Many MS Awareness Month events take place during March. If you live with or know someone with MS, you can show your support by wearing orange, participating in events, and educating yourself about the condition.
While almost 3 million people worldwide live with multiple sclerosis (MS), many people may not understand the complexity of this unpredictable condition.
MS Awareness Month aims to change this and provide support to those living with the condition.
MS Awareness Month takes place every March. The goal of this campaign is to raise awareness about MS.
Throughout March, several organizations, societies, and advocacy groups host educational events and activities to raise awareness of this condition.
MS Awareness Month can benefit people living with MS, their families, and communities. Anyone can show their support by participating in various events, such as fundraisers for MS research.
March is also an opportunity for family and friends of people with MS to learn more about the disease.
MS affects everyone differently. MS Awareness Month brings awareness to the condition’s many forms.
Other days throughout the year also focus on MS. For example, MS Awareness Week is from March 9 to 15, 2025.
World MS Day, which occurs on May 30 every year, also offers opportunities to become involved with the MS awareness movement.
Knowing about MS Awareness Month is a good start, but you can also get more involved.
Spreading the word only takes a couple of minutes. You can participate in an event held throughout your city or state.
1. Sign up for an MS Walk
A fundraising walk is one way to get involved in your local community.
Walks are held throughout the year for various organizations to bring awareness to specific diseases. These events involve walking a designated course, such as a 5K.
You can walk to celebrate and honor anyone living with MS or join a walk if you have MS yourself. Meeting others in the community who are living with the same condition may help you feel less alone.
The National MS Society has information about upcoming walks throughout the country.
Some cities also hold MS bike events. Instead of walking to raise funds, you bike a designated course.
Some walks cost money, with the funds going toward MS research. If this doesn’t fit your budget, you can get involved in other ways.
2. Attend educational events
Learning more about MS, whether you live with it or not, can show support.
If you know someone with MS, education can help you empathize with them and learn ways to provide practical assistance.
To stay informed, you can attend live MS webinars or other virtual events. You can read books, blogs, and articles related to MS or listen to an MS podcast.
Consider participating in MS State Action Day each year. These days vary throughout the year depending on location.
This is an opportunity to be an activist and urge your state lawmakers to support policies that accommodate people with MS.
3. Share your story
If you’re living with MS, consider sharing your personal story with others in person or online.
Doing so provides an outlet to express yourself and connect with others living with MS. Your voice and story might inspire someone to maintain a positive outlook.
4. Make a donation
Another way to participate in MS Awareness Month is to make a monetary donation, if it fits your budget, to an organization that goes toward MS research.
The National MS Society offers several different donation options, including one-time donations or recurring monthly payments.
5. Spread the word on social media
Whether you use Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or another social media platform, use hashtags that raise awareness of MS.
This can spark conversation within your network and encourage others to share hashtags, too. For example, tag your posts with #MultipleSclerosisAwarenessMonth or #MSAwareness.
You can also add a custom frame to your Facebook profile picture, if you have Facebook, for MS Awareness Month or update your cover art.
The color orange represents MS awareness. Wearing this color throughout March is another way to spread awareness about MS.
Orange awareness ribbons are also worn for leukemia, kidney cancer, and lupus.
If you have MS, educating yourself can help you cope with the disease.
And if you don’t have MS, learning more can help you understand how people who manage it feel.
Getting involved during MS Awareness Month every March, MS Awareness Week, or World MS Day can help raise awareness for this condition and lead to a cure.