This summer a huge social trend that went around sites like Facebook and Instagram which was called the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. For this challenge, all participants were supposed to pour a bucket of ice cold water over their head and then nominate three of their friends to do it in 24 hours. If they failed to accomplish this task they were supposed to donate $100 to the ALS foundation.
This may sound like a simple task that is just made to put the participant in some discomfort, but what most people don’t know is that the exact challenge has some significant meaning to it. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, “is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord” (www.alsa.org). Most people are under the impression that you just have to get through the quick cold or be subject to pay the money to the foundation. But in reality the feeling of having ALS is comparable to the feeling that you get for the short amount of time that the cold water hits your back and shoulders.
I did the challenge and when the ice cold water hits you, you almost feel paralyzed in your shoulder and back. It is a really uncomfortable feeling that only lasts us for a few seconds, but people with ALS have to deal with that all the time. The whole premise of the challenge was to put the participants in a the same shoes for a little while as the patients with ALS. Not only was it made to raise money and spread the word about the disease, but it also raised awareness of what it feels like to have the disease.
What people don’t understand is that there is a whole underlying science behind why this challenge is important to the foundation. So for all the readers who have participated in the challenge, now you know what it feels like to be affected by this condition. The challenge itself was very brilliantly chalked up, raising awareness and also over $100 million dollars for the foundation.
Sources:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2014/08/29/the-als-ice-bucket-challenge-has-raised-100m-but-its-finally-cooling-off/
http://www.alsa.org/about-als/what-is-als.html
I’m really glad so much attention has come to this disease because, while it does not affect an extremely large amount of people, it is still a terrible debilitating disease that deserves more research. (Actually, my boss over the summer was the first person I saw do the ice bucket challenge before it was popular because she actually went to college with the man whose family started it.)
I a lot more attention will come to the disease even thought the challenge has died down because the famous theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking, who was diagnosed with ALS at age 21, will beat the odds next month when he turns 73. The movie coming out about his life will probably help people look into the disease more as well. This article delves into Hawking and ALS even more.
I never thought of that. That is very true that people who want to donate usually have trouble deciding which organizations to chose from. This point just adds another reason why this challenge was so brilliantly designed. I’m so happy to see such great awareness brought to light about such a terrible disease
It is great to see that with all the funding they are another step closer to find the cure. I wonder if it is actually due to the high amount of money that the challenge has raised this summer. I’m happy to see that I was a small part of the reason that a cure might be found soon. It’s truly an amazing cause
This is a great informative article! I had no clue that the other main purpose of the challenge was to see ourselves in a person affected with the disease’s shoes. I can’t wait to share this with others, informing them of the cleverness that was created from this particular media campaign.
I enjoyed this post. I hadn’t actually realized the reason for the ice-dumping itself, but it’s really awesome to know that it was relevant to the cause for which it is based. I am a fan of what the Ice Bucket Challenge has done. I think that it is really cool that is has gone so viral and has such a large reception. It will be truly amazing to see this cured one day. I read about treatment (https://www.alshopefoundation.org/understanding-als/treatment-als.php) so far, it looks like they are slowing the disease by decreasing glutamate levels through a drug called Rilutek
Wow! Thank you so much for this article. I really had never thought about it before, which is weird to think since it dominated everyone’s news feeds for many weeks this past month. This will definitely make me more conscious to fundraising events around me so I can get to the purpose of the event instead of simply thinking about myself and doing the challenge to publicize the event. I even now looked up the symptoms to make sure I know more about what I supported with my own ice bucket video: http://www.alsa.org/about-als/symptoms.html. Thanks again!
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Glad you chose to do this topic, While I also participated in the Ice bucket challenge I was unaware of the idea of putting myself in the shoes of someone with ALS. I thought it was great to see so many people this summer to get involved in searching for and donating money for a cure to a horrible disease. Thanks so much for your insight into this topic, I was able to learn something out of it. here is a link to some of the best Ice bucket challenges. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TDmhGkqv7g
One of my dads best friends died from this disease a few months ago and when he was diagnosed no one knew what ALS was. I think the challenge was a genius idea to get the word out there. Some people in my newsfeed on social media started to complain about the ALS challenge and believed that it wouldn’t do anything but I think a point you don’t mention that is also really important is we love to give back. Many people want to donate their money and resources but are lost on what organizations to give to. By having these videos constantly reoccur people were constantly reminded of a great organization that needs help.