Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is sponsoring race car driver and team owner Michael Waltrip. In 1989, Waltrip’s mother had a stroke brought on by atrial fibrillation. She went on Warfarin and the family struggled to keep up with her blood tests and other requirements.
Waltrip put together a video to share his story. You can see it here.
While the Waltrip family did have a difficult experience with Warfarin, they recommend people talk to their doctors about newer treatment options that may be right for them that don’t have some of those same restrictions.
What’s great about this is Janssen Pharmaceuticals and the Waltrip team are drawing attention to atrial fibrillation. This is all being done as part of Atrial Fibrillation Awareness Month, though some of their efforts are going to spill over into October.
In fact, you can get your photo on a car that Waltrip will be racing at Talledaga on October 19th. Even submitting the photo means that Janssen Pharmaceuticals is going to make a donation to the American Heart Association. That’s as good a reason to submit a photo as any, even if you don’t particularly care about being featured on the car.
You can submit your photo here. The site is also encouraging you to join the SHARE Network, where you can share your aFib story and get support. The SHARE Network is dedicated to inspiring others through their personal health journeys.
Honestly, I think it’s great to see atrial fibrillation get this kind of exposure. Having a sponsored NASCAR race car is kind of a big deal by anyone’s standards. This could mean more people getting screened. It could also mean more research dollars flowing towards better medications and procedures. Maybe someday, we’ll even see a straight up cure.
Will you be submitting your photo? And if so, are you excited about being featured on a race car? Let me know in the comments below!
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