Newark resident, Mildred Velez has just returned from the National Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain Association’s Leaders Against Pain in Salt Lake City, Utah, that took place on October 23-26 of this year.
Velez engaged and learned from leading experts skills to advocate on behalf of millions of people that suffer with chronic pain giving them hope for faster diagnosis, better treatments, more research funding, and ultimately a cure for these conditions the association said in a written statement.
According to the Institute of Medicine’s congressionally mandated study, “Relieving Pain in America,” chronic pain affects an estimated one in four, or 110 million U.S. adults, which is more than the number affected by heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined. Velez said, “It was an honor for me to be one of 29 people chosen from around the country to attend Leaders Against Pain. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in 2007. It took me seven years to figure out how to manage pain and live in a body with Fibromyalgia" Velez said.
"I went from being a person with a photographic memory to forgetting my thoughts mid-sentence due to the cognitive impairment (fibro-fog) that comes as part of this syndrome. I don’t want anyone to experience what I have so that is why I wanted to be a Leader Against Pain" Velez continued.
Velez will be reaching out to members of the local community and state to help her create the change people that are in pain and desperately need help.
To contact Velez and to follow her work, please like the National Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain Association’s New Jersey’s Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain Network Facebook Page, or contact her at aflareytale@gmail.com.