What can you do to help raise awareness?

Michelle Chadwick
Jul 27, 2019
3 min read

Updated: Mar 4, 2024

The Worldwide Idiopathic Hypersomnia Awareness Week® (IHAW) is an annual worldwide initiative started and hosted by Hypersomnolence Australia. It is held every year in the first full week of September to promote and raise awareness of the sleep/wake disorder Idiopathic Hypersomnia. We have seen the IHAW steadily grow since it began in 2013. Its success shows us that the IHAW is a very important and much needed event for the Idiopathic Hypersomnia community. But we can not do this alone. Raising awareness of Idiopathic Hypersomnia takes a village.

What can you do to help raise awareness?

1. Download a sign, take a photo of yourself holding it, and share it on social media with the hashtags #LivingwithIH #livingwithidiopathichypersomnia *you can share these posters without having to take a photo of yourself with it. Or create your own sign! 2. Stories and perspectives by people living with IH are powerful awareness raising tools. Share your story with your local media and online platforms. You can also share your stories and perspectives with us. We are interested in all forms of expression, from written to visually creative work so if you would like to share your story or you are into photography, design, drawing, painting etc and have something that you have done that reflects your experience with Idiopathic Hypersomnia we would love to share it. Send us an email at ihaweek@gmail.com

3. Not comfortable sharing your story? There are some really relatable and powerful stories on our Living with IH webpage that you are encouraged to share.

4. Share the Idiopathic Hypersomnia Awareness Week® posters. Click here to find posters you can share. Also, check out the Living with IH page. 5. Change your Facebook profile picture and cover photo. Go to the IHAW Facebook page for images to use or the IHAW webpage. 6. Help educate and raise awareness. Share the Idiopathic Hypersomnia Factsheet or go the Hypersomnolence Australia (HA) or Hypersomnia Foundation websites for information to share. 7. Buy a IHAW TShirt, take a photo of yourself wearing it and share it during the IHAW. This is a great way to raise awareness! TShirts are available from the HA Store. We can custom order TShirts for people living outside of Australia. If you are interested email us at ihaweek@gmail.com

8. Get some friends together and host an event. Whether you host a sausage sizzle, cake sale, trivia night, organise a walkathon or would like to donate the proceeds of your next garage sale, your event will help raise funds and awareness! Contact us at ihaweek@gmail.com and let us know about your event and we will do what we can to help promote it.

9. Help us help you. Hypersomnolence Australia, the hosts of the worldwide Idiopathic Hypersomnia Awareness Week receives no funding and charges no membership. We rely on donations to continue the work we do including the awareness week. Please consider donating. No amount is too small, every dollar is greatly appreciated. To donate directly to our PayPal Giving Fund click here.

Facebook fundraisers are a great way to help raise funds. Click here to set up your Facebook Fundraiser. "Select Charity" and then put in Hypersomnolence Australia. If you have any trouble setting up your fundraiser, please feel free to contact us for assistance at ihaweek@gmail.com

For more information go to the Idiopathic hypersomnia Awareness Week webpage And don't forget to use the hashtags #LivingwithIH #livingwithidiopathichypersomnia