Consent before publication, always
Nobody's medical history goes online without their explicit, written permission, and any storyteller can ask us to take a piece down at any time, no reason required.
About us
We are students who got tired of health awareness that nobody reads.
Strands of Life began with a simple observation: a ribbon on a poster does not change what anyone knows, but hearing one person describe their diagnosis changes everything.
Our mission
One issue a month, told by the people who live it
Each month we choose a medical issue from the national awareness calendar, research it carefully, and build a campaign around the voices of patients, survivors, caregivers, and families.
We are not clinicians and we do not pretend to be. What we can do is make sure that when someone searches for a condition at two in the morning, they find a real person's account instead of only a wall of statistics.
Everything we publish is free, and every storyteller keeps the final say over their own words.
Add a team photo here. Drop a file at assets/images/team.jpg and swap this block for an <img>.
What we believe
Four things we will not compromise on
Accuracy over engagement
Facts come from public health bodies and established patient organizations, and we cite them. We would rather post a quieter campaign than an inaccurate one.
Dignity, not pity
People living with an illness are not lessons or inspiration. We edit for clarity, never to make a life sound sadder or braver than the person described it.
Open to everyone
No membership fee, no application essay, no minimum hours. If you want to help, there is a role for you, whatever your grade or experience.
Our editorial process, in short: research, invite, interview, draft, storyteller approval, publish.
How we handle stories
Someone's diagnosis is not ours to hand around
Health stories are sensitive in a way most nonprofit content is not. Before anything goes live, a storyteller reads the final draft and signs off in writing. They choose how they are identified: full name, first name, or anonymously.
- Storytellers can use a pseudonym or stay anonymous entirely.
- We remove identifying details about clinicians, employers, and schools unless asked not to.
- Anything we publish can be edited or taken down on request, permanently.
- We never share submissions, contact details, or unpublished drafts with anyone outside the team.
The team
Who runs Strands of Life
We are a volunteer team of high school and university students working across writing, design, outreach, and social media.
Placeholder content. Fill in real names, roles, and photos for your team before launch.
Name
Founder & Director
Name
Editorial Lead
Name
Outreach Lead
Name
Design & Social
Want to help build the next campaign?
Whether you write, design, research, or just know people worth talking to, there is room on the team.