May 12 - Contacting Government Officials

Turning The Spotlight on Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome/Myalgic Encelphomyelitis

Contacting Government Officials

Sample Letter

United States

NOTE: Contact your Congressperson or Senator. You can find his/her address, phone, fax, e-mail address, and district office/phone on the congress.org website by entering your zip code to get your Senators, Representatives and even the president's contact information. http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/

Sample Letter

The following is a sample letter regarding the need for attention to CIND matters for government officials. Feel free to write your own, more personal letter if you prefer.

Dear (name):

Since you are an influential official who can demand a great deal of attention to specific issues, I am writing to inform you that May 12th, which was designated eight years ago as International Awareness Day for Chronic Immunological and Neurological Diseases (CIND), is soon approaching. As you may be aware, ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, the term used in most of the world)/CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, the term used in the United States), Fibromyalgia Syndrome, Gulf War Syndrome and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome are devastating illnesses that are striking a growing number of people around the world – a fact to which I can sadly personally attest. Under the May 12th International Awareness Day charter, they have been combined under the umbrella of CIND based on existing research and commonality of symptoms.

These illnesses, characterized by cognitive problems, chronic muscle and joint pain, extremely poor stamina, and numerous other symptoms, leave many sufferers ill and bedridden for years at a time. The toll that this sudden disability takes on families, not to mention the national economy, is enormous. I don't want to inundate you with piles of paperwork that may or may not be of interest to you, but RESCIND, Inc, has a website with hundreds of links to literally thousands of pages of research and commentary. RESCIND, Inc. (Repeal Existing Stereotypes about Chronic Immunological and Neurological Diseases), is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. Please take a moment to visit this website at http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/4277.

It is important to note that the May 12th date was chosen to memorialize the birth date of Florence Nightingale, the English army nurse who inspired the founding of the International Red Cross. Nightingale contracted a paralyzing, CIND-like illness in her mid-thirties and spent the last 50 years of her life virtually bedridden.

If a cause and cure are to be found for CIND in the near future, the government and the medical community must respond MUCH more vigorously. I implore you to use your substantial power as a public servant to see that this happens. May 12th of this year should mark the beginning of a new era of thorough medical investigation into CIND.

Sincerely yours,

(name)

NOTE: if you write to a President , you should address the letter to “Dear Mr. President:” and end it with “Yours faithfully,”. All the other persons can be addressed as “Dear Mr. ...” or “Dear Mrs./Ms. ...”.