Writing is Our Therapy

Writing has always been therapeutic for me. It's a great way for me to work through ideas, concerns, emotions, etc.

I had no idea before I started my blog that it would become such a huge part of my life. I was never one to keep a journal, and really didn't see my blog as anything that would last. Now that I have been at it five years I could not imagine giving up the therapy I find from writing several times a week.

Sassymonkey Karen, this is sassy ULA (oolah) in NYC just beginning here to post and enjoying your post. I so relate to what you're talking about...i too write first to absorb and connect, interpret my world. As an artist AND creativity coach, i encourage this in all my clients. p.s. I adore singing too;)

makes sense then that Books have always been dear friends of mine, i'm a visual artist, knowing words are also how we make sense of things and bring them to surface (some of my work IS text based) take best care. ULA

Writing is essential for me, especially when it comes to articulating complex emotions. I feel silly that I have a hard time talking about serious things, but it just works so much better if I can write it out first. I think through writing. I "write" blogs posts in my head ALL DAY LONG - things I would never publish, but it's just me processing.

Writing and blogging are serious therapy for me...as well as is reading. It's another form of therapy to see other's journeys and the feelings they put into words.

I accidently became an author at 40 having never taken a writing class. Writing has become a cathartic personal development experience I now couldn't give up as it has helped me grow more than anything (reading is a close second) in my life.

Writing allows you to tune down the volume on everyone else's voice and turn up the volume on your own voice so that you can really hear yourself.

Writing definitely helps me work through anything that is troubling me - I have journals filled with the most mundane whining, but getting it out of my head and onto paper often meant the clouds parted and the weight lifted off my shoulders and i was able to breathe again. I don't use my blog in this way as much as I'd really like to - my parents and husband and family members all read it, and while it is my space, I often feel uncomfortable expressing my deepest thoughts or troubles knowing that people who actually know me (and have my phone number to call and bug me about what's bothering me) will read it.

I'd like to think it's writing for me but to be honest....it might be baking. I can spend hours baking and creating stuff in the kitchen and it just brings me back to center and helps me clear my head.

I can't imagine NOT writing. It's been a part of me since I can remember.

But when it what helps me to absorb my world, it is undoubtedly music. Nothing has cut me more to the core than the times when my music making has been under attack (or at least felt under attack). I lose myself in music and I also connect to myself most deeply in music.

As others have mentioned, I too have been writing stories since I learned how to write words. My stories have always served two purposes: to help me make sense of my world, and to entertain myself and others.

Writing truly is my world. And for me, I never realized just how much, until I started my blog. Month by month I opened up more and more ... until finally ... POW. It was like a firecracker turning into a whole fireworks show and I love it. It's my release, my passion and the place I go to escape. Where everything exists and nothing can break. I love it.

Knitting helps me absorb my world. Organizing. Writing and reading just ARE daily life in my world. Perhaps it helps me connect as well. I find my writing helps connect me to one of my children in particular, but all of them in one way or another. Writing also keeps me connected to the outside world.

Anything creative gets me to connect to my world. This can be writing, gardening, sketching (very imperfectly), cooking, designing things... Anything creative.

I love being able to create things. Whether it is blogging, baking, or knitting, it all helps me let it out.

I am dissatisfied with my 9-5 job and it really is stifling. My husband being in school full-time, leaving is not an option. Having interests, especially creative in nature, helps me get through spending 40 hours a week feeling ambivalent.

I started writing as soon as I could put words into sentences. My parents bought me a typewriter one Christmas (I think I was 8 or 9). I wanted to be a journalist so bad. Fast forward to college and I got the lazy girl's degree, Liberal Studies, because an English degree involved writing too many papers (go figure). I should have at least kept up on my journaling but I haven't. There were so many chances to write that I passed up and kick myself now, so now I'm scrambling to catch up. My mom is always asking me, have you written anything lately? It's a satisfying feeling to be able to say "Yes I have."

