CFS/ME needs to go viral.

[Valentijn]

How about an image of a classy, shining car, with ME painted on the door, and below, Mangled Engine. It gets across the fact that although many of us look fine, we're wrecks underneath. Of course, some of us may need images of veteran cars where much of the chrome and paint has been worn away over the years.

Or even multiple "ME" labels ... Mangled Engine pointing to the engine, Minimal Energy pointing to the gas tank, etc. Maximal Exhaustion pointing to the blocked tail pipe?

 

[Graham]

You are right, Snowathlete, about many people with ME looking ill, but one of our big image problems is people like me who, especially being outdoors a lot, generally look pretty healthy. If we all looked really ill, and were all housebound, I don't think the public image would be quite as puzzling, but it is sufferers like me that most people with no experience of ME come across, simply because we are lucky to be able to get about a bit more (and of course I only mean a bit more).

 

[snowathlete]

You are right, Snowathlete, about many people with ME looking ill, but one of our big image problems is people like me who, especially being outdoors a lot, generally look pretty healthy. If we all looked really ill, and were all housebound, I don't think the public image would be quite as puzzling, but it is sufferers like me that most people with no experience of ME come across, simply because we are lucky to be able to get about a bit more (and of course I only mean a bit more).

I agree, but perhaps in terms of a campaign it might lose it's effectiveness if it is the same image seen again. Once you've seen it, you've seen it. Perhaps the thing to do would be to have a stock image of the new car that people can use without any effort required, and that's the main image of the campaign, but people can make their own as well which helps keep the campaign fresh.

 

[Graham]

Sorry Snowathlete, I wasn't disagreeing with you. I'm not at my best with the written word: I'm a talker by nature. I was just adding to your comment that for some of us the "shiny exterior" is a real problem. I really do look pretty healthy most of the time, and that doesn't do the image of the illness much good. Plus the fact that I have a supportive family, so I am still able to do a bit of gardening (OK, I'm an addict). I've got the garden organised carefully for minimum effort, even watering pipes running to all of my pots so that it is just a question of turning on a tap. So that doesn't do much for the image either. But I have no interest in cars, so my car looks much more tatty than I do!

I wasn't thinking that the idea was good enough to run as a campaign, but I do believe that if we float lots of ideas, somewhere it will stimulate someone to come up with a real gem, and I think this one is a good catalyst.

 

[Leopardtail]

my personal thought is that having a shiny exterior and a rusty or mangled engine helps drive a useful point home..