10 Reasons You Should Wear Your PJ’s All Day on February 27, 2015

Fourth Annual PJ Day
To Raise Awareness for Autoimmune Disease

This year, on Friday, February 27, you will have another opportunity to make a stand, to show support with this act of nonviolent fashion disobedience, to be part of the front lines of change, to help someone who might feel they have nobody in their corner, to be part of the fourth annual PJ Day to raise awareness for Autoimmune Disease. Here are ten reasons to give your boss when they challenge your fashion choice at work.

1. Nonviolent Fashion Disobedience

   Because when you deviate from the norm, people notice. They ask questions. They become engaged, and curious. We can start the conversation in the comfort of our most healing clothes, and empathy. If it’s cold out, just throw them over your outdoor clothes, that’s what we do when we go PJ skiing, or all over the place like last year when it was -32C .

2. To Show Support
   For the people who are held captive in their pajamas by one of the 140+ Autoimmune Diseases and Disorders. For weeks. Months. Years. Living in them between remissions. Every age group is susceptible.
   There is no cure.

3. For Someone You Know
   1 in 5 people are affected and 3 out of 4 of those are female. Someone you know and maybe love, is dealing with symptoms ranging from unpleasant to life threatening due to AI disease, right now. Guaranteed.

    

4. Make A Stand

   For those who can barely stand in the face of a devastating disease. People whose previously healthy lifestyles are left in the dust, replaced by operating rooms, chemotherapy, infusions, immune suppression, and a complete alteration of life. Stand with them as they fight their way back.

5. Change status quo

   Autoimmune Disease comes with a heavy cost. To lives, to communities, to the workforce, to healthcare and society at large. We can start the cogs of change by raising awareness. Step out of your comfort zone for a good cause. With baby steps we can get there.

6. Give a Hand
   All money raised on February 27, 2015, will go to the Macmahon family of Jasper who are currently in the midst of an autoimmune disease battle of epic proportions.

7. Show the powers that be

   If you or someone you know is affected by autoimmune disease (as is surely the case) and you wear your PJ’s in a show of nonviolent fashion disobedience, everyone will see symbolically, the cost this disease has to our society. One in five people (and their families, friends, bosses, neighbours, colleagues…we’re all affected)

8. We are One
   We have been kept apart for too long. We are one disease, different manifestation. Your MS, my dad’s Lupus, my Vasculitis, my sister’s Psoriatic Arthritis, they’re all autoimmune disease, the same disease etiology. We are rare in our disease manifestation but together we are a fifth of the population. Shouldn’t we have a say?

9. Together we can do it
   Together. If we want to see something happen in our lifetime. Time to look at the forest and stop focusing on each tree. By finding the common thread between the different autoimmune diseases we might find a cure for all autoimmune disease.

10. Autoimmune Disease be gone
    Find a cure for autoimmune disease, all of us are disease free… MS, RA, Lupus, Vasculitis, Colitis, Celiac and over a 100 more (mostly rare diseases,) gone. 20% of the population back from the doctor’s office and the hospital visits, working, living happy lives with happy families. Future generations only knowing about autoimmune disease from what they read in history books. Let’s make this dream a reality.

When you are done wearing your PJ’s on Friday, feel free to wear them all weekend if you want to keep the drive alive. Saturday, February 28, is International Rare Disease Day (many of the Autoimmune Diseases on the list are also Rare Diseases by definition.) Sunday March 1st is the first day of Autoimmune Disease Awareness Month. Keep spreading the word. For you. For your kids. For the ones you love. For all of us.