Lupus Awareness Month

Lupus Awareness Month takes place during October in the UK every year. It is an important opportunity to raise awareness of lupus amongst the public and medical profession, and improve understanding of the impact that this autoimmune condition can have on the lives of those living with it. 

By making people more aware of lupus you can help control its impact. We need your help to raise awareness of lupus, its symptoms and the effects it can have on people’s lives this Lupus Awareness Month. Below shows the different ways you can get involved this #LupusAwarenessMonth.

POSTERS - LUPUS UK

This is the official Lupus Awareness Month poster for 2024.

All LUPUS UK members should have received a copy with their Summer edition of News & Views Magazine. If you require more they can be requested from our National Office or downloaded from below.

We encourage you to ask GP practices, hospital clinics, pharmacies, workplaces and anywhere else in your local community you can think of, to display these posters in the lead-up to October.

POSTERS - Lupus UK Youth

Introducing our first ever youth poster for 2024! 

Lupus UK Youth is a platform designed specifically to support young people and families impacted by lupus. This year, we are pleased to introduce our first ever youth poster, made up of members from the lupus community under the age of 30. 

Click the button below to download the digital poster to share with friends and family.

Visit the Lupus UK Youth website HERE, and follow our Instagram and Facebook pages. 

MAKE AN ORIGAMI WOLF

What you need:

1. Square piece of paper (we suggest 8cm x 8cm)
2. Stick on googly eyes or a permanent marker to draw eyes and a mouth

Instructions:

1. Fold the paper in half diagonally to create a triangle
2. Fold the triangle corners upwards to create a smaller square
3. Fold in half at the join
4. Rotate 45 degrees
5. Fold the front flap to the left about 1cm in
6. Fold the centre point down to create a face between the ears
7. Fold the corners of the legs slightly back
8. Fold the tail in to prop up the wolf

Tag us in any pics you post on social media – we would love to see members of our wolf family!

31-MILE VIRTUAL CHALLENGE

Take part in this fun virtual challenge and help raise awareness during Lupus Awareness Month!

The event takes place in October, and anyone can take part! Walk, run, wheelchair, cycle or skate a total of 31 miles throughout the month by completing 1-mile a day or by taking on three 10.3-mile challenges!

T-shirts are available for FREE for all sponsored participants who will raise in excess of £31.

SHOW US YOUR BUTTERFLIES AND WOLVES

We’d like to see as many beautiful butterflies and wolves as possible displayed in windows (and shared on social media) throughout Lupus Awareness Month. We hope that you will enjoy this fun project! We encourage you to be as creative as you like, using whatever materials you have available. You may wish to use colouring pencils, paints, collage – whatever you can think of!

HOST A LUNCH4LUPUS

Enjoy cooking or having your family and friends over for an afternoon tea?
Why not host a Lunch4Lupus event with your family and friends and invite guests to make donations to LUPUS UK?

Make it a fun event and spend quality time with your family and friends while supporting your charity. You could also hold a raffle, auction, or other fundraising event on the day.
If lunch isn’t possible, members can host a coffee morning or go the ‘full monty’ and really impress their guests by hosting a dinner party.

ADOPT A HOSPITAL

You could ‘Adopt a Hospital’ for Lupus Awareness Month and beyond by ordering the Display Stand and Bookmarks for display in your local hospital, rheumatology/lupus clinic. We would encourage you to keep in touch with these locations and ensure that the stand is always on display and there is a sufficient supply of leaflets. Please also try to get some of these boards located in your local shops, libraries, bookstores and any other location. Each board comes with a supply of bookmarks so just stand it up and insert the bookmarks – it just might be a good idea to ask first. To order your supplies, fill out the online form HERE. 

Let’s ensure lupus awareness is all year round!

JOIN THE FIGHT AGAINST LUPUS

There are loads of other ways that you can join the fight against lupus this Lupus Awareness Month.

1. If you’d like to take part in or sign up for a FUNDRAISING EVENT such as a Go That Extra Mile sponsored walk or Lunch4Lupus then please take a look at our Fundraising Page for ideas.

2. You could WEAR PURPLE for a day and encourage others to do the same to raise awareness of lupus. We have a range of purple LUPUS UK clothing available on our shop. (Please note: Our shop is currently unavailable, but you can contact us HERE if you would like to purchase anything). 

3. You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram and share our posts leading up to and during Lupus Awareness Month.

4. You can order free supplies of awareness materials to display in your workplace, GP practice, pharmacy and local community by completing our online form HERE.