2010 Hands -Down-a-Thon
September 1 - October 31, 2010
Like a jog-a-thon or read-a-thon, the Hands-Down-a-Thon is a sponsorship event designed especially for people with trich or skin picking. You commit to making positive behavioral changes for two months, and you ask your friends and family to sponsor you with a pledge to TLC. This year, we've added extra help along the way, including a pep talk with Christina Pearson, a free month of StopPulling.com and StopPicking.com, and prizes for the largest fundraiser!
It’s as easy as 1-2-3!
1.Create a personal fundraising page at TLC’s FirstGiving.com homepage:
You can create your own fundraising page in just 10 minutes. (It really is easy and quick to do!)
Just go to http://www.firstgiving.com/trichlearningcenter and click the “Get Started” button.
Under events, select “Hands-Down-A-Thon.”
Once your fundraising page is created, you then email a note to friends and family that links to your page, where they can make a donation to TLC in support of your Hands-Down-a-Thon. Your sponsors will receive a receipt for their donation, and TLC will receive the funds directly from firstgiving.com.
2. Set yourself a personal trich or skin picking management goal for the two months of the
Hands-Down-A-Thon and monitor your progress.
Your goal might be to have a “pull/pick-free day” or to limit your pulling or picking in certain ways (duration, location, etc.). We particularly like goals that involve “using your tools”: It might be to use the self-help sites StopPulling.com or StopPicking.com, or to meditate every morning and keep a daily journal as part of building your self-awareness. Whatever goal you set, it should be something that will be challenging, but also something you think you can achieve at least half the time, so that you will stay motivated and positive. Use self-monitoring forms to monitor your progress.
3. Spread the Word and update your Sponsors on your Progress!
Through FirstGiving, you will email a note to friends and family that links to your fundraising page. You can personalize your page with your story, photos, or a fundraising goal. You can also link your page to your Facebook Account, to YouTube Videos, or other websites. TLC’s page will track the most successful individual and team fundraising efforts.
There are more fundraising tips at http://help.firstgiving.com/fundraising-tips
And there's help along the way
E-Mail Group for Hands-Down-A-Thon-ers
When you sign up for the Hands-Down-A-Thon, you will be joined to a TLC-moderated email group, so we can all cheer each other along and share goals, strategies, successes and challenges.
A free month at StopPulling.com or StopPicking.com
TLC has partnered with the online behavior management websites, StopPulling.com and StopPicking.com.
Hands-Down-A-Thon-ers who use one of these sites for a month will get the second month free.
StopPulling.com and StopPicking.com are web sites designed by a member of TLC’s Scientific Advisory Board, Suzanne Mouton-Odum, in collaboration with several colleagues. These sites ask you to track your daily pulling and picking behaviors – where they happen, what you are feeling when they happen, and how severe they are – in order to help you attain greater awareness of your patterns. The sites then suggest behavior management strategies that are customized to you, helping you to gain greater understanding and control of your triggers and responses.
Mid-Point Conference Call with Christina Pearson
Halfway through the Hands-Down-A-Thon, on September 27 at 2pm Pacific/5pm Eastern, Christina Pearson will lead a group telephone conversation for Hands-Down-A-Thon-ers to help keep up motivation, discuss difficulties and brainstorm ways to meet your goals.
Prizes for Most Sponsorships Raised
As an added incentive, the individual who raises the most Hands-Down-A-Thon sponsorship donations for TLC will receive one free admittance to TLC’s 2011 Conference San Francisco, CA. (Sponsorship donations must be made on your First Giving web page by October 31, 2010 – the winner will be announced in November.)
Through the First Giving website, Hands-Down-A-Thon-ers can also join together into Teams for further support and motivation. Each member of the team that raises the most in sponsorship donations will get a certificate of appreciation and bragging rights for one year! (Create a team with your friends & family, fellow support group members, people from your city or state, or online friends.)
Good Luck!
Please note: This event is intended for adult participants. If children or teens want to participate, this should be done with thoughtful consideration and parental involvement.