Today we went to the state house in Columbia, South Carolina to celebrate the passage of a law declaring May 12th as ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis) day, and May as ME month. For those who don’t know, Brad has ME, also called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).
We met up with a small group of supporters and attended a press conference, then went to the House gallery, where we were recognized and witnessed a proclamation being read. There was one other person with CFS/ME there besides Brad, and four supporters besides me. So a few of us among the #MillionsMissing were found (or so Brad says)!
We had a good time there! Every security guard we saw asked if Hestia was a service dog, and the security guard at the entrance asked the two questions (1. Is that a service dog to help with your disability? and 2. What work or tasks does your dog do to assist you?). All the other security guards only cared that Hestia would not bark during the sessions. No one was surprised by her size, or at least if they were, they didn’t say anything.
It was a bit difficult at times, with huge crowds of people milling about in the large hallways and the sounds of many conversations reverberating from many angles. Hestia was a star. One of the hardest things a service dog has to do is just hang out while their owner stands there talking or waiting. When Hestia was a young pup, this was very hard for her to do—she thought waiting time meant time to get into mischief! But she has learned that she just needs to sit, stand, or down next to me and wait for me to be done. She was excellent at this even among large crowds of both kids and adults. And when I needed her, she was able to help me with pressure therapy.
After the state house, we went to Mellow Mushroom with Dr. Jacobs where we were able to get tasty gluten-free pizza and talk about CFS/ME. It was a good lunch, and we were even serenaded by a man playing a Scottish tune on his violin!
In the pictures, I am wearing my blue butterfly dress with red sandals. Brad is wearing a straw fedora, a red shirt, and a green blazer. Hestia is wearing a red and black mesh vest.
#MillionsMissing #MEAction #MEActionSouthCarolina
we’ll be participating in the #millionsmissing online ourselves!! glad you could go, it’s important for any of us with ME/CFS who CAN attend to do so at these events (closest to me is Orlando, just too far after just doing the convention right now!).
Yes! I think it is important to advocate. Funny, I advocate for Brad and he advocates for me! We both like helping the other one more than helping ourselves!
This is unbelievably amazing. I had bo idea that you were working on this. Thank You from the bottom of my heart!
Dr. Jacobs did most of the work!!!!
You and Brad are so brave for going out into a crowd and sitting on a balcony. I could never do that, be that close to so many people. Good going!
Thanks!
Thank you for helping increase awareness about CFS and SDs too! Enjoyed your beautiful pictures! You have an incredibly eye-catching family! All of you are ready for TV 🙂
Thanks! Turns out we were on TV! See our most recent blog post http://www.doctorv.xyz/2019/05/03/me-on-tv/