• All About INTRON® A
  • What Is INTRON® A?
  • Why INTRON® A?
  • Getting Started
  • Treatment with INTRON® A
  • Managing Side Effects
• Understanding Your Condition
  • Malignant Melanoma
  • Skin Basics
  • What Is Cancer?
  • Types of Skin Cancer
  • Focus on Melanoma
• Give and Get Support
  • For People Living with Melanoma
  • For People Who Care
• Professional Resources
  • Indications
  • Why INTRON® A
  • Managing Therapy
  • Patient Support
  • Professional Resources
  • Contact Information

Reaching Out

Widen the circle of support, stay positive

Sometimes if you end up relying on the same one or two people for help during treatment, it can become frustrating for them and for you. Caregivers need a break and time to care for themselves. You don't want to feel afraid to ask for help you need because everything is falling on the same person's shoulders.

Widen the circle

You may be surprised to find out how many people will step forward to help you. Here are some new places to look for assistance:

• Unions, bowling leagues, and other informal sports teams
• Book groups, bridge or poker friends, social clubs
• Neighborhood associations
• People who care about your children, such as other parents in babysitting co-ops, carpools, scout groups, or PTAs
• Younger children or grandchildren (offer them simple tasks such as walking your dog, bringing in the newspaper and mail, watering your plants, or just visiting to sing a song or tell a story)

You may also find local organizations that provide caring volunteers who can help. To find volunteer helpers:

• ask at your hospital, library, or a local place of worship
• contact the state or local health department
• contact the Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237)

When you ask for help, keep these guidelines in mind:

• Be specific about your needs
• Think in terms of different types of help such as transportation, meals, cleaning, visiting, and being a good listener
• Let people choose the kind of help they want to give
• Consider asking one person to organize the help for you, so that helpers have a specific task at a specific time and you don't end up with too much help one week, and not enough another week
• Think about ways to relieve the people in your household who may be doing most of the caregiving; they need a break too
• Keep your caregivers informed with emergency phone numbers, schedules, how you use various medications, who they can call for backup, etc
• Always say "thank you"