Writing Wisdom
Dear ones,
Research indicates that the act of writing something down activates pathways in the brain that encode the written information in ways that improve recall and recognition of that information as important. This science is often applied to the strategy of writing down goals for greater success, or increasing the likelihood of achieving our dreams. According to this article, Neuroscience has proven that when you write something out that takes deep thought like your goals, you build over 10,000 new neural pathways in your brain in one sitting.
If this is true for goals, why not for gratitudes, or affirmations, or honest expressions of how we’re feeling? There is actually science suggesting that these writing practices are also good for your health.
There are lots of ways to incorporate writing into your self-care routine – and lots of different types of writing that might have benefits for health, mental health and stress reduction. Here are just a few examples:
Poetry and Songwriting
This article celebrates a tradition of healthcare-workers-in-training writing poetry for self-care. Studies also show that writing songs can have significant health and mental health benefits.
There is plenty of research indicating the health and mental health benefits of journaling – which can take many forms, from free-writing to morning pages to bullet journaling.
Writing as meditation can be a bit more structured than freestyle journaling, and often includes setting a timer and writing without concern for grammar, punctuation or content. This writing can be in response to a word or prompt, or simply in response to whatever rises into your awareness during your practice.
There is a fair body of research about the health benefits of writing your life story – either as a memoir, or as a reflective process intended only for yourself. The beauty of self-care writing is that you get to choose the audience!
Sometimes there are pieces of our stories that get us stuck, or keep us from healing. Practices of re-writing old narratives can be effective strategies for self-reflection and healing.
A regular practice of writing fiction, and the act of writing a novel for fun, can have therapeutic benefits. These prompts offer some starting points for creative writing!
Whether or not you ever send it, the act of writing a letter – to a loved one, living or deceased; to someone you’re really angry at or frustrated with; to a wisdom figure or inspiration; to your child-self, or your future self; even to a beloved pet – can have positive effects for the writer, and for the receiver if the letter is shared. Even writing a letter to yourself can be powerful – including writing a letter to yourself “from” someone who loves, appreciates or supports you, if you need to “hear” someone else’s voice in your writing. Writer Elizabeth Gilbert offers this letter-writing practice on Insight Timer specifically for people struggling with COVID-19, and this podcasts describes a practice of writing a self-compassion letter.
Even if the practice of writing isn’t your cup of tea, the written word might still be a powerful part of your self-care routine. Maybe there is a writer in your life whose writing is nourishing, sustaining, inspiring, grounding or energizing for you, or maybe asking a loved one to write you an encouraging letter could be an act of self-care! In this age of digital devices, science shows us that putting pen to paper can make a difference in how our brains and bodies encode information – which may be enough to make it worth a try!
Peace,
Glynn
