Illnesses and injuries are an inevitable fact of life—and eventually, it'll hit someone you love

And over the past few years, I've experienced health crises as a friend, a main caretaker—and most recently, as a patient myself

Having friends and family reach out to offer their love and support is probably the only good thing about going through these tough times

And no matter how they supported us—whether it was checking-in texts or dropping off meals or helping us wrangle our kids—it helped

Be mindful not to minimize and invalidate the person's experience with default responses

The "we're here for anything you need" offers were so lovely. But honestly, I felt like I was imposing by asking them to walk my dog or pick up my prescriptions at the pharmacy

If you're a communicator by nature, grab the contact info for everyone who needs to be in the loop, or post updates on social media

Not going to lie—the meal train my friend coordinated was a real lifesaver, and I definitely missed the daily deliveries when it was over