You did it!
Over the past 14 days, you dedicated duradashers spent almost 7,000 minutes and raised over $20,000 to educate others about spinal CSF leak and provide crucial funds for continuing awareness, education, and research! You are just incredible!
From people who took walks both short and long, to people who hiked mountainous terrain; people who spent their upright time on physical therapy, and people who used it to give their house a deep clean; people who got in the pool for some aquatic therapy, or lounged on a tube during a lazy river moment; people who got creative with Legos and people who shared facts and information on social media while flat—ALL of you have done an amazing job, and we are so appreciative of your efforts!
Thank you SO MUCH for making this year’s duradash® a success!
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Welcome to #duradash2024!
#duradash is a community event taking place from May 26 - June 8. During these 14 days, the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation is encouraging participants to aim accomplish a total of 150 minutes of any activity, to be done at any time, anywhere, in support of spinal CSF leak awareness.
What you do and when you do it is up to you, and for #duradash, ANY activity counts, not just physical activity! Last year, participants logged activity minutes playing video games, doing photography projects, reading to their kids, taking short walks, spending time with their pets, making art while flat, and more—all of which counted toward their 150-minute goal.
While research shows that any amount of activity is better than none, for many people living with spinal CSF leak, being upright is a challenge, due to pain and neurological symptoms. This is why we encourage everyone participating in #duradash to “start where you are” and focus on the goal of minutes spent doing something you enjoy.
Whatever activity you choose to do, #duradash is a great opportunity to raise awareness about spinal CSF leak by sharing a little glimpse of your life—whether that’s 150 minutes of everyday life activities, or meeting a specific physical or emotional goal.
The funds raised by your campaign will enable the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation to continue to raise awareness among medical professionals and others through education and research that specifically advances the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of intracranial hypotension and spinal CSF leak.
Awareness of spinal CSF leak is crucial to helping shorten the time between onset of symptoms and diagnosis, and between diagnosis and treatment—and also to understanding and addressing the complexity of spinal CSF leak, especially in the cases of those who continue to suffer despite intervention. In this way, your support directly impacts the lives of those who are affected by spinal CSF leak.
What does it mean to start where you are?
Executive Director Andi Buchanan on what it means to “start where you are” when living with chronic illness or spinal CSF leak, and how that philosophy ties in with this virtual event.
ADAPT-ing with spinal CSF leak
As we start this year's #duradash, it can be helpful to center our mental health and think about ways we can support both our physical and mental well-being. Our series on coping with spinal CSF leak using the framework of an acronym called ADAPT resonates powerfully with the philosophy of embracing where you are and starting from there, wherever that may be.
