I love to journal and love to teach about journaling. What many do not realize is that various types of journaling exist. Journaling can be one outlet for expressive writing. It is my hope that this post will explain in a nutshell what expressive writing is and how therapeutic it can be for many.
Gregory Ciotti and James Pennebaker have written extensively about expressive writing and how it may help the whole person. Many of their ideas are used in today’s post. Expressive writing is a more structured approach.
Think about it as journal therapy for mental health and the soul. Expressive writing is more about how one feels about what happened or is happening than about what already happened. Sometimes we use journaling to regurgitate events so that we don’t forget. This is different.
When we start writing about our feelings, it seems emotions may seem to get worse before better . Try to work through this, but if things get worse and don’t improve, stop writing and get help from a trained specialist. Expressive writing works for many, but it is not for everyone. I do hope you see benefits if you try it, however.
So how does this look? Expressive writing can take many paths.
- Diaries
- Journals
- Memoirs
- Personal songs and/or poetry
- Opinion pieces
- Personal observations
- Blogs
- Reflections
- Narratives
Basically, it is working through emotions and changes we may encounter. It’s talking on paper. William Wordsworth said, “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” It’s a way to keep from pressing emotions deep inside to surface only when we least expect it. The best way to get through life, I think, is to face it head on. I have not always been successful, but writing does help me. Perhaps this will help you, as well.
What are the benefits of regular/often expressive writing?
- Reduces stress
- Improves sleep
- Has a positive impact on mental health
- Helps mood and well-being
- Reduces neural overload (too much going on in the brain)
- Improves retention of info if done by hand
- Builds motor memory better than a keyboard
Graham Gibbs, former Oxford professor, suggests the following plan for expressive “writing to heal.”
- Describe what happened. (Description)
- What were you thinking and feeling? What are your feelings now? (Feelings)
- What was good and bad about the situation? (Evaluation)
- What sense can you now make of the situation? (Analysis)
- What else could you have done? (Conclusion)
- If it arose again, what would you do? (Action Plan)
I have added Step 7.
7. Write a letter to yourself making peace with the event. This may be completed at a later date.
If you would like more information about expressive writing, email me at slpholbert@gmail.com.