The story of Gia Kumari and how she finally leaves the Delhi orphanage where she was raised is almost miraculous. You won't want to put this new novel, Mercy and Grace by Anoop Judge down. Also Anoop has written a guest post for us - about how beneficial writing is to help us work through our grief. I know that is very true. After my own son died, I wrote to heal and it helped me a lot. Here's Anoop: Writing Your Way Through Grief by Anoop Judge Grief is a profound and complex emotion that can arise from various sources, such as the loss of a loved one, the end of a significant relationship, or even the loss of a cherished dream. It’s a universal experience, yet it’s deeply personal and can feel isolating. In my own journey through grief, I’ve found writing to be a powerful tool for healing and self-discovery. The Power of Writing Writing has long been recognized as a therapeutic activity. It allows us to express our emotions, thoughts, and experiences in a way … [Read more...]
Writing to heal in times of grief
Wendy Brown-Baez and I are soul mates. We're both advocates and beneficiaries of writing to heal and survivors of a loved one's suicide. Please welcome Wendy today as she stops by Choices on her WOW! Women on Writing book tour. Her literary fiction book, Catch a Dream, is described below. Here are her words about experiencing loss and grief and the benefits of writing to heal that experience. Writing for Healing by Wendy Brown-Baez, author of Catch a Dream My healing story begins not with my own healing but with seeking solutions for my companion’s depression. Sometimes Michael was unable to get out of bed for days at a time. Other times, he was energetic, gregarious, spending money wildly, followed by aggression. With a diagnosis of bi-polar disorder, the puzzle pieces fell into place. I was involved in two writing groups at the time, a writing support group called Write Action and a women’s poetry group. Michael became more and more mentally unstable and finally killed … [Read more...]
How journaling helped B. Lynn Goodwin decide to marry at age 62
B. Lynn Goodwin used her journals as the foundation of her memoir, Never Too Late: From Wannabe to Wife at 62. Well, I have to say I did the same when I started my memoir, Leaving the Hall Light On. I had pages and pages of journal entries that I meticulously copied from my handwritten notebooks to computer Word files, and my book was off and running. For me, writing in my journals helped me heal after losing my son too suicide. For B. Lynn Goodwin, journal writing helped her to decide whether to jump into a marriage with a two-time widower at age 62. We both agree that journaling is like having a secret friend that we can trust with anything in our minds and hearts. Here is B. Lynn Goodwin and her thoughts about the benefits of journaling for her. Need a Venting Partner? Try a Journal by B. Lynn Goodwin When I was dating Richard, I had crazy thoughts running through my head. What did I know about love or commitment or becoming a wife? I didn’t even tell my friends about him at … [Read more...]
Journaling – the perfect sleeping potion
As a person who journals everyday I can see the benefits of doing morning pages every morning and journaling just before going to sleep. I've journaled both ways. Right now I journal in the morning. I decided to switch over from night journaling because once in a while I'd nod off while writing. You can only imagine what funny gibberish I found on my page the next morning as a result. Mari L. McCarthy, our WOW! Women on Writing blog tour guest today and author of Journaling Power, is an advocate of writing at night as a way to get a good night's sleep. By the way, she writes in the morning as well. Please welcome Mari to Choices. Sleep Tight Every Night By Mari L. McCarthy Do you have trouble getting off to sleep at night because your mind has gone into overdrive? Or do you drop off only to wake in the early hours with your head full of worries? I used to suffer with insomnia until I discovered a creative cure with absolutely no side-effects: writing therapy in the … [Read more...]
Introducing Denis Ledoux of The Memoir Network
I'm so pleased that Denis Ledoux, founder and president of The Memoir Network, found me. I am now a subscriber to his newsletter and a huge proponent on his thoughts about writing as a way to heal. I am definitely going to mention his guest blog post tomorrow when Eleanor Vincent and I lead a workshop called Telling Healing Stories at the Story Circle Network's writers conference. His network is also on the list of resources we'll give our participants. If you don't know Denis and The Memoir Network, I feel honored to introduce him to you now. Writing Painful Memories: Three Tips To Make It Easier by Denis Ledoux Memoir writing is a generally pleasant experience and, by its very nature, promotes healing and growth. But, there are times in writing when pain arises spontaneously and surprises us or times when we know the experience will be painful even before we start. What to do? Sooner or later, pain seems to come with memoir writing. Sometimes we can handle this pain easily … [Read more...]
