Here’s a list of ways to support your friend who’s broken arm just threw a huge wrench into their daily routine.

Your friend calls with unexpected news, they’ve fallen and broken their arm. It’s a hard thing to hear when someone you care about has been hurt and it’s even harder to hear when they now have to change up their whole daily routine because of this unforeseen accident. This might affect their work, home, and personal life, so it’s safe to say that they could use some help during this recovery time.

And that’s exactly what we’re here to help you with!

Today we’re going to break down a list of gifts for friend with broken arm but with a little twist. Our gift suggestions are going to revolve around the five love languages:

• Words of Affirmation
• Quality Time
• Physical Touch
• Acts of Service
• Receiving Gifts

Now obviously we will have to get creative for a few of these gifts to match the love languages–but at the end of the list all of them will be really helpful and might just cheer them up too!

An easy way to start supporting your friend is by setting up a way for others to chip in and help too–and the best way to do that? Give InKind. Give InKind is a platform that makes helping others who are going through a life-changing event fast and simple. You can create an “InKind Page" which describes what the person needs, whether it be a meal train, babysitting, or gift cards, and then you can send that out to family members, friends, and neighbors to see if they can contribute too!

Give InKind makes organizing support easy and in just five minutes you can create an InKind Page here.

Now let’s get into the best gifts for friend with broken arm.

Gifts Based On: Words Of Affirmation

Sometimes a simple message or something similar can really turn a day from bad to good!

Seeing a nice message by your desk everyday where you go to work can really uplift that midday lag.

Words of affirmation are all about showing your love and care through communication. This way a person can feel how important they are and how much people are there for them through words or fun messages during a time when they might feel a little isolated due to their injury.

Some gifts or services that reflect words of affirmation are:

• If your friend has kids at home or really likes to add a bit of color to their everyday life then getting a packet of markers would be a great gift so that boring cast can be covered with a bunch of doodles. This way there can be little messages on there that might brighten their day. And if your friend does have kids then maybe showing them they can draw on their parent’s cast will make the whole thing a little less scary.
• This one is delving a little more into the “art-project" world but we think it’ll be a great hit. You can make an affirmation jar! An affirmation jar is a jar that’s full of cut out little notes with joyful little sayings and motivational quotes that can give someone a boost on a particular day when they feel like they need it. Recovering from an injury can be a bit of an isolating experience, so feeling a little less alone with some comforting words can be a nice thing to receive. All you’ll have to do is get a Mason Jar or something like this- (this one comes in pair of two, you’ll only need one for this project but the other one can be used for a gift later down the list), cut out slips of paper, and then write some things down that you think might help. It’s something small to brighten their day!
• If your friend is an avid reader and now has more free time on their hands, then why not get them a book they’ve been meaning to read? And if you aren’t exactly sure what book they might like, there’s plenty of lists on the internet with suggestions. There you can buy them a book, whether it be a physical copy or an ebook, something to read is a lovely way to help pass the time.

Gifts Based On: Quality Time

Your friend feeling a bit lonely during their recovery time? These gifts can help with that.

Having a close friend with you while you recover can help you feel better, even if it’s just a little bit.

Quality time means spending time and showing the people you love that you’re there for them in the tough times (like these) and in the good times. You can just be hanging out together and talking or doing something together that they like, or you like, or you both like. It’s as simple as that. These gifts are all about quality time and activities you can do together:

• Board Games are getting more and more popular every year, with new games popping up and plenty of old ones that still capture hearts, board games are a perfect way to catch up and get a little competitive. Board games make for a great afternoon of laughs and time spent together. You could go for well known classics like Connect Four, Checkers, and Scrabble, or you can try out something they might not have played before but is still so fun like Czech Games Codenames, Telestrations, and/or Hygge Games …I should have known that!
• A Gift Card to the movies, their favorite restaurant, or a store they might like is a great way to get them out of the house and a good way to spend time together- maybe you can bring the whole friend group and make it a day out on the town. It’s a simple way to say, “hey, I’m here, let’s do something together and get out of the house for a bit." A small way to change up their daily routine.
• Why not go over with a fun surprise that you can dig into and enjoy? SnackMagic is a box full of not boring snacks that’ll be fun to try out while you have a good conversation catching up and checking in on your injured friend. And the best part? You can leave whatever you guys don’t finish behind so they can enjoy some treats for the next week or so.
• The last one is less of a gift, more of a simple idea. When in doubt just text and see if they want some company. If your friend needs you and you want to show them support during this time by doing something, spending quality time with them is a delightful way to bring you even closer and help them feel a bit better.

