Therapeutic writing: six different ways and how they help

When someone suggests writing things down to help with distress or a problem (often referred to as journaling), many people think of stereotypical diary-writing. It is important to acknowledge that this form of therapeutic writing is not for everybody and not always what will be most helpful.

For those who don’t believe they are good at it, don’t enjoy it, don’t know where to start, feel embarrassed or feel like there is too much to capture, the idea of therapeutic writing can be overwhelming and unappealing.

Therapeutic writing can take many forms. Here are six ideas and how they work;

1)    Labelling emotions

Whether it’s one emotion or as many as you can generate (e.g. “this is anger”, or “this is anxiety”), single-word labelling places distance between us and the emotion. This facilitates observing instead of just feeling, and tolerance instead of avoidance.  

2)    Identifying thoughts

These are short sentences, such as “I worry about …”, “I think that …”, or “I don’t know whether …". Resist the urge to correct, dismiss or judge them. Thoughts can seem like an endless, overlapping jumble inside our head, with one always leading to another. Writing in this way can sort the jumble, and break the habit of dismissing our thoughts or judging them harshly.

3)    Messy brainstorms

Try a no-rules, abstract dump of words, phrases, people and problems. This can then lead to drawing lines between things that are connected, marking the biggest priorities, or crossing things out that seem more manageable once we see them on the paper. Another way of sorting the jumble, this strategy shows us the big picture and how it formed, as well as all the little pieces.

4)    “Chunking” big goals

Big goals can seem insurmountable inside our heads, leading to avoidance or overwhelm. Breaking goals down into the steps required to achieve them can help. When we

clearly see what is required, we can either start picking small steps to focus on, or address what might get in the way of each step.

5)    Behavioural activation lists

Behavioural activation refers to the temporary lift and reset we gain from planning positive behaviours, rather than waiting for motivation or the right mood to strike. Make a list of things that you know will be helpful, or facilitate confidence and enjoyment – these can be places, people, activities, routines or rituals.

6)    Wish lists

A wish list forces us to temporarily abandon fears and barriers, which can encourage creative thinking and reveal what is important to us. We may not be able to have our wishes but they can act as a compass for moving in a meaningful direction.

Writing is one way outside the counselling room that we can move neural activity away from the parts of the brain that register threat and emotion, to the rational centre of the brain. This is where we register safety, consider responses and make conscious choices, rather than have a stress reaction. This movement prevents the extremes of either avoidance or getting stuck. Completing this circuit between threat and safety is essential for self-regulation and resilience. Counselling sessions can further utilise the six ideas presented here.