Accepting the Gift of Help

20 Dec Accepting the Gift of Help

Posted at 11:30h in Finances, Partners, Practical Tips by Triage Cancer

We know that during the holiday season stress levels can be at an all-time high. Maybe Present you are still searching for that perfect gift. While we may be thinking about what gifts we want, many cancer survivors and their caregivers are thinking of things they need. Friends and family may be offering to help, but sometimes it can be difficult to articulate exactly what you need or even accept the offer.

The list of needs can vary greatly. Some people may need financial help to deal with the costs associated with treatment. Others may need someone to watch their children or make a meal or two. Others may be craving things to take their mind off their diagnosis, like a girls’ night or movie tickets. There are resources out there that are designed to help cancer survivors and their caregivers organize their needs, ask for help, and be able to accept help from the people who love them in a dignified manner.

We want to highlight two of Triage Cancer's partners that may be able to help! MyLifeLine encourages cancer survivors and caregivers to create free, personalized webpages. The survivor or caregiver can then create a list of needs that they have and family and friends can volunteer to help with those specific needs. You can ask for anything from help finding a doctor, financial support, help mowing the lawn, help watching the kids or just a person to confide in. This site allows a survivor and caretaker’s community of family and friends come around them and support them. Family and friends can use their personal strengths to help survivors and caregivers get things they really need. The website also has links to resources where survivors and caregiver can get information, support and fundraising help.

Another resource that may be helpful for survivors and caregivers is GiveForward.com. This organization helps survivors fundraise for the costs associated with treatment. A survivor or caregiver can create a personalized website where they can tell exactly what the money is being raised for, share pictures or videos, and keep supporters up-to-date with a fundraiser’s blog. Then, the page can be shared with family and friends and even outside supporters. The survivor or caregiver can add family, friends or caregivers as “team members” on the page. They can edit the page, post updates and send it out to additional supporters. When the donation fundraising reaches its end date, GiveForward then sends a personal check or PayPal transfer. For those supporters that do not have financial means to help with the fundraising, GiveForward has a space where people can leave “hugs”, which are personal messages of encouragement and support. To learn more about how GiveForward works, click here.

Please just keep in mind that if you are choosing to keep your diagnosis private, double check your privacy settings on both of these websites and make sure friends and family don't post anything on their social media that may make you feel uncomfortable.

Whatever the need may be this holiday season, there are resources available for survivors and caregivers to be able to accept the gift of help from their family, friends or community.