Posted by Richard White/@shotgunborivers
Whether you write a journal, blog, a letter, or even a book, writing can be very healing. In many ways it is a very therapeutic way of expressing your emotions, and once expressed; define them and conquer them. I had a discussion this week with a new acquaintance, and she said her writing, and her art were just little things. To each of us at times they may be small, to others, have no meaning at all. However, it is the magic of writing. That’s right the magic of writing, that is all it is, coming from ones soul, it is the words that mean so much because they are spoken with true honesty and integrity, because it is how you feel. To some the response can be huge, because of what you have to say. it will be the one little thing that defines your week, and for that moment in time, seem like all of the negativity, its OK because you got through another day.
To me that is most significant in the healing process, and the little things, maybe little to you, but on those really bad days. When its so hard, and you can’t pull through and you feel like this is really it, but that Robert Frost poem crosses your mind, and then you sit and write no matter how dark it is, that moment defines that specific place in time, and then becomes a huge moment even when you thought it was just a little moment. You have defined that moment as a way of expressive writing, and passed your emotion through the words you have scribed on the paper. That is what defines my way of healing through writing, and one of the many reasons I choose to write.
So what is Expressive writing, by definition it is the act of writing and processing the written word as therapy. Writing therapy suggests that writing one’s feelings gradually eases feelings of emotional trauma.
I suggest expressive writing if you suffer from trauma, PTSD, Anxiety or depression. It is one of the positive ways of dealing and coping with the stressors, and a great replacement if you so choose not to use medication, or traditional therapy to cope, or heal. I use expressive writing in all of my work, regardless if it is fction, non fiction, or poetry, just putting pen to paper some days are the great big huge little things, so don’t always feel that the little things are so little, it was once said big things come in small packages. Thank You
For more wonderful writing by memoir authors and writers please visit the Memoir genre tour April 7th, 8th, and 9th on Brain to Books Cyber Convention and Book Expo
