Stress and Loneliness Reduction Through Writing
At a given point in anyone’s life, there have been moments of stress and loneliness. Were they tough moments? You know exactly how you felt.
To most people, these two states are not an easy thing to go through. You have heard of a problem shared is half solved and many other encouraging statements. The commonality in all of them is that expression can easily heal you. Well, did you know that writing can alleviate your stress and loneliness? Here are seven compelling reasons as to how.
1. Writing Allows You to Talk to Yourself
There is no one trying to limit you to the way you wish to express yourself. You can do just about anything constructive without the fear that someone could laugh at you for sharing your stress and solitude. Writing requires so little effort and resources to express yourself. All you need to do is to get a piece of paper and a pen and start writing. Let the pain leave your body and move to that piece of paper. Cry it all out to the paper, and the paper will listen to you without interrupting. It may end with you smiling and even feeling relieved and satisfied with your situation.
2. Writing Allows You to Connect With Yourself
You cannot write lies about yourself when you know for sure that you feel stressed and lonely. Through writing, you get to express knowledge about yourself. If you were fighting yourself about how you feel when it comes to writing your feelings, you will feel free, to be honest, because the paper, the board, or the screen cannot judge you. Such honest expression could awake some self-realization in you. You might realize that you are cruel about the way you think of yourself and may want to amend that part about yourself.
3. Writing Allows You to Arrive at Solutions to Your Problems
The same way you can talk about how you feel about the piece of paper is the same way you can solve your issues. Stress and loneliness can make you lose focus. Writing could quickly help you list the options available to you. You may decide on what you want to give priority to in your life so that you can feel whole again. If you have been rejecting certain easy solutions to your state like going out more often. You may have thought to yourself, why not acquire a new hobby.
Maybe do some outdoor swimming and get in great shape. Or why not start reading that book you have been avoiding for a while. Just assume you are talking to the paper, and it is giving you the right and actionable solutions.
4. Writing Keeps You Occupied
You probably start feeling lonely and thoughtful when you are idle. This period in your day is the best time for you to start writing. The reason is that you will take some time to write about the way you feel. You could use that time to know what triggered the way you feel. You could also do something else. Sometimes it is strange how you could feel stressed and lonely without even knowing what the cause was. There is a saying that your worst fears can be your reality.
What you may need to do is to know the cause and face it head-on. You may realize that other people experience stress and solitude emotions and do the worst. Maybe all you needed is something to occupy your time.
5. Writing Helps Bring Out Your Best Emotions
There are multiple pieces of items you could write that could give you a more positive vibe about yourself. You could do a memoir or do poems. These two items allow you to talk about yourself and express yourself at the same time. One reason you may feel stressed is that you never accepted a mistake, and maybe you never expressed yourself fully. Saying all these on a piece of paper gets the load off your chest.
6. Writing Allows You to Express Yourself to Others
The focus has been on talking to yourself and about yourself in your writing. Sometimes, you cannot do it on your own. You might have made poor relationship choices, and you feel that you cannot stand yourself. Well, you could write to someone, and they could write back to you. It is common for people to share problems and comfort each other. If you have an issue talking to someone who is an expert, speak to someone with the same problems as you have.
Let them tell you their story by writing, and you could do the same. The insecurity you thought you could feel sharing your issues may disappear because the other person has made themselves vulnerable to you as well.
7. Writing Rebuilds Your Trust
The point above talks about telling someone the way you feel without seeing them. The reason is that the other person has made themselves vulnerable to you. They know your problems, and you know theirs too. As humans, we tend to be the sources of our problems and those of others. If you had lost trust in people, then writing might have just made you trust someone else with your emotions of stress and loneliness. It could be the redemption of yourself to deal with your stressful issues and know someone new to feel a void in your life.
Conclusion
Writing is a healthy practice. If you cannot tell someone else the way you feel, then you need a way to channel your emotions correctly without harming yourself. Writing can easily help you do that as above. No embarrassments and no judgments. Therefore, take your step today and express yourself gracefully with pen and paper, among other writing tools.
Good article. Writing and reading are both forms of Art Therapy. Sometimes you don’t even know what it is that is bothering you. When writing, you receive both the questions and answers that have been bothering your head and body for so long. Yes, when we are in doubt, our body hurts, our nerves are sending us mixed signals.