Sunday, July 19, 2009

Writing as Therapy

This evening I was looking for a particular bookmark on my computer and bumped into this one on Writing Therapy. As I am convinced that everything happens for a reason in the collective unconscious, here is an excerpt and the link for the web article. I hope some of you will find the article fascinating and practice the techniques. More than once, I have found writing to be a most effective therapy and means to find answers to seemingly impossible situations.
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http://www.lifepositive.com/Mind/personal-growth/write-therapy/write.asp#top
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"Writing is a meditation: it settles the mind. It is a de-stressor: it releases tension. It is like a confessor who keeps your secrets safe. It is also a mood-changer, with the capability of making you happy. It is an outlet, for it helps you let go of your negative thoughts. It is creative, cathartic, curative.

Quite simply, writing is beyond words, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to his daughter while confined to prison; Anne Frank from her secret annex. Hugh Prather writes notes to himself; Franz Kafka did not even want his writings published. Generals narrate anecdotes from their lives; so do politicians, bureaucrats, artists."

5 comments:

  1. Thanks for the link. Writing is indeed therapy for life challenges. WriteON!

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  2. Melanie, I totally agree that writing is therapeutic. I find myself doing one of two things when I am stressed or angry: cleaning my house or writing. It definitely eases tension and helps me focus on the issues at hand and/or my feelings.

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  3. Melanie,

    Thanks for the link! I don't remember who I mentioned this to already, but I keep a prayer journal and I find that particularly writing out things that are bothering me is very therapeutic. I get it out on paper and do my best to leave it in the lap of the One who knows all and can help me best. I also find that on the rare occasion that I have a disagreement with someone, I would much rather send them an email or letter where I can fully express my emotions and how I am feeling than in person where I normally get all flustered and can't get out half of what I'd like to. I am working on being more confrontational (in a good sense) when difficulties arise with friends/family memeber, but I usually feel a lot better after my feelings are down on paper and I feel I have truly "spoken" my piece.

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  4. I have never connected to writng as a form of therapy. I do believe that any form of meditation is powerful and can be a wonderful experience for all of those involved. I have found that I would much rather run for hours to clear my mind. I usually feel a lot better after a great workout and my husband will even demand that I exercise. Kudos to all who care deeply for their inner being.

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  5. All of your comments are so interesting. The Multiple Intelligences comes to mind when some of you say that meditation works while others write about a physical exercise to process stress or clear the mind. I think that we not only learn with our own intelligence but we process all types of input through our individual "intelligence'. Thank you for a very interesting variety of intriguing responses.

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