How to Write a Get Well Note

Get well notes are supposed to be encouraging to family and friends who are ill or injured, but they're sometimes difficult to write. You may be feeling anxious about the sick person, but you don't want that to come across in your note. At the same time, you don't want to make light of the situation. Try these tips the next time you have to write a get well note.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Send the get well note as soon as you learn about the person's illness or accident. The longer you put it off, the less likely you are to actually write it.
2. Make your get well note brief. Just a few sincere and warm words can be uplifting to the person suffering from an illness or accident. They'll feel better knowing others are concerned. If you really can't think of anything to say, buy a nice get well card and add a short message to it.
3. Use some humor when appropriate. If your friend has broken a leg skiing, you can enclose some funny cartoons about skiing.
4. Offer to do something specific for the person. Your sick friend may feel awkward calling on you if you just say, "Let me know what I can do." Instead, say you'll pick up his mail or walk his dog three times a week. These tangible aspects of caring mean a lot.
5. Word your message carefully if you are sending it to a seriously ill patient. Mention sweet memories you share, but don't make it sound like you are writing a eulogy. Don't say you know how they feel, because you don't. Saying, "Get well soon" is not appropriate for a terminally ill person.
6. Let your personality come through your words. Make your message brief and sympathetic. Tell your friend you are thinking about him or her. You're not a minister, and you're not a professional writer. Just be yourself and let your get well note show how much you care.

Tips & Warnings

• When writing a get well note to a sick child, send your short note with something else, such as balloons, books or maybe some homemade coupons. He can exchange them for 30 minutes of reading by you or maybe for a delivered fast food meal.