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Supporting a friend when they have cancer
Everything is ticking along as normal, then boom, the world is tipped upside down. Someone you know – a best friend, school friend, boyfriend, girlfriend, teammate, housemate, work friend, Facebook friend – has cancer. Talk about unexpected. Being the friend of someone who has or has had cancer is not always easy. It can be scary and confusing and throw you way out of your comfort zone. But your friend might need people around them now more than ever.
This booklet is here to help you understand that a friend with cancer is still your friend… and that they will find it helpful just to have you there with them through the ups and downs. So just by showing that you care, you’re already awesome!
Read ‘A guide to supporting your friend when they have cancer‘ online now.
Supporting a friend when someone in their family has cancer
You’ve found out that someone in your friend’s family – their mum, dad, brother or sister – has a life-threatening illness. Being the friend of someone dealing with cancer is not always easy. You may feel confused and helpless and be thrown way out of your comfort zone. But your friend might need people around them now more than ever.
Since cancer entered their life, your friend has probably experienced a truckload of change and faced a lot of big challenges. They might find all this stuff even harder to deal with if they think they have to go through it alone. You’re not expected to be able to make everything better. It’s OK to be lost for words and to find the whole thing pretty weird. But this booklet is here to help you understand that a friend dealing with cancer is still your friend… and that they will find it helpful just to have you there with them through the ups and downs. So just by showing that you care, you’re already awesome!
Read ‘A guide to supporting your friend when someone in their family has cancer‘ online now.
Supporting a friend when their family member has died
Every cancer story is different. However it played out in your friend’s family, they have probably already experienced a lot of big changes, heaps of uncertainty and a huge range of strange and confusing emotions. But the death of a parent or brother or sister from cancer is not the end of the story. It can be the start of a new journey through grief that will bring some of the toughest challenges your friend will ever face.
It’s not always easy to be the friend of someone who is grieving. You might feel confused and helpless and be thrown way out of your comfort zone. But your friend might need people around them now more than ever. Most people who have lost a loved one find that things do eventually get easier and they learn to live with their grief. But it can be a very rocky and lonely path.
You’re not expected to be able to make everything better. But this book is here to help you understand that a friend who is grieving is still your friend – and that they will find it helpful to have you there through the ups and downs. So just by showing that you care, you’re already awesome!
Read ‘A guide to supporting your friend when their family member has died‘ online now.