Changing how we understand wellbeing, health and ourselves
All too often it’s easy to be reactive about how we think about health and wellbeing. Only when something goes wrong do we try to address how we feel.
But is this really the way forward to becoming more resilient? Or could we re-think how we approach our individual – and by default our collective – wellbeing?
Covid-19
The way we responded to the pandemic was not unusual. In many ways, it shed light on the ways that we understand and respond to our own personal and collective wellbeing: by being reactive. Yet Covid-19 and its aftermath forced us to reflect on this way of thinking. The pandemic held up a mirror to ourselves, magnifying societal and health inequalities.
It made us re-evaluate how we see wellbeing and health. And how we imagine a better, stronger, more resilient and aware society and self.
As we move towards a new kind of normality, the death, illness, uncertainty and fear – but also the strengthening of the connections that matter – make it harder to continue to treat our wellbeing and health in a reactive way. We need to change the way we think about health and wellbeing, and become more proactive.
What is writing for wellbeing?
Using expressive writing to support wellbeing and health – or writing for wellbeing – was pioneered by social psychologist James Pennebaker in the 1980s. He first used the process of writing with clients as a way for them to explore and gain awareness of - and resolution about - traumatic events such as bereavement or divorce (Pennebaker, 1990).
He understood the power writing has to allow us to structure and make sense of how we feel, and to provide perspective. In this way, writing for wellbeing differs from traditional creative writing. It’s not about being able to write the ‘best’ poem or story. Instead, it’s about using the process of writing – in whatever forms we want it to take – and sharing our writing to shine a light on how we feel, and why we feel the way that we do.
Growing evidence of the positive impacts
In the years since, writing for wellbeing has gained momentum as a way to support personal development and wellbeing by allowing us to build self-awareness and our understanding of our relationships with ourselves and others. Sharing our creative writing in non-judgmental space is key to allowing this self-awareness to develop into changes in thinking and behaviour (Bolton et al., 2004).
Some of the ways that this kind of writing can make us feel better by changing the way that we feel, think, behave - and potentially how our brains work - are now being understood.
We now also know that writing for wellbeing can support our physical health, such as immune system functioning. Along with more well-known arts-based interventions such as music and art therapy, writing for wellbeing is now being recognised, including being used as part of social prescribing policy in Britain.
Making meaningful connections with myself and others
I first explored using writing for wellbeing several years ago as a way to try to make some sense of the loss of my father. I was trying to navigate the feelings of loneliness that had saturated my grief. Using writing - along with my meditation practice – helped me to understand the tangle of emotions and thoughts spiralling within me.
Putting things down on paper, and sharing my writing with myself and others, cleared some of the fear, uncertainty and anxiety I felt and helped me to feel my way around my bereavement (Didion, 2007). And it reinforced my connection to myself and to those who I hold dear, including my father.
My writing is part of me
When using expressive writing to empower his clients to gain clarity about the trauma they had experienced, Pennebaker came to realise the close bond that many of them had with what they had written and then shared. Many clients who put pen to paper felt their writing was “…a part of themselves...” (Pennebaker, 1990, p. 98). Many decades since, my own experience resonates with the deep, intimate connection with myself that writing for wellbeing continues to help me nurture.
Anyone, and everyone, can do it
The beauty of writing for wellbeing lies in its versatility. It’s something that anyone can take part in when guided by a trained facilitator. Whether you have never tried this kind of writing, or are a seasoned pro, anyone can do it.
Writing for wellbeing facilitators can also support people who may have lost the ability to write or recall, such as those living with dementia, by working with their carers to help them use writing to express and share how they feel. It can be a powerful way for them to engage with others and building meaningful connections.
It also encourages us to re-imagine the myriad ways we can use writing to build our confidence and self-awareness - including harnessing music, song, images, film and dance - as paths into writing.
All you need is a pen, something to write on, and a willingness to have fun, learn and take part. With an open heart.
References
Bolton, G., Howlett, S., Lago, C., and Wright, J. (eds) (2004). Writing Cures: An introductory handbook of writing in counselling and therapy. Hove: Brunner-Routledge.
Didion, J. (2007). The Year of Magical Thinking. New York: Vintage International.
Pennebaker, J. W. (1990). Opening Up: The Healing Power of Expressing Emotions. New York: Guilford Press.
