For many years now, I’ve applied to attend Johnson & Johnson’s HealtheVoices conference, a leadership program for online health advocates. Will this finally be the year that hyperhidrosis is represented? We’ll have to wait and see, but my sweaty fingers are definitely crossed!
I figured I’d share my application with all of you here so you can see my passion and desire to do more for our sweaty community. I worked hard on these questions and took my time completing them in hopes of the best chance to be selected for this opportunity.
1) Why are you interested in attending HealtheVoices this year?
I’ve applied to attend HealtheVoices almost every year since 2016, when my health advocacy really started to take off. After many years of persistence, I’m once again ready to attend and expand my advocacy reach and also learn from others’ journeys.
2) Why is this a critical moment in your advocacy?
After having a baby and simultaneously facing thyroid cancer over the past two years, I’m now done with treatment and ready to take the next step in my journey helping fellow patients and advocates feel better about the skin they’re in. This conference is the perfect opportunity to do so. It would be the boost I need in order to get even more motivated to advocate more for not only myself, but others who face similar health challenges. Now is a perfect time to amplify patient voices while also forging beneficial relationships with the folks at Johnson & Johnson who can help patients with treatment options and clinical research.
3) What do you hope to contribute to the conference? What expertise/experience as an advocate would you bring to your peers? Please be specific.
I’ve been a health advocate since 2011 and am celebrating my blog’s 13th anniversary this year. I’ve been called The OG of Hyperhidrosis Advocacy, a title I wear proudly. If you would have told me all those years ago that I’d be blogging about sweat of all things, I never would’ve believed you. After several years of blogging about my own stores, I decided I could expand my service to others by featuring guest stories. I’m proud to say that I have many other voices in my growing community who have been brave enough to reveal their sweaty secrets on my blog. Hyperhidrosis is global, and guest posts on my blog include those from Kenya, England, France, the Philippines, and Canada. Drop by drop, our stories connect us.
My experience includes:
- featured panelist speaker at the inaugural Hyperhidrosis Patient-Focused Drug Development Meeting (PFDD) in Washington, DC
- inaugural member of #OMagInsiders, brand ambassadors for O, The Oprah Magazine
- podcast guest on several podcasts discussing hyperhidrosis and patient advocacy
- Pharmacy Times CME activity featuring a patient perspective (on-camera talent including a medical journal supplement)
- published in SELF Magazine
- featured speaker on ulcerative colitis in the Women for One Truthteller Tour
- interview with Everyday Health digital platform
- for a complete list of my experience, please see the About section on my blog
4) What do you hope to gain from attending the conference? Please share specific topics you would like to learn about and how you would apply them to your advocacy.
I hope to gain more contacts in the advocacy and healthcare industries so that I can help more people who also struggle with their health.
I’d love to learn more about:
- forging relationships with pharma so that we can work together to advance better health outcomes and bridge the gap between hyperhidrosis treatment options and access to care
- the latest social media trends to maximize reach and engagement
- how to better tell my story via public speaking and video
- how to approach/pitch HCPs and other health companies who specialize in care and/or have a large subset of patients who could be helped by the knowledge of advocates
Will hyperhidrosis make a splash at HealtheVoices?
Applications should be reviewed and decisions made soon. I’ll let you know. In the meantime, you can help out by leaving a comment below to let HealtheVoices know how much it would mean to have our sweaty secret represented at this event.
Don’t miss out! Subscribe to my sweaty newsletter.