The healing powers of journaling
This is the second in my series about writing to heal. I've also found the healing powers of journaling, which I first wrote about for Rev. Linda M. Rhinehart Neas' anthology: Returning to the Circle: Inspirational Wisdom from Women for Women. The Power of Journaling A friend gave me a little leather (or faux leather) bound five-year diary complete with tiny lock and key when I was in high school. And for a while I wrote in the teeniest script about typical teen-age angst especially about my first crush who gave me my first cigarette and first French kiss and then dumped me for a girl he met at summer camp. I think my parents must have thrown that diary out when they sold our house and moved to California because I never saw it again after I went away to college. I took up journaling again during my thirties while my husband and our two sons and I lived for nineteen months on a remote island in the South Pacific. I felt so isolated on this tiny island that the best I could do … [Read more...]
Why I turned to digital journaling
Journaling remains a major force in my life. Rarely a day goes by that I don't write a journal entry. I find the time to write down at least no matter where I am. M. Shannon Hernandez recently posted my thoughts on digital journaling at her The Writing Whisperer blog. I feel so honored to be her guest poster. Here's Why I Turned to Digital Journaling Writing for Healing I turned to journaling regularly in 1993 just after my son Paul was diagnosed bipolar, and I continued on after his suicide death in 1999. Journaling became my therapy. Keeping my fingers moving across the page was both an obsession and a healing balm. It gave me a way to organize my fears, pain, and thoughts. As a result I have become a huge proponent of journaling as a way to heal. I still journal every day. At first I wrote in notebooks the finer the better. I especially love the ones I bought in France and later found at Banner Stationer's in El Segundo California Clairefontaine. The pages are very … [Read more...]
Writing to heal and survive
This is a repost (with changes) from one I wrote last year at this time - near the time of our son Paul's December 31st birthday. I've written about writing to heal, I've talked about it in front of groups, and I must say, I'm still doing it. I journal, I write pieces for other websites and here about writing to heal from our tragedies, and I'm still reaping its benefits. I suggest, even if you've never written a word in your life, start journaling. You don't have to show what you write to anyone, so you're free to write down anything you want any way you want. And then you may be surprised. You may want to go public with your writing. Sharing our stories can be very healing to others. Writing has been part of my life since I was in grade school. However, when my son was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and after his suicide I needed to write down my feelings daily. Writing in my journal became an obsession and a balm. It gave me a way to organize my fears, pain, and … [Read more...]
Please welcome Sherrey Meyer
I am thrilled to have Sherrey Meyer here as my guest today. She echoes my thoughts about the benefits of writing to heal, and provides Dr. Pennebaker's proof that it is so. Yes, for me writing is a way to put my pain on the page. It is a soothing balm. What do you think? Benefits of Writing Your Story by Sherrey Meyer In 2001, when my mother died, the story of our lives together had traversed many years and battled many storms. Yet at the end, something unusual and unexpected happened. I tucked that memory away knowing it was possibly the core for a memoir. When I retired in 2006, I remembered how often I had said, When I have time, I want to write a book. Little did I know when I began accumulating my memories on the computer and sorting through family photos the benefit writing this story would give. Never had it occurred to me that writing could be a restorative, healing process. With each word typed, I felt changes taking place. The invisible scars created by years of … [Read more...]
Still writing to heal
I've written about writing to heal, I've talked about it in front of groups, and I must say, I'm still doing it. I journal, I write pieces for other websites and here about writing to heal from our tragedies, and I'm still reaping its benefits. I suggest, even if you've never written a word in your life, start journaling. You don't have to show what you write to anyone, so you're free to write down anything you want any way you want. And then you may be surprised. You may want to go public with your writing. Sharing our stories can be very healing to others. Writing has been part of my life since I was in grade school. However, when my son was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and after his suicide I needed to write down my feelings daily. Writing in my journal became an obsession and a balm. It gave me a way to organize my fears, pain, and thoughts. I had used journaling during an earlier stressful period of my life to rant. So I felt that writing would help me again during what … [Read more...]
