Chances are high that if you have a friend or family member who lives with a chronic illness, or was recently diagnosed, that you don’t really know what you can do to help. This is not meant to be a dig towards you by any means. But most able-bodied people struggle because they don’t really know what to say or do. They feel this way because they can’t really relate to what we are feeling. They can’t relate to the chronic pain, or life altering fatigue. In fact, they often wonder if there is actually anything that they could say or do that would make any difference. They fear hurting their friend or family member so they pull away. This is not deliberate, but it is a reflex. So this is an effort to share some tips and ideas to help prevent that and help friends, family, and those with the chronic illness.