Emma Lawton launches crowdfunding campaign for Parkinson’s video website

Emma Lawton’s YouTube series PD365– where she vlogs about her life with Parkinson’s every day for a year – has received more than 87,000 views. She now plans to extend the concept with the launch of peer-led video information websites ‘threesixfives.com’, where those with the condition can find answers through video blogs – made by people coping with the same challenges

Parkinson’s advocate Emma Lawton, 34, who was diagnosed at 29, has been video blogging about her life with the condition every day since Parkinson’s Awareness Week in April 2017. On World Parkinson’s Day 2018, Emma decided to embark on a new project, directly inspired by the things she has learnt over the year.

After realising that the online community she’d brought together had great potential to help others dealing with a long-term diagnosis, she decided to launch a crowdfunding campaign for project ‘threesixfives.com’ – peer-led support website to help those with long-term conditions find answers through video blogs.

She said: “I noticed that people with Parkinson’s were finding the vlogs and interviews useful, and in some cases, life-changing. I realised there is a space for real life stories that people could dip into for information and that I had the foundation, PD365, to create something. It really made me see that authentic stories and a safe place to share them was key to coming to terms with a life-changing diagnosis.”

Watch the campaign video below.

Starting with Parkinson’s, with web address ‘pd.threesixfives.com’the model can then be replicated for other health conditions – with threesixfives eventually becoming a portal for honest and informative sharing among peers.

She says: “I’m a big advocate for technology and social media, they’re vital tools in helping people with long-term health conditions live fulfilling lives. I want the website to be really intuitive so that users can find the answers to their questions or concerns almost as easily as if they were chatting to a knowledgeable friend.”

Julie Dodd, director of digital transformation and communication at Parkinson’s UK, said: “We know that the way people with Parkinson’s are connecting is changing and new digital platforms have a huge part to play in this.

“Emma has already reached thousands of people through her vlog project and raised vital awareness amongst the general public of what Parkinson’s truly is, not just to her but to the many people she has interviewed along the way.

“We are looking forward to seeing how her project can develop and bring together even more people affected by conditions like Parkinson’s.”

In her final PD365 video published on World Parkinson’s Day, Emma said: “I just want to say a massive thank you from the bottom of my heart for tuning in and for supporting me, and all the love you’ve shown me. It’s got me through the last year. Opening up my life has given me comfort at times when I really needed it. Thank you so much for being there and for sharing my life with me for a year. It’s been a blast.”

For more information and to make a donation, visit Emma’s JustGiving page

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