Sparks and Family are Turning Grief into Action After Sickle Cell Loss
While it is more typical in this day and age for sickle cell warriors to live well into adulthood -- some into their 90s even! -- complications can still arise that don't allow for that to happen. Just last week, singer and American Idol alum Jordin Sparks first took...
Case Study May Give Parents New Option for Ensuring Children Aren’t Born With Sickle Cell
There's been a push among sickle cell advocates to #KnowYourGenotype. The thought behind this movement is that if everyone has their blood tested before marrying and having children, there can be a significant reduction in sickle cell births, ultimately leading to an...
How to Stay Hydrated When You’re Sick of Simply Drinking Water
Sometimes you just want to shake things up a bit -- give your taste buds something to be excited about. If you're tired of drinking glass after glass of water all day long, try adding hydrating foods into the mix. As Dr. Rima Kleiner told NBC News in an interview last...
The Blood Donor Shortage and How You Can Help
All that snow, ice, and flooding that hit a slew of states a couple weeks ago didn't just ground flights, close schools, and interrupt other plans, it also caused blood drives to be cancelled, resulting in a severe blood donor shortage, according to TIME. Hospitals...
Three 30-Day Challenges Sickle Cell Warriors Can Embrace This Year
It's easy to sit down and write a list of New Year's resolutions, but without an actual plan of action, more than likely, the goals on that list will barely even begin to be reached. That's why we've rounded up three 30-day challenges that can actually help you reduce...