Q: Don't try to do it alone! Let your loved ones know about your diagnosis, what you are going through, and what you are doing to manage your condition. Spend time with them regularly to enjoy their company and let them know how they can help you.  For example, if your asthma has made it difficult for you to carry groceries and other items into your home each week, then you might arrange for someone to come and help you unload your car on your grocery shopping day. If chronic depression has caused you to isolate yourself and avoid calling people when you're struggling, then ask a friend or family member to check on you once every few days if they haven't heard from you. Taking with other people who have the same condition as you can be a powerful experience. It can help you to feel less alone and you may even gain some helpful ideas for managing your condition. Look for a support group in your area that is meant for people with your chronic illness.  For example, if you have cancer, then find a support group for people with cancer, or for people who have the specific type of cancer that you have. Ask your doctor or therapist for information on local support groups. If your chronic illness is making it hard for you to cope with everyday life, find a therapist who you can meet with regularly. They can help you develop emotional coping skills that may make it easier to get through your day-to-day life and feel more empowered to manage your condition. If you are struggling with feelings of sadness, tell your doctor as well. Depression has a strong correlation with other types of chronic illness. Although it may be unpleasant to think about, planning for the worst-case scenario can help to give you some peace of mind. If you often worry about what might happen if you are incapacitated or die from your chronic illness, you may find it helpful to make a plan for these possible outcomes. For example, you could put into writing your wishes should you lose consciousness, such as being resuscitated or not being resuscitated.
A: Spend quality time with friends and family. Seek out a support group to find other people who understand. Talk with a therapist if you are having trouble coping. Make plans for every possible outcome to gain a better sense of control.

Q: After waiting for your initial grow-out period, when you've got the beard to its desired length, it's important to start trimming and shaping it. Most men should trim their beards about once every two weeks or so, depending on your speed of growth, and the style of beard you want to have.  If you hope to end up with a Gandalf-style wizard's beard, it's still good to shape and trim using a beard trimmer, or scissors, to keep things growing evenly. If you want a very short beard, and have especially coarse hair, you might find you need to trim it more regularly, like every two or three days. Always keep your neck trim, up to your chin-line, or at whatever point along the neck looks best to you. If you don't trim the neck hair, beards typically look pretty caveman-like. While it's possible to trim longer beards neatly with a pair of hairdressing scissors, it's very difficult to keep a beard orderly without an electric trimmer, or at least regular hair clippers. The only difference is typically the size of the guards and of the clipper itself.  Use a regular beard trimmer for shorter beards or the first few months of beard growth, and try a more hefty hair trimmer for thicker beards. A common mistake is learning to use a trimmer for the first time and shaving off too much. If you have some stubble, practice with the trimmer before you shave, to get a feel for how it works, and which guards are most appropriate for you. Start with the longest setting first, you can always take more off if you wish, but can't put it back on once it's been cut. There are many ways to style and shape your beard, but a lot of the choice will depend on your face, and your personal sense of style. If it looks good to you, go for it. But in general, if you have full cheeks, plan on keeping it shorter on the sides. If you have a narrow face, you can keep some length to fill it out. Decide on a cheek line. You will need to choose how high the beard should go on your cheeks. Most people leave this section to natural growth, but if it seems to be creeping up to your cheekbones, you should trim the upper section. On most trimmers, you can use a tapered setting, which will allow you to trim the beard in even strokes, tapering it down to your neck as you go, without having to change the height of the trimmer itself. You can taper the cheeks, the neck and the chin, if you desire, for a nice, clean look. If you want to go with a more complicated beard style, there are lots of options available for you to style. Try any of the following beard styles:  Goatees involve trimming off the cheeks, leaving your chin beard and your mustache. Pencil-line beard involve leaving only a thin line of beard along your jawline, connecting to your mustache. This typically looks best with very short hair, or a bald look. Pharaoh beards typically involve shaving everything but the chin, and growing out the chin, sometimes braiding or beading the beard as it grows. Wizard beards, or American Civil War-type throwback beards will take some time to cultivate, but essentially involve growing the beard out as long as possible, but still trimming the neck periodically, as well as the mustache, so it gets out of the way of your lip.
A: Trim with a beard trimmer every 5-10 days. Use a beard trimmer. Choose a beard style that fits your face shape. Use tapered settings on your trimmer, if possible. Consider less usual beard shapes.

Q: You may need to adjust the needle a bit to make sure it’s inserted correctly. You’ll know it’s in the right spot when you see the blood start to flow.  As an alternative, you can use a vacutainer needle and hub, if you plan to use vacutainers. Your needle should still be about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) long.  You can get a needle from your vet, a medical supply store, or online. If the blood spurts or shoots out, remove the needle, because you’ve entered the carotid artery. As you pull out the needle, place a piece of gauze or your finger over the wound for at least 1 minute. Then, check to see if the bleeding has stopped. Continue to apply pressure until you don't see any more bleeding. Slide the pump back slowly as the blood flows into the syringe. Stop when the syringe is full of blood.  Break the seal before you insert the syringe into the horse’s vein. Don’t press down on the plunger. Stabilize the needle, then use your dominant hand to gently push the vacutainer onto the syringe. Once it’s attached, blood will fill the vacutainer.  A vacutainer is a tube that’s used to collect blood. You can find them at a vet supply store, a drug store, or online. It’s okay to use vacutainers made for humans.  If you want to take several samples, simply remove the full vacutainer and insert a new one.
A:
Insert a 20-gauge x 1.5 in (3.8 cm) needle at a 20° angle. Pull back the pump on the syringe to take your blood draw. Attach a vacutainer to the syringe hub, if you’re using one.