Appropriate Get-Well Wishes in English [What to Say]

When a friend, acquaintance, or coworker is sick,

it's common to send a get-well message.

The same is true if you're part of a volunteer organization or if you know a

neighbor has a medical procedure scheduled and when we share get-well wishes

with someone,

we typically do it with a personal note via text or email

or make a quick phone call. If you've ever done this in English,

you might have wondered what exactly should you say?

What are the right words and phrases?

How do you share genuine get-well wishes with someone without

sounding cliche? In this Confident English lesson today,

you'll learn five simple tips to share,

get-well wishes with ease and impact along the way.

You'll learn 22 common phrases you can use the next time you need to send a

get-well message.

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And now let's dive in right away with tip number one on how to share get-well

messages in English, greet appropriately. Greetings,

set the tone for your get-well message and they're always polite.

A standard greeting is simply using the word dear, followed by someone's name.

Dear Susan. Dear Maria, however,

you may choose alternative greetings that appropriately reflect the

relationship you have with someone. In other words,

how close you might be if you're sharing a get-well message with an

acquaintance or coworker, someone you don't have a close relationship with,

you might choose to simply use someone's first name as opposed to using the

greeting Dear. For example, Maria or Amy.

If you consistently struggle with knowing the right greetings to use in a

variety of situations, I recommend you check out my lesson on this topic.

I have a full lesson on informal and professional greetings for

any situation. I'll leave a link to that lesson in the notes below this video.

And now tip number two, be positive and understanding.

After you share your greeting,

include a positive and understanding message.

When you're sharing a get-well message,

it's important to avoid offering advice,

expressing pity, comparing,

sharing home remedies or mentioning sensitive topics.

Every circumstance is unique and you may not always

know the extreme to which someone is ill.

It's best to avoid assumptions at all costs and instead focus your

message on something positive and empathetic.

This might include an uplifting message that inspires hope or

provides reassurance. For example,

imagine a close friend has recently caught the flu in a message to her.

You might say, I've been thinking about you all week. Take this time to rest,

watch lots of will and grace and recover quickly. I miss you.

Not only is this message personal,

but it also focuses on the individual's healing process and how to

pass the time. Here are a few more useful positive phrases you could use.

I hope you can focus on positive moments today. Hang in there.

I know you have the strength to get through this and I'm looking forward to

seeing your smile the next time I visit.

I want to note that the last two I've mentioned are far more casual

and personal, so those are best used for someone you know well. Moreover,

when you're sending well wishes to a coworker or someone you don't know well,

it's common to include other members of your team and your wishes.

For example, you might say,

we're all thinking of you and hope you get better soon,

or We're all thinking of you and we hope to see you get back on your feet soon.

Here are three more. We hope you feel a little bit better each day.

We're wishing you progress and encouragement as you recover.

We hope you get plenty of rest. Get better soon.

Tip number three for sharing meaningful get-well messages is to keep

it brief. Unless this is someone you're particularly close to,

there's no reason for a long message.

All you need is a simple text, a short email, or a quick phone call.

In tip number two, I shared several quick phrases you can use to share,

get-well wishes, and I want to share with you a few more for coworkers,

neighbors, and friends, or those you have a closer relationship with.

You could use the following,

we are all thinking of you and wishing you a speedy recovery. Get well soon.

I'm thinking of you. Take time to recover and I'll see you soon.

Sending positive vibes your way, hope you bounce back soon.

To bounce back is a frail verb that can be used to mean recover

or I'm sorry to hear you're sick.

I hope your days of recovery are filled with smiles and strength. Let's look.

Look at a specific situation in which you might use one of those phrases.

Imagine a coworker has a minor medical procedure scheduled

while your coworker is recovering. You might send an email that says,

we are all thinking of you and hoping the procedure went well,

wishing you a smooth, quick recovery. Now,

if it's someone you don't know, well simply an acquaintance.

Here are a few phrases that work particularly well.

Wishing you good health and sending positive thoughts your way.

I hope you bounce back soon.

Sending best wishes for strength and a speedy recovery.

I'm so sorry to hear that you're sick. I hope you get back on your feet soon.

To get back on your feet is an idiom.

That means to be healthy again after a period of illness, so it's perfect.

Forget-well wishes,

and one last example to use with acquaintances before we go on to tip four is

we're sorry to hear you've been unwell.

We hope you're taking it slow as you recover right now.

Tip number four for sharing appropriate get-well messages is to offer help

when it's appropriate and if you mean it on some

occasions when someone you know well is sick, you want to help,

you want to make their life easier while they recover,

or you may want to let someone know that everything's under control.

For example,

if you're taking over a coworker's work responsibilities while they're out of

the office recovering to express these sentiments,

here are multiple example phrases you can choose from.

Please let me know if you need anything while you focus on recovering.

You're not alone. We're here for you.

Take as much time as you need to recover.

We can take on any outstanding tasks while you're healing.

We are only a call, text or email away if you need anything.

That statement is a wonderful way to let someone know that they can send you

a quick message if something comes up, if they have a quick request,

don't forget, you can always count on me for help if you need it.

I'm just a phone call away. I've got under control.

Please focus on getting better. This sentence is perfect.

When you want to let someone know that a specific task or responsibility is

under control, everything's fine.

If you need someone to drive you two or from appointments, please let me know.

And lastly, don't worry about the kids.

I can drive them back and forth to school.

Let's look at two specific situations where you might use some of these phrases

to offer help and reassurance. And then we'll go to tip number five.

Imagine a relative of yours who you have a close relationship with recently

had surgery and is now recovering in your get-well wishes.

You might say, I'm sending all my wishes for a speedy recovery.

Stay strong and get well soon.

And if you need someone to take the kids back and forth to school,

please let me know. I'm here for you.

And now imagine a coworker is about to undergo surgery.

Before that happens, you could send your well wishes by saying,

I hope your surgery goes well and your recovery is smooth.

Please know that our team has everything under control.

We just want you to focus on getting better, get well soon.

And now tip number five for sending a get-well message is to end

with an appropriate closing. Just like with greetings,

ending with a closing is always polite and friendly for

close friends and loved ones.

You can use the following closings with love,

thinking of you, lots of love, best wishes,

warm wishes and warmly for people you don't know so well.

One of the following would be more appropriate. Wishing you good health,

take care,

wishing you rest and recovery best and feel

better if none of those feel right to you.

You can also simply end with your name.

Now that you have these five tips on how to share meaningful get-well wishes,

and you have multiple phrases to help you. I have a practice for you.

I want you to imagine one of your close friends recently came down with the flu.

What would you say in a quick text to your friend?

Try using some of the phrases you learned today. After you've done that,

I want you to change the situation a bit.

Perhaps you learned that your child's teacher has come down with the flu and

will be at home recovering for several days.

What might you say to your child's teacher in an email or maybe even a

handwritten note or what if you're writing to a coworker you don't

know very well at all? For each one of those scenarios,

I want you to review the phrases you've learned today to determine which ones

would be most appropriate. As always, you can share your examples,

questions and comments with me in the comment section below.

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Thank you so much for joining me and I look forward to seeing you next time.