Raise Awareness With Your Online Social Networks

Thanks to the widespread popularity of social media websites like Facebook and Twitter, there are all sorts of quick and easy ways for you to make a difference when spreading PH awareness.

Social media sites are websites designed to help people share and discuss information they care about. Friend-to-friend connections on these sites help you make awareness-raising messages personal.

If you’re already using one of these sites, then you know the potential for brief, compelling posts to be shared many times over. If you’re new to social networking, signing up is easy and free. Just visit Facebook or Twitter to start your account.

Then read on for some ideas to make the most of your account as you spread the word about PH this Awareness Month. The following ideas are designed for Facebook but can easily be adjusted for tweeting on Twitter as well.

10 Ideas for Spreading PH Awareness on Facebook

1. Follow PHA on Facebook and invite your friends and family to do the same.
2. Join the conversation on PHA’s Facebook wall. Share, post and comment about the things that matter most to you.
3. Join PHA Online Messengers to begin receiving weekly emails with stories and stats to share with your network. Sign up (membership requires a free Google account)
4. Write a Facebook note about how PH affects your life. Tag 10 friends and ask them to share your story with 10 of their friends.
5. Change your Facebook photo to the PH Awareness Flame Guy. Download this image here
6. Mention pulmonary hypertension in the “About Me” section of your profile. Include a link to PHA’s website so your friends know where they can go to learn more.
7. Start a video blog about your life with PH. Share your videos on Facebook.
8. Share a PH fact or statistic in your Facebook status at least once a week. Use one of your own, or try one of these:
   1. 1. Unwrap a drinking straw. 2. Hold your nose. 3. Breathe through the straw for one minute. Still with me? Pulmonary hypertension is an under-diagnosed lung disease that can make breathing this difficult 1,440 minutes a day. Learn more: www.PHAssociation.org
   2. In the U.S., about 1,000 new cases of pulmonary hypertension are diagnosed each year.
   3. Breathlessness isn’t always asthma. Sometimes it’s pulmonary hypertension. Spread the word.
9. When you come across interesting articles about pulmonary hypertension or PH patients, share the links on your Facebook wall. Include your thoughts, or ask a question to get your friends talking.
10. Write a Facebook message to your friends and family and ask them to become a part of PHA’s awareness-raising activities, on and offline! Send them to www.PHAssociation.org/Awareness to get involved.

Follow PHA on Facebook and Twitter!