i need help

You can't have light without shadows.

Sometimes, the shadows make the light seem all the brighter, and show us things we wouldn't otherwise notice. Life is never so bittersweet as when you are enjoying a pleasure that you may not be given the gift of again. Dawn, a rain shower, the smell of woodsmoke, the company of a loved one, the sight of a person who is trying even if they are failing...the imminence of Death makes us appreciate Life in a way that nothing else can. Until you have stared Death in the face close up, you don't really know Life, except shallowly, as a child does. And this gift, the priceless gift of appreciation, is something that you and your friend can give to each other.   And if you do this thing, I promise you this; in the end, you will consider it to have been worth doing.    

Yes, the dark is very dark, and sometimes very cold. I won't deny grief is a heartache, and one that time will heal, but never without a scar. Death is ugly; but it can also be inspiring, and educational, and even edifying, because it is life lived close to the edge, where reality loses all disguises.

The most important thing any of us will ever do is be an example; and few of us get to choose what sort of thing we become an example of. But whatever we are, whatever situation we find ourselves in, to care for another human being regardless, to be honestly ourselves with all our vulnerabilities and human failings, and to show love for another - that is something that teaches the whole world what a good example is. 

Amidst the darkness of grief, you learn that the only true light comes from the human heart; and forever more, you remember, and can see it.

So my advice to you after all these fine words is, try. It's only human to be afraid to fail, as your friends are; but you will at the very least grow as a human being, and be able to be proud that at least you tried. 

There's one vital thing I neglected to say, caught up in my memories as I was; and that is, of all the metabolic disorders that need some kind of a magic fix, Cystic Fibrosis is the one that leaps to my mind as having the most promising therapies in the pipeline.

Admittedly, I'm no endocrinologist, nor even medically trained, so my knowledge of the whole panoply of genetic disorders is incomplete; but I read reports of scientific papers on a weekly basis talking about gene therapies, and new techniques for delivering the specific genes needed for treating CF are in development. Most medical research reported as a potential cure is actually "if, maybe, then someday, perhaps". The one I'm thinking about particularly is known to work at delivering genes effectively in other situations; that's a whole lot more hopeful than normal. Okay, you wouldn't want to be holding your breath while it comes to fruition - but over a timescale of years, I'd sure as heck be thinking about my pension if I was a CF sufferer. 

I think I have to agree with everyone who has posted a responce so far. as somone with CF I can tell you that there are 2 big fears when meeting and telling new people about CF. First is that they will be afrade to get close to me (maybe part of the resion I have never had a decent boyfriend) and second, that they will feel sorry for me and cling to me because they think I need a friend. it frustrates me to no end that people are so afrade of losing me that they won't even try being friends!

that being said, I have many friends who have CF, and have had some of them die. I myself have been very close to death from CF on 3 occations, and I can tell you that it is much harder to watch a frind suffering and dieing, then it is to be the one in the hospital bed.

my advice to you is to go to a CF website, learn all you can about it. then go to him and find out about his life with CF. be suportive, and make sure that there is much more to your relationship than simply discussing CF. and finally, stick with him through everything, to the very end!