These two photos show Lachy at age eight and at age 30. Proof that Juvenile Dermatomyositis could not stop the boy from rocking ;)

Groups involved in JM awareness in Australia

Here is a short list of the good people I'm proud to be associated with:

Myositis Association of Australia
http://myositis.org.au/

JM Joeys, a division of Myositis Association of Australia focusing on young people with forms of Juvenile Myositis:
http://myositis.org.au/jm-joeys

Smart Beads and Stuff
https://www.facebook.com/SmartBeads?fref=ts

Cure JM - an American site which has been a valuable source of help:
http://www.curejm.org/

More groups may be added in due course.

Juvenile Myositis in the media

Here's a story of a little boy and dear friend who has Juvenile Dermatomyositis:

http://aca.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8633899

My Myositis Story

I was diagnosed with Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) when I was three years old. Prior to getting JDM, I was a healthy, energetic and active boy. It started off as a rash around my face and soon my muscles in my legs and arms became very weak. It wasn't long before I could no longer walk and I could not perform simple tasks such as being able to dress myself. I was on two forms of medication: prednisolone and methotrexate. 

I have been JDM free and medication free since I was eight years old. I am thirty one now. Every year gets a little better and I get a little stronger and I'm enjoying great health. The road to recovery has certainly been a long one. In the years since having JDM, I have graduated university. I now run a business with my dad, I'm a keen musician and I'm actively involved in promoting awareness of Juvenile Myositis. Through my work I have had the privilege of meeting some amazing people including some amazing kids and young adults, both in Australia and overseas. They continue to inspire me.

LB.

Introduction

This blog has been created to generate much needed awareness of the various types of Juvenile Myositis (JM) including Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) and Juvenile Polymyositis (JPM) in Australia. Briefly, these are rare, complex autoimmune diseases that cause inflammation of the muscles and affect children and adolescents. These diseases can also affect the joints, skin and organs. Although treatments are available and recovery rates are high, there is no known cure.

I am hoping that this blog can be of some help to people who are affected by JM. As a former Juvenile Dermatomyositis patient, I believe I can provide some insight into this particular condition.

The help goes two ways, although I'm hoping this blog can help people, we also need YOUR help. We need more people to know more about Juvenile Myositis. We need to educate the public including relatives, doctors, teachers and friends. Together, we can understand Juvenile Myositis better and ultimately find cures to these terrible diseases.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myositis

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juvenile_dermatomyositis

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymyositis

To give you some understanding of what it's like to be a teenager with a form of Myositis, Morgan, my friend in America, has put together a couple of videos about her experience with Juvenile Dermatomyositis. Please find time to watch this clip.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrAZtCST_mU