Writing as healing

At the end of March, I had a medical emergency. I was set to go back to blogging after having Kirby, instead I ended up in hospital for a week with a badly inflamed and severely ruptured appendix. Not nice, let me tell you. I have never known pain like it. I have spent the rest of the month recovering

Physically, I’m doing just fine. I’m off the painkillers and antibiotics, the scars and bruises are fading, and the swelling is slowly going down. Emotionally though, I’m still a bit of a mess, swinging from one extreme to the next in a split second.

As always when I have something on my mind, I turn to writing.

Everyone can benefit from writing as healing. It is a quick, easy and powerful way to get to the bottom of and learn from what is troubling you.

The type of writing doesn’t really matter. There are many ways to go about it and none of them are better or worse than the others. Pick one that suits your mood, personality, season or situation. Here are some of my favourites:

Journalling: Journals are sacred, private things. By their very nature, they invite healing. This is where you can really be yourself, get things off your chest, and work things out. Visual journalling works too, especially when combined with a layer of writing.

Poetry: Yes, I was one of those teenagers who wrote volumes of angst-ridden poetry. Even today I write most of my poetry when I’m upset about something. Poems are great when you want to wallow in your pain a while.

Prayers: Sometimes, especially if you’re riddled with guilt over something, written prayers are the only way to go. Pour your heart out, show your remorse, and ask for forgiveness. If it helps, write a reply. A clue: I’m pretty sure whatever higher power you believe in would write a reply full of love, understanding and forgiveness. Nobody is harsher on ourselves than we are.

Letters: This is particularly good if you’re angry at or disappointed with someone, even if it’s someone from your past. Tell them how you really feel, how their words or actions hurt you to the very core. Curse at them if you have to. Just don’t send them the first draft.

Lists: You know I love lists. They can be helpful in this kind of situation too. Sometimes just listing your feelings helps you move on. Your feelings just need to be acknowledged. Try it.

Blogging: Many people now use their blogs to heal from all kinds of things, myself included. While some blogs are completely devoted to the author’s healing process, I think the vast majority of us heal just by showing up, writing about our lives and connecting with other like-minded people around the world.

Like I said earlier, the type of writing doesn’t really matter. Honesty, however, does. If that means that nobody else will ever see it, so be it. In fact, it’s probably best they don’t. You need to be able to rant and rave without censoring yourself for fear of hurting others. You need to be able to write freely without worrying about spelling, grammar or punctuation. The more freely and honestly you write, the more revealing it becomes. If, at the end, you still feel the need to tell auntie Mabel how much she upset you at Thanksgiving dinner, just edit the letter carefully so it says what you feel without ruining family relations forever.

Do you ever use writing as a way to heal? How does it affect your life?