Guest post: Ten Tips to Help a Girlfriend Get Well

If you spend as much time online as I do, you're bound to make new friends. And when you share common interests, the bond is almost immediate. Since writing my book Best Friends Forever: Surviving a Breakup with Your Best Friend, I've been lucky to get to know a number of women who spend their days (and many nights) thinking about female friendships. Dawn Bertuca and Tina Bishop, the co-creators of Girlfriend Celebrations are two of my favorites. My relationship with them is synergistic: We share ideas, content, contacts, and warm fuzzies.

I really liked a recent post by Tina called Ten Tips to Help A Girlfriend Get Well that was posted on their site because whether it's a mild case of the flu or something more serious, good friends are there for each other. Here is Tina's guest post, reprinted with her permission.

Ten Tips to Help a Girlfriend Get Well
By Tina Bishop

With this season of colds, pneumonia and swine flu, someone in your circle of friends might be feeling under the weather right now. Recently the Girlfriends-in-Chief themselves were shut-in for one illness or another and personally understand "It's really pretty sucky!" So we're here to remind you to take a minute out of your busy schedule, arm yourselves with love and compassion and let a girlfriend know you are thinking of her. Taking some time to nurture a girlfriend can make a world of difference not only in her life but yours as well.

When a person is unable to take part in normal daily activities outside their home, their world shrinks dramatically. Keeping in touch and connected to the outside world can be a saving grace. By daily taking time to phone-a-friend you provide emotional support and mental stimulation. Yes, being her link to the outside world is an important role, so don't forget to ring and do so often.

All too often women offer to help each other by saying, "If there's anything I can do, please give me a call." Yet, the phone never rings. And why, you might ask? Because as women, we us feel uncomfortable asking others for help unless it's an emergency. Women are not taught to ask others for help but believe that they can do everything. Women in our society strive to be super mom, super wife...super everything. So do your girlfriend a favor and don't put her on the spot! Don't ask if you can help, just do it! Your unsolicited thoughtfulness and caring is like chicken soup for the heart. A healthy dose will do a girlfriend some good.

Here are 10 ways to show a girlfriend you care:

1. Mail her a card everyday she is unable to leave the house. Ask other girlfriends to do the same. A daily reminder that you and others are thinking of her will add a little color to a blue day.

2. Drop off a basket of magazines, books or movies. Keeping her mind occupied will help to keep her spirits up.

3. Leave a favorite treat on her doorstep. (white chocolate mocha, hot apple pie) A yummy treat will do wonders to warm her heart.

4. While you are out grocery shopping, pick up a few extra staples of fresh fruit vegetables, bread or milk. The perishables in her refrigerator will be the first to go bad and are packed with nutrients to help a sick one heal.

5. Send over a basket of homemade soup, crusty bread and cookies, along with the recipes. A bowl of steamy soup will help to warm a bluesy day.

6. Have the little ones you know create a special and bouquet of colorful tissue paper flowers for her. Brighten her room with cheerful color, a special touch to remind her you care.

7. Load up a disc of happy and inspiring music to step up her mood.
8. Give her a scrapbook kit to fill while she has the time on her hands. Getting the chore of putting her pictures away will be much appreciated.

9. Make a few freezer meals for her to store for use when she really needs some help.

10. Rent a few video games for her to t try. Adding some fun to her day with video games she's never played can be just the prescription she needed.

Helping a girlfriend during a time of need can be a truly rewarding gesture. How have you have helped the friends in your life? We'd love to hear about it. Click on GirlfriendCelebrations for more ways nurture your friendships.