Maybe your friend is in the hospital with an intestinal infection or a colleague is at home on the couch with a concussion. Whatever the reason, being sick is always annoying. Often there is nothing better for the sick person than some distraction and knowing that there are friends and family who care about him or her and offer support. People have not forgotten you and make time for you. Moreover, the environment also wants to know how the patient is doing. That is why people visit the sick, and preferably not empty-handed. Only, what do you give to someone who is sick? This article will help you on your way.

Types of patients

One sick person is not the same as another, and you cannot just show up with any random gift. You shouldn’t give someone a voucher for the sauna who will never leave the hospital again. If your girlfriend has been admitted to an eating disorder clinic, you don’t arrive with a bag of sweets. If someone has just had eye surgery, you should not give magazines as gifts. It is therefore important to keep an eye on why someone is ill and to take that into account. Should the gift be:

• cause distraction?
• be inspiring?
• encourage someone to continue the fight?
• cheer someone up?
• be personal or impersonal?
• or should you apologize for it?

Often multiple options apply to one gift.

Card

The fact that you come to visit the sick and show that you have not forgotten someone is of course the most important thing. Whatever gift you give, it always comes with a card. Mainly because this often allows you to express your feelings better, but also because the patient can hang up the card and read it again afterwards.

Text card

What you write on it is of course very personal. You can think of texts along the lines of.‘What a terribly bad message you had to receive. The shock and sadness will be indescribable. I really have no words for it.’ ‘I wish you lots of strength and recovery.’ ‘Good luck in this difficult period.’ ‘We are with you in spirit.’ ‘Hopefully the sun will shine again for you soon.’ ‘I’m thinking about you. I just want you to know that I’m thinking of you.’ “I’ll light a candle for you.” ‘I will pray for you.’ Remember: sometimes few words say the most .

Gifts

Now for a present. Below are a number of options. Which one you choose depends largely on the relationship you have with the sick person. A vague colleague probably gives something different than your grandmother.

Survival kit

If someone has to stay in the hospital for a long time, it is nice to be able to open a package every day. For example, your gift could be a ’20 day package’, where the sick person has to do an assignment every day. Or of course you can open a present every day. This provides distraction at the moment itself, and the patient has something to look forward to. When considering assignments you should consider:

• Take a photo of the most handsome doctor in the hospital
• Flirt with the food assistant until you get an extra dessert
• Write down the first names of all fellow patients and make as many correct words as possible
• Make 20 people laugh
• Get the phone numbers of at least three nurses

Photo collage

Buy a photo album and fill it with photos of you and the sick person. If things don’t go well, your boyfriend or girlfriend can always look at the photo album at the good time you had together and find the strength to continue. It is a symbol of your friendship that will continue, with or without illness.

Music

Collect the most inspiring songs you know and put them together on a compilation CD. You can also give an MP3 player or radio as a gift. Giving musical instruments is not a good idea because they are probably not allowed in a hospital.

Movies and DVDs

When distraction is necessary, movies and DVDs are the best solution. Be careful about what kind of films you give. It might be better to leave dramas about cancer and death aside for now. Comedies and romantic swoon films always do well in difficult times. Check in advance whether the sick person also has a DVD player or laptop available on which he can play the films.

Empty book

When you are ill, you often have pent-up emotions that are sometimes difficult to release. A booklet with unlined paper is then suitable to give. The patient can write down his feelings here. You can also see it as a symbol for a new start. A clean slate, on an empty page that still needs to be filled in.

Games and puzzles

Games and puzzles are of course also a good form of distraction. Especially among older patients, for whom films move too fast. If someone is mainly alone in their room, it is not useful to give a board game that you can only play with a minimum of 6 participants. It is also better to avoid ‘doctor shivering’. Crossword puzzles, Sudokus and riddles are better in this case. Moreover, the sick person is often unable to solve this problem in one go, so that it can be enjoyed for a longer period of time.

Book or magazine

If someone is still conscious, books and magazines make great gifts. Keep in mind that many people will probably also give this, or that the patient has already read them in the waiting room. What are someone’s interests? Which books carry a beautiful symbolic meaning? Think about it carefully, because the patient cannot exchange a book until he or she has been released from the hospital.

Cycling or walking maps

Lying in such a musty room all day is of course no fun. Choosing an adventurous cycling route or walking tour can be a great motivation to persevere at times like these. ‘Later when I get better…’ Giving walking and cycling maps is often a appreciated gift, especially for elderly patients. Just from the local area, or a holiday destination somewhere far away.

Coupon for online shopping

Does anyone have a laptop at their disposal? Then give a coupon for an online store. After all, the patient cannot go into town, and many people enjoy nothing more than surfing the internet for hours until they find that perfect scarf.

Voucher for dining out or a day out

Being sick is terrible, and also very boring. By giving the gift of a day out, the patient gets something to look forward to. It is also a great opportunity to talk to each other about the past period, and it provides distraction.

Flower

Do you actually not know the patient that well? A cheerful flower with a nice card works wonders. Preferably not the bouquets sold in the hospital store, but from a specialty store. Preferably with lots of colors and little green, and don’t give gray mini weeping willows. That makes quite a gloomy impression.

Fruit basket

Visiting the sick? Most people immediately think of a fruit basket. After all, fruit is healthy and looks colorful. If you go for a fruit basket, put it together yourself. Buy a nice wooden basket or glass bowl and fill it with different types of fruit. Apples, tangerines, pears, bananas, grapes, cherries, kiwis and nectarines are favorites. Pineapple, melon, mango, lychees and avocados are usually omitted.

Home-made

A self-made work of art not only shows that you really put effort into a gift, but it doesn’t get more personal than this. Especially when family members are ill, a joint work of art made by all children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces is extra popular. Nice for the wall in the chilly hospital room. Consider:

• A painted pillowcase or duvet
• A teapot with 20 written tea bags
• Each family member paints a small painting. Then stick all the paintings together and you get a large work of art
• A painted sidewalk tile
• A video message from all friends and family together.
• A self-written song or poem
• A ‘get well soon book’, in which everyone writes a piece, pastes a photo or makes a drawing to encourage the sick person

Take into account

A visit to the sick is not a birthday. You have to take a number of additional things into account.

To call

Please call in advance to see if you can come by. An unexpected visit is not polite and often inconvenient when someone is ill. If you plan to bring children, it is definitely a good idea to let us know. And of course take the hospital visiting hours into account.

Response

If someone is ill, they may react differently than what you are used to. So don’t expect a super enthusiastic response to your arrival or your gift. The sick person is probably very happy that you came, but of course still sick.

Listen

Don’t sit around talking for hours about your daily problems, but try to listen. It’s not about you now, but about the other person. Don’t be too busy, and make sure you don’t leave the patient in a bad mood. And don’t argue. Arguing is never good, but certainly not when someone is sick. Moreover, the question is whether you will get the chance to talk to him or her again.

Courage

An unstable, desperate conversation is often not what the sick person is looking for. Usually it is wiser to radiate power and strength. Encourage the patient and let him or her know that there are people who are willing to offer support and help. Someone is not alone.Good luck and strength.