March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month

March is National Multiple Sclerosis Education and Awareness Month. This year’s (2009) theme is “MS: Now You See It, Now You Don’t“, basically referring to the MS symptoms that come and go.

To step up on awareness this month, several events have been organized by the MS advocacy groups. Check out for local events you can participate in!

From the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (MSF):

Teleconferences (advance registration is required!)

• “But You Don’t Look Sick: Talking With Your Kids About MS” with Dr. Paula Rauch, Wednesday, March 11 at 8 p.m. EST
• “Keeping Connected: Real World Advice for Couples Coping with Chronic Illness” with Dr. Fred Foley, Wednesday, March 25 at 8 p.m. EST

For registration, please call (800) 225-6495, ext. 172.

MS Family Fun Days

Participate in a MS Family Fun Day in nine different locations all over the US.

• March 14: Dave & Busters, Jacksonville, FL; Dave & Busters, Arcadia, CA; Dave & Busters, Kensington, MD; Dave & Busters, St. Louis, MO; Dave & Busters, Dallas, TX; Dave & Busters, Hollywood, FL
• March 15: Dave & Busters, Irvine, CA
• March 21: Dave & Busters, Chicago, IL
• March 28: Jillian’s at Waterside – Norfolk, VA

To reserve, call Gloria at (888) 673-6287, ext. 126.

March 2 to 8 is MS Awareness Week of the National MS Society. Check out your local MS awareness events.

Walk MS

Six hundred walks. One destination. A world free of MS. Walk MS is a movement across the US with hundreds of thousands of people walking together to make a powerful statement, and to keep moving toward a cure, help raise funds to help people with MS. “Each step you take brings us closer to a world free of MS.”

Bike MS

Phil Keoghan, host of CBS’s THE AMAZING RACE will embark on a 40 day, coast-to-coast bike ride across America, averaging 100 miles a day, covering over a total of 3,500 miles with pit stops in over 30 cities. The ride will start on March 28 in Los Angeles and end on May 9 in New York. Along the way, he’ll attend meet and greets with supporters at local GNC stores, visit CBS affiliates, attend open-casting calls for the next installment of THE AMAZING RACE, sign copies of his best-selling book No Opportunity Wasted, and ride alongside ex-racers and fans of THE AMAZING RACE. He will also be participating in rallies hosted by the National MS Society to build awareness for Bike MS and the MS movement.

THE AMAZING RACE 14 airs Sundays (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.