Let me say this about accepting help & believing it ispity. Independence is one of the themes of American culture; all of us seek to be fiercely independent, pride ourselves on defending independence for ourselves and others.

Not only am I in that club, I was raised by a woman whose mantra is "I just try to stay away from people." Naturally, the legacy of my childhood is developing a superb set of social skills (that's dark irony, BTW).

What I've learned from the New Thought movement (Unity, Science of Mind), and from a friend who had MD, and from observing graceful oldsters who lose capacities and must ask for help is this:

Accepting help is part of the circle of giving jfrom hearts and accepting love in our hearts, with gratitude. If we do not accept what is given to us gracefully, we diminish the good intentions of those who tried to help. They deserve to feel good about themselves, don't they? Even Blabbermouth is probably motivated by good intentions, bec. if she were evil, you would not have picked her to confide in.

I have oodles and oodles of difficulty accepting help from others. But I know that is one of the lessons our spirits are put on earth for -- to learn to receive as well as give, and to keep the circle going.