Gifts Based On: Physical Touch

A broken arm comes with a lot of discomfort, so let’s see if we can’t help a little with that?

Sometimes you just need your favorite blanket and a nice lay down after a long day.

These gifts are going to be a little different than your “average" physical touch-like gifts as right now your friend is in a fair amount of discomfort, but we have a few ideas for gifts that can bring a little comfort and help their healing process:

• Casts are uncomfy, they can get itchy and gross after you wear them for a little while, so finding a product to help with that discomfort would be a great gift. A Cast Scratcher and Cleaner/Sanitizer can scratch an itch you might have and won’t cause any damage to your skin. It’s flexible so it can get into hard to reach places, no more pencils or weird things trapped in the cast until they get it off in a few weeks.
• When your friend finally gets their cast off they are going to be a bit stiff and also very happy that they are getting back to their regularly scheduled program. With this happy occasion, why not treat them to something special like a spa day? You can gift them with a voucher or a gift card to a local spa/masseuse- this way they can finally let all that tension melt away through massages, face masks, and treatments.
• A Hand Grip Strengthener, Finger Strengthener, & Grip Strength Trainer is a “for after" gift when they get their cast off. Using those muscles and bringing a bit of movement back to your hand/arm after weeks of not using might just be a really good idea. (Check in with your friend first to see if this would work with what their doctor says, always check in just in case they need something a little different then this specific grip strengthener).
• A Wedge Elevation Pillow is also a good gift for when your friend is recovering because it’ll keep their arm elevated and out of the way when they are sleeping because if they are known to toss and turn during their sleep this will keep their injured arm away from accidental bad positions.

Gifts Based On: Acts Of Service

A broken arm can cause some issues getting house work and other chores done, let’s fix that!

Simple things like mowing the lawn is pretty difficult with a broken arm, this is where you can come in handy!

This is probably the most handy gift selection on the list because it’s all about providing services to make sure that their life isn’t too disrupted from this unexpected injury. These acts of service gifts will surely be a huge help to your friend who might not be able to take care of things like they normally do:

• Offer to: mow their lawn, shovel snow, take out the trash, gas their car up, or any other “chores" they need to do around the house that they can’t do at the moment. These are big acts of service gifts that can really turn their day around, especially if their lawn is starting to over grow or they have an expected snow storm that can really impede going to work or other activities.
• See what their to-do list is like and help them cross some stuff off the list. It’s similar to the previous gift but these are little things that they might want done when you’re over to spend time with them.
• Buy something they’ve been wanting/have been talking about. Your friend could use some cheering up and getting them a special treat like a gift card for a place they’ve talked about going to or buying them something new they’ve been eyeing is a nice way to show that you’ve been paying attention.

Gifts Based On: Receiving Gifts

This one’s all about, well, gifts!

Doing research beforehand on finding the best gifts for a friend with a broken arm is a great way to make sure you’re getting something that will help.

It’s only fitting we wrap up our gift guide today with the final love language: gift giving! These are all of the extra little treats that we think would make a great present to receive when your friend is in need:

• A Waterproof Cast Cover is such a useful gift to get as your friend can use this every single day. Taking a shower and having to worry about putting a plastic bag securely over the cast and then either tape it down or use rubber bands can get tedious after the first couple times, so why not splurge and get your friend this cast cover? Super easy to put on and it’s reusable!
• A Pizza Slicer is going to change their kitchen game, especially right now since cutting things with a knife and fork is going to be a bit difficult. A pizza slicer can cut through your food no problem and you don’t have to worry about weirdly navigating utensils with two hands.

Speaking of slicing your food, a gift you can set up for your friend that could be very beneficial to them during this time is a meal train! A meal train is where family, friends, and neighbors all come together to make meals for a select period of time to help someone who can’t quite make food for themselves right now. You can set up a meal train on Give InKind and make sure that signing up to provide meals for your friend is stress-free for them.

There are plenty of practical and fun gifts for friend with broken arm you can get, whether it be spending time with them, a way to help them recover faster, or colored markers to brighten their day, each gift shows that you’re thinking of them.