Holiday Gift Giving Ideas for the Chronically Ill

The Holidays are here! Sometimes it can be hard to know what presents to get for the person/people in your life with chronic illness. Here’s a list of some of my favorite gift ideas. Full disclosure: I am an Amazon affiliate seller so I do make a small percentage of sales made through my affiliate links.

First up is a great neck and shoulder heating pad (https://amzn.to/2qNEYfk ).

I love that I don’t have to hold it in place. This is especially helpful with neck and shoulder pain since using an arm to hold it in place can aggravate the pain even more. I find that my neck pain and headaches are sometimes worse in cold weather. This heating pad is thin enough that I can wear it under my winter coat if I have to go out on really cold days. It helps keep my neck muscles warm and moving.

Next is a very helpful daily, weekly, and monthly planner (https://amzn.to/2Kw6tiV).

This planner was created by Michael Leip who suffered from several chronic health conditions. What I like about this planner is that it starts with your mindset. Each day you list several things you are grateful for and several things you are excited about. Below is a space for up to 5 projects per day with spots for smaller to-do items below. I like that because it forces me to prioritize my day down to the 5 most important things. At the end of the day there is a review of what went well and what to work on. I’ve found it a very helpful coping mechanism for productivity despite brain fog, depression, and anxiety.

Another great gift idea is books and activities for when we are stuck at home. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah (https://amzn.to/2QhGG3z) is a wonderful mix of humor, good storytelling, and history. Other favorites are Bossypants by Tina Fey (https://amzn.to/2OYMGcH) and The Princess Bride by William Goldman (https://amzn.to/2FFYL7o). Both are delightful reads. For comedy specific to mental and physical illness check out Jenny Lawson's books. Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir (https://amzn.to/33lhQlC ). Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things (https://amzn.to/2OJ9xed). And You Are Here: An Owners Manual For Dangerous Minds (https://amzn.to/2OPgniy).

Crosswords are also a good brain stimulating past time. I like the New York Times puzzles. They are easiest on Mondays and hardest on Sundays. For easy Mondays try this book (https://amzn.to/2S9laLC). For harder Sunday crosswords try this book (https://amzn.to/2DZ0kLU).

Another thing that could be nice to brighten up a home are plants. Think Aloe or Christmas Cactus. Things that don’t need a ton of care and can handle some neglect. It’s so nice to have greenery in the winter to remind us that things will start growing again come spring. Along a similar vein, candles can really help to light up a space. If you’re not sure what scents your friend or family member would like you can get an unscented one (https://amzn.to/2P0ludF). Scents can be very calming but some people struggle with certain scents so when in doubt, go with the unscented.

You might also consider getting your chronically ill loved one a subscription to a streaming service. Having physical restrictions means we are often looking for activities that don’t aggravate our symptoms. If your friend is a music lover maybe a Spotify gift card (https://amzn.to/2DM6UEq). If they are a book lover maybe an amazon gift card that they can use to buy Audible Books (https://amzn.to/2FH0U2G). For movies and television streaming try Netflix, Hulu, or HBO Now.

One last idea is two person board/card games for you and your friend or family member to play together.

Love Letter is a very simple game to learn and can be played with 2-4 players. It is still a lot of fun with just two players and it goes fairly quickly (https://amzn.to/2DVyzUr). It can also be played on a couch cushion rather than a table if need be.

Another fun one is Jaipur (https://amzn.to/2Sa2sDo). Jaipur is a little more in depth and you do need a table top to play it on. In it each player is a merchant trying to buy and sell goods.

Hanamikoji is also tons of fun (https://amzn.to/2S8b79u). It moves fairly quickly and has beautiful art-work. Players are trying to win the favor of 7 Geishas.

I hope you and your loved ones have a wonderful holiday season filled with joy and hope.