Writing saved me. I started blogging a year and a half ago when I decided I was going to give being a "writer" a real go. I had been working on a fiction novel under a secret cloak for a couple of years before that but I craved more. I needed to interact with other writers and have a chance to talk about my writing to someone. Funny how I chose to blog and connect with a bunch of strangers rather than share my writer with close friends and family. :)

Writing channels my creative side, serves as my therapist, and gives me an identification besides mother and wife. I walk away my writing sessions refreshed and more complete.

Glad you mentioned Dominique's book. I will have to check it out!

I love this. I didn't consider myself a writer for a long time, though I've always loved *to* write. I never put it together though. But now writing and cooking/baking are my outlets for my creativity and my way to express myself. It's how I work through things, and it's definitely healthier (and cheaper!) than a lot of alternatives ;)

I could not agree more! Never took the idea seriously until couple years ago. And now, whenever something bothers, worries me or simply excites me too much, I know to just write it down. Some writings i keep private and some I make public. Per example and couple days ago when I learned of the passing of Steve Jobs, my heart sank! My husband was not home b/c on a business trip so I decided to write a note for Steve on my blog (http://magatte.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/job-well-d... It helped me a lot. Great topic!

Writing/blogging became my form of therapy after my son passed away 6 years ago. I found that writing down my thoughts/feelings and sharing them that way with others was much easier than discussing it. Love this discussion!

I also echo your and others' sentiments that you absorb things through writing. Writing is definitely therapeutic for me, as is dancing, running, exercise and listening to music. When I started blogging 4 1/2 years ago it was to keep some family and close friends updated on how our IVF cycles were going. I had no idea how much my experience sharing about my experience with secondary infertility and loss would evolve over the years. It is interesting that these days when some significant happens in my life, that I often find myself wondering if it is blog worthy and/or relevant.

Writing is a way to "absorb" things. 20 years away from writing almost killed me. As I returned to my love of the written word, I blossomed and found social media ... much like the commentary here ...this therapy we all need to maintain and thrive is so vital and an important. We must be sure to recognize when we begin to fall away from that which keeps us vibrant.

I started blogging to spread the word about depression, but found instead that it helped me heal. So I understand completely about writing being a form of therapy. It's been one of the best forms for me -- even when what I write about is incredibly difficult. The things I can't say out loud I can write.

I have thought of myself as a writer most of my life even though I have not been formally paid to write the majority of that time. But interestingly, the unspoken responsibility in all of my positions has always been to either rewrite or edit other people's thoughts. So blogging for me has been more about me accessing my real voice rather than painting an understanding of someone else's thoughts. The process has been painful and rewarding. Would I describe it as the perfect thing. It comes pretty close.

I'm still looking for that one perfect thing that will serve as my therapy. I've tried knitting, reading, and writing, but I get so bogged down in making things absolutely perfect it defeats the purpose.

I volunteer as the human end of the leash with my dog, Kendall, as a Pet Partner therapy dog team for the Delta Society. The time that we're out visiting with our "friends" at the assisted living center are some of the most enjoyable times of my week. Perhaps that's my answer.

I have always been a communicator. Whether it be through talking one to one (or in big groups, that seems to be something I'm good at) or writing, it feels like a cleansing to be able to put my thoughts into words and share them with others. Especially if I need to resolve an issue. Even when I was a kid, I would write short stories and doodle and keep journals and diaries. I still do. And when I hit that mental writing block, I usually take it as a sign that there's something I need to get out, even when it deviates from the things I know I should be writing about.

"...to be disconnected from words is to be disconnected from ourselves. It's not just how we absorb our world, it's how to connect to it."

That is SO very true. I don't know what I'd do without my writing. It's how I process and how I make things okay. I just attended a writing workshop with a lady who does grief counseling through writing and it was amazing to hear all of the therapeutic benefits of words on paper/screen.