One-on-One Support

How important is one on one support?

Does it truly make a difference in a patient, survivor, or caregiver’s life?

Yes.

For those of you that know me probably know our family’s story. For those of you that don’t, long story short, my younger brother is a 4-time cancer survivor and I was one of his two brothers that helped be there for him along with our parents.

It was a lot emotionally on the whole family. Yes, cancer is extremely difficult and I will never downplay what my brother went through (and is still facing) I can never image. But it effects everyone in the family.

Over the past few years I had the pleasure of coming across the organization Imerman Angels.

Who are they you ask? Imerman Angels is unique in that one-on-one peer support is the sole focus of the organization.

Imerman Angels fills that gap for those that do not have a network of friends and family to lean on. They are that support system for people to call and vent or talk about what the hell is going on in a cancer patients life. They provide mentor angels for those that need someone to be their for them when they want it most.

I was fortunate to have a family and friend network that I could lean on for support, to vent, and to talk through how I was feeling. But it still isn’t the same when you are brand new to the cancer world – you feel like a deer looking at heads lights! I am not saying it is not important to have your family and friends- it absolutely is – but having the person that has the inside scoop, to help guide you through the storm, that can be a game changer.

How do I know this? I became a mentor angel last year for siblings of loved ones dealing with cancer.

While I have never meet any of the individuals that I have spoken with over the past year, I could always hear it in their voice how important it is to talk through what their brother or sister is going through and how they can try in some small way to help them get through it.

Being there is what it is all about as a sibling.

Because of the amazing work that Imerman Angels does and the community that Elephants and Tea has grown to become over the past year and a half, we have come together to partner to help connect our herd and the AYAs facing cancer with a mentor angel when they want it and need it most.

As part of this process, we are first asking those within our community that want to become a mentor angel for their fellow AYAs. Once we have built up enough of a database of mentors, we will then reach out to the rest of our herd and the AYA community to see who wants to connect with a mentor angel for one on one support.

We are excited to be able to partner with Imerman Angels as we continue to help people across the AYA cancer community know they are not alone in facing cancer by providing one to one support.

To sign up as a mentor angel – click here

To read our full announcement on this partnership – click here

Any questions, please reach out to me directly at nick@elephantsandtea.org

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