Writing as a Path to Wellbeing
by Laura Napran, Writing for Wellbeing teacher at the Westoe Practice.
There are many paths to finding wellness in your life, and I’d like to tell you about one of them – using expressive writing as a tool to foster awareness, growth, and change. A developing body of research at universities and healthcare organizations shows the benefits of guided writing activities in calming the mind and emotions and increasing feelings of happiness and wellbeing.
At Westoe Practice, Writing for Wellbeing is offered as both one-to-one and group sessions. One-to-one sessions are specially tailored to suit your personal needs with complete privacy. I will guide you through specific activities designed to help release the words within you in a positive and creative way. Or you might like to try out a four-week group session, where we will focus on a different approach each week: Mindfulness, Balance and Perspective, Change and Growth, and Creative Inspiration. Writing alongside other people is both enjoyable and supportive.
And remember – you never have to read out anything you have written, so you are free to write whatever you want. No previous experience in writing is needed. The technique is unimportant — whatever you do is good for you. There is no ‘right’ way, only the ‘write’ way!
Participants in Writing for Wellbeing sessions tell me that they feel comfortable and gain confidence and that it is a freeing experience. People say that it leads them to personal insights and that they release old troubling issues. Many say that they will use these activities again. Other words I have heard are ‘joy’, ‘meditative’, ‘opportunity’, ‘flow’, and ‘power’.
‘We all of us have a wellspring of creativity in us, and sometimes all we need is a little guidance to help use that creativity to open up our potential.’
– Laura Napran, Writing for Wellbeing Practitioner at the Westoe Practice
