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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | Next >> "It's about stepping back and thinking about things in a different way, making linkages," explained Dr. Robin Fivush, a professor of psychology at Emory University, in Atlanta. She's conducted her own research on expressive writing.
"It's not just about expressing the emotion, because then you'd just ruminate on it," she said. "If you take a close look at those who benefit from it most, you see a lot of them using what we call 'cognitive processing' words -- 'I realize, I understand, now I see that.' "
Insights like these appear to help patients with cancer or other illnesses cope better, studies suggest. "I just read one review article that contained over 140 studies on this subject, and it seems very effective," Fivush said.
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Bauer-Wu has conducted three studies of her own, tracking the effects of journal therapy for patients with breast and other cancers. She noted that while the classic program involves 30 minutes per day of writing for four days, cancer patients "may require more than that."
"In my work, we do a four-day intervention, but then repeat it a month later and then a month later again," she said. Patients can write using a pen and paper or computer. Surprisingly, about half of younger, computer-savvy participants in one study opted to handwrite their journal entries. "What's most important is that you find that place each day where you can most freely write," Bauer-Wu said.
"One of the things that's been found in cancer patients across different studies is what we call 'improvements in health-care utilization,' " she said. "Patients end up going to their doctor or calling nurses less frequently. They need fewer sessions with a mental health counselor. Basically, they are having fewer physical symptoms and coping better."
Indeed, there's data that suggest that writing out your emotions eases stress and, in turn, boosts the immune system. "We're not sure how that might work," Fivush said.
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