How Do You Help Someone You Never Met?

Deviant Art is a strange world. You can take a month to create something beautiful and the people who see it, if they care to comment sum it up usually in two words, the most popular  are usually Nice job, or Wow that's cool. To some that is enough to me I have to write a story because I look at a lot of pictures too long and the story will usually just flow from my fingertips, though sometimes my brain is faster than my fingers and words are left out, but people usually understand. I would never say I write a critique that is mean and rarely point out any flaws for the people who ask me to critique want to know if their story is being told well. Do other people see something in their work of art. Within four months of being on Deviant Art I wrote over 200 critiques and the ones that wanted advice I gave it to them and the ones who want to know if I see a story I gave them my story. Somewhere in the middle of the fourth month my mother became more ill and my critiquing was lost. I would go to friends galleries and just wander around and look at their works.

After a while people started asking about my mom and were making sure I was okay. These people that only knew me for such a short time were showing more respect to me than my own family. Then they became a surrogate family to me I could tell them about my brother being an asshole, and they would say Alice you do not deserve to be treated this way, and my other friends agree but when you only get out 3, 4 or 7 hours a week you need back-up. I did not think that the back-up I would also be bonding like out of state cousins. I have been there for them too, it is not a one way street but more like a round-a-bout, trying to merge life with art.

What I want to know is when the friendship has become one so bonding that you know when one of your friends is hurting, you do not know their full name where they live, but your feelings for wanting to help ends up in frustration. I have met some really nice people and made some connections that are hard to explain. But for a couple of days I knew one of my best friends on Deviant Art was in pain, I knew it was family related and waited til the last minute to ask if  she was okay, I do not know what her full name.  When I finally did write to her I found out she was having some problems in her family with my uncanny ability.

The question is, how do I help someone I never met?