Product Description

Heal Your Pain Now with Expressive Writing

What do diarists and journal writers know that can help anyone dealing with a traumatic or emotionally challenging situation recover from pain and regain their peace of mind?

They know that the act of putting thoughts and feelings on paper is, itself, a powerful exercise that makes them feel heard and acknowledged—a way of regaining perspective and control over the events that move through their lives.

In this book, the preeminent psychologist and researcher in the growing field of expressive emotions therapy, or EET, takes readers through a series of guided writing exercises that help them explore their feelings about difficult experiences. Each chapter begins with an introduction that explains how to proceed with the journal exercise and what it is structured to help accomplish. Readers are encouraged to do the exercise in the journal itself—each chapter provides plenty of ruled space—so that they can frequently refer to their own work and gain insight and clarity from their own words. The text offers encouragement and gentle advice for breaking through those inevitable moments when mental block make writing impossible; stream-of-consciousness and automatic writing clears away the obstacle and inspires the journal writer to even deeper levels of self-expression. The text stresses throughout the power for understanding and coping with difficult times that lies in storytelling, whether through fiction, dance, or art. In all, the exercises will leave readers with a strong sense of their value in the world and the ability to accept that which is sometimes hard to accept—that life can be good even when it is sometimes bad.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #98633 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

From the Publisher
· Clinical trials indicate that writing about painful experiences can enhance immune response, reduce recovery times, and promote physical, psychological, and social well-being
· This book is the first guided journal written by the preeminent psychologist working in the field of expressive emotions therapy: a step-by-step guide to emotionally expressive writing
· Designed to be the perfect gift for someone struggling with trauma or emotional difficulty, the package of this book is attractive; it is certain to become a valued keepsake

For the first time, a leading authority on expressive emotions therapy, or EET, translates these powerful techniques for emotional healing into a book accessible to general readers. Through guided journal writing exercises, this book helps readers translate their traumatic, emotionally disturbing experiences into powerful writing that is clinically proven to promote recovery.

About the Author
James W. Pennebaker. Ph.D., is professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and has been recognized by the American Psychological Association as one of the top researchers on trauma, disclosure, and health. He is the author of Opening Up: The Healing Power of Expressing Emotions.

Customer Reviews

A Valuable Resource
Writing to Heal: A Guided Journal for Recovering from Trauma and Emotional Upheaval by James Pennebaker presents clear suggestions for using journaling to recover from life's difficult periods. Pennebaker, a researcher, discovered the healing power of expressive writing in the mid 1980s by accident. He writes in his introduction, "Ever since then, I've been devoted to understanding the mysteries of emotional writing." He's also been devoted to sharing what learned so that ordinary people can put this knowledge to good use.

Writing to Heal is an excellent resource for anyone who wants to try writing through trauma. In addition to expressive writing, Pennebaker covers how to construct story in order to understand and overcome a traumatic event. Other topics include looking for and writing about positive emotions, finding benefit from the experience, and forgiveness. Of special note are his instructions about using pronouns to shift perspective, a technique that arose from his research.

In my own work with bereaved people, I've repeatedly seen the mysterious power of writing to heal. Pennebaker's guided journal stands out because in it he shares technique without providing specific prompts that too often distract people from reaching inside to deal with their unique emotional issues.

I also like the fact that the book is written in a simple style. Pennebaker's concise, no-nonsense writing means that this book is useful to a number of people, including those who normally don't read many books and those who are too emotionally distraught to concentrate on a longer book. I will definitely recommend Writing to Heal in my workshops and when I speak at conferences.

Writing to Heal
I found the exercises in this book easy to do. I also found it interesting that you were asked to limit the number of days you wrote. I guess I have a tendancy to want to dwell on things. Writing as I did, did seem to help me deal with the issue on which I focused. Pennebaker is a credible researcher and this approach is based on empirical study. I recommend it to others.

I couldn't agree more
This is a wonderful book for anyone who has experienced loss.
For some reason, the literary community is lagging this re emergence of narrative that is insightful, painful and ultimately healing. I applaude the author and the authors who have written books on personal travails that have changed their lives - Second Chance Ranch, A Year of Magical Thinking, to name only a few. I highly recommend it!