It's Halloween And Long Covid Sucks | Stick It To Long Covid with Long Covid Kids
- Long Covid Kids
- Oct 25, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
These cool stickers are designed in collaboration with young people from our Youth Advisory Panel to raise awareness of Long Covid in children this Halloween. Where will you stick yours?
Over the summer, we met online with members of our Youth Advisory Panel (YAP) between the ages of 12 and 18 to work on a sticker design project. Each of the young people involved in the project has been living with a wide range of Long Covid symptoms for more than two years.
Long Covid Kids represent children and young people living with Long Covid and related illnesses including; PIMS, ME/CFS, POTS, and PANS.
WHAT WE DID
After some fun group introductions, we started off by taking a look at other awareness stickers on the market. We discussed how they made us feel, what we liked and didn’t like, and if we thought they would appeal to people of different ages.
Next, we started to think about what we wanted our stickers to achieve, how we wanted people to feel when they saw them, and the key messages that we thought would help raise awareness of Long Covid in children.
After a short discussion, the ideas started to flow and it became clear that the group knew what they wanted, and what they didn’t want from the off.
WHAT WE THOUGHT
It was agreed that the overall sticker design should aim for the following;
To have some that are fun and pretty to make people want to stick them in places other kids would see.
Use bright colours that stand out, linking to the LCK brand.
Include a range of messaging and overall feeling to mix it up so kids can choose.
Include a variety of designs that would be suitable for different age ranges.
Have clear messaging to include, sarcastic, honest, and fun, perhaps with some “inside jokes” that other kids with Long Covid would get.
YAP members felt it was important that the sticker designs should represent a range of messaging and show “how we feel on inside and not just look on outside”.
We discussed that some stickers should be more light-hearted and some should show how fed up young people are with dealing with the challenges of living with Long Covid.
YAP members also felt the sticker range should include some stickers that should have more serious messaging to highlight the risks of infection and reinfection to promote healthy behaviors like mask-wearing, and air filtration that help reduce the risk of infection.
With the most recent ONS report estimating 65,000 living with Long Long Covid in the UK alone, raising awareness of the risks of long-term health issues for children and young people was a priority for everybody.
Katie Age 16, Youth Advisory Member explains why she took part in the project.
Traumatized by the lack of care, the stigma, and the gaslighting from friends, doctors, family, we need help. I want to be a normal kid again. I want to go to school, play sport, and not spend my days in bed or in hospital waiting rooms, which is why I am so passionate about raising awareness with Long Covid Kids.
Finally, we talked about how the stickers should be marketed and sold, with everyone agreeing that there should be different pack sizes to make them as accessible as possible.
DESIGN TIME
YAP members had the opportunity to provide final comments on the design brief before it was finally sent to the designer, Lottie Brown.
STICK IT TO LONG COVID THIS HALLOWEEN
Stick it up and take a photo.
Share your photo on social media with #StickItToLongCovid #LongCovidSucks
Be in with a chance to win an LCK T-shirt and sticker variety pack.
DO SOMETHING AMAZING TODAY
Please donate today and help children like Olivia receive support and hope for a brighter future.
£20 a month will help us continue championing the rights of children like Olivia whose lives have been turned upside down by Long Covid.
£10 a month could help us run weekly support sessions for children like Olivia who are immensely isolated by their illness.
£5 a month could help us moderate chat forums for young people like Olivia desperate to connect with others in the same situation.
Your gift can make a meaningful difference in the lives of these brave young people.
Thank you for your support in advance.
Long Covid Kids supports children and young people living with Long Covid and related illnesses, as well as the families and caregivers who look after them. We rely entirely on donations to fund our vital work.
If you are a young person who has been affected by the ongoing symptoms of COVID, support is available, with or without a diagnosis. More info here.
If you, or someone you know has had a change in their health following a COVID infection reliable information and support can be found here:
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