The expressive writing method

[@jwpennebaker]

Why write three times or why for 15 minutes? Great question. The simple answer is that is what we have found what works. BUT, since the original studies in the 1980s, many researchers (including me) have found that there is no one true way to write. Some studies have found that writing for as little a 2 minutes or as long as 30 minutes can be beneficial. Most studies have varied between 2 and 5 writing times with comparable effects. Sometimes people write multiple times on the same day. If you are thinking of trying out writing for yourself, experiment. See what works. If you are a researcher, experiment. See what works.

[@musickmedia1797]

I searched for this information after hearing about it on on The Huberman Lab Podcast ❤

[@joeyc666]

Me too! Have you tried it yet? I applied it to a recent partnership ending. It helped a lot.

[@centpushups]

Imagine the days where we wrote letters to each other.

[@thefulcrum]

That's a great perspective to get someone started!

[@LilLarryLuv]

“There is no coming to consciousness without pain. People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own soul. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.” - Carl Jung -

[@lesliemctavish221]

Have you ever lived out the quote that you gave? Or did it just sound good to you?

[@psychoplume]

I practice expressive psychotherapy online with french patients. It helps them in lot of domains: Grief, affective dependance, trauma, procrastination, anxiety...

[@josimariterin2042]

Hello, My name is Josi Terin, I'm Brazilian. I am a nurse specialized in mental health, and I am in training in psychoanalysis, I have used the therapeutic writing in my practice for some time, and the results are incontestable. I am writing about therapeutic writing and its relation to unconscious contents, and how this expressive practice can help from this perspective. I wish I could have a contact with you.

[@g_br]

Boa ideia! Good idea!

[@akacj7]

since a fairly young age (12-ish) i've found some amount of pleasure in putting pen to paper. i am FAR from being "a writer" but i have intuited and developed this as a useful technique for the very reason discussed in this video, as a form of catharsis, i just didn't have a decent description for why until now.

[@JojoLibra]

Thank you for suggesting this.

[@Theupdatezone338]

Hello Sir James Pennebaker, I hope you are doing good...can you provide me a detail manual of expressive writing intervention please?

[@jwpennebaker]

Keep in mind that there is no one true way to do expressive writing. You should experiment on your own to see what works best. However, if you want a detailed description of how to do an expressive writing study, see this paper: www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ohttfiy6ew37r9fd4odo0/Pennebaker_HintsOnDisclosureStudy_1994.pdf?rlkey=7grh989t575mjax6mfzsp85ou&st=84u94jos&dl=0

[@Jason-o5s]

Cheer~~~effectively conveying thought or feeling.😊

[@CrunchyDark]

Thank you, Doc.

[@decpeel]

@suci wisayanti i can't reply to your comment, but i'd speculate that those people would get the most benefit

[@tehreemakram2656]

Hello i doing my intervention study on expressive writing...is there any certification require to apply this technique

[@jwpennebaker]

No, there is no certification for expressive writing. Just do it. Read the literature and figure out what might work best for you. If you are doing a study, pilot test your procedure with some people and talk to them afterwards. Adjust as needed. Be ethical. Be honest. And listen to what your participants tell you. Good luck!

[@thefulcrum]

I would love to hear more about how the pilot is going :)

[@Theupdatezone338]

Thanks for asking, Dear recently i have submitted my research synopsis and it accepted before staring the research i require the original manual of expressive writing i am looking for the original manual if you have the manual kindly let me know .Thanks

[@jwpennebaker]

@@Theupdatezone338 You can refer to a paper I wrote in 1994 describing the technique that is available on my website, under publications. Here's a link: www.dropbox.com/s/c4x4zdyyulgfqai/Pennebaker_HintsOnDisclosureStudy_1994.pdf?dl=0

[@AJ88874]

If we have multiple experiences to write about should we focus on one for 4 days and then another for 4 days (8 days total) or can we write about multiple experiences in those 4 days...in other words should we focus on only one experience/event for 4 days

[@musickmedia1797]

Focus on one for four days. Then you can do another 4 day round on another event.

[@thefulcrum]

I agree with @@musickmedia1797 . The insights you uncover from focusing on one might actually help you gain insights in the other experiences too. Keen to hear how you went with it :)

[@soniaperez2417]

I journal a lot. Start by writing, stream of consciousness, if you write about a zillion things, it is OK. This is not homework for grading. As you write using stream of consciousness, you will notice that the thiughts start to get organized on a particular theme ir subject. Go with the flow. If you try to direct you will defeat the purpise of this exercise. Let your "hidden" mind guide you to where your mind wants to go. It is a sublime and beautiful thing to get in touch with the "broken" parts of oneself. Go for it!

[@Jc22ny]

Sounds quite interesting and potentially helpful. Any tips for those that go blank the minute they sit down to write?or those that cant covey on to paper what is going through their head?

[@randywilliams6836]

+JuanCarlos C Write anything. I started mine with, "I have no idea what to write. Why am I doing this anyway? Oh, well, I guess I'll type until something comes to mind..."

[@MrNickdino]

why 15 minutes? what if you write for longer than that? i mean i was in 15 minutes and it felt like 3 or 4 minutes and i was cracking trough, i stopped after my alarm went off and i didn't continue. I would have liked to write for longer than i did.

[@cedarhighoniris]

?it's about encouraging people to invest 15 min minimum, not about contraining it to 15 min.

[@lolomarmar9381]

Please Dr. I need full study about expressive writing There is no one here I'm from Egypt My study in PhD about expressive writing with emotion and depression

[@thefulcrum]

lolo, I'm a bit late but wondering how it went? Also interested to hear about the challenges you had.

[@davidcontos7477]

Are there any situations in your experience where expressive writing would be contraindicated?

[@jwpennebaker]

There is no solid evidence to suggest specific situations where expressive writing would be contraindicated. However, in my experience, I would be reticent to urge people to write in the immediate aftermath of a major upheaval. I generally recommend that people write if they are thinking about an upsetting event too much, If a person is thinking about the death of a very close friend all the time in the days after the event, this is not too much. It's probably normal. But if they are think about the same death a year later, I'd consider that too much. A second circumstance where I would not recommend expressive writing would be when someone is in the depths of a depressive episode. People are already heavily self-focused when deeply depressed and writing naturally encourages more self-reflection. Despite these two potential cautions about writing, I've met people who have really wanted to write immediately after a major upheaval or even when deeply depressed and who report that they benefited. As with all psychotherapy, if a person feels that a method is not working or is harmful, they should stop it and try something else.

[@suciwisayanti]

do you think it will work for people who never or who dont like to express their emotion by writing ?

[@samreplete1842]

of course not! but u can try!

[@JohnnyOSullivan]

Did you ever receive a reply from Dr. Pennebaker? I don't see why it wouldn't.

[@00065gfgf]

What do you do when you have so many traumatic experiances to choose from?

[@jwpennebaker]

Focus on the event or issue that you are thinking about most at the time. You can always change topics as needed.

[@AngelOne11]

Thank you very much. I was wondering about the same thing as I been in one life trauma after another (Wars, being a refugee, loss of parents at an early age, no family or social life, daughter sexually abused by her father - now she is a drug addict, fibromyalgia, failed marriages, abusive childhood- physically and emotionally, lost in life as an adult and don't know where I belong) - just to name some of my traumas.

[@amalksuresh2538]

Can i do this for the fears or anxiety ,ie something that is not happened yet but im very much anxious about?

[@jwpennebaker]

Try it and see if it's helpful. You have nothing to lose.

[@amalksuresh2538]

@@jwpennebaker thanks for the reply.I've started it and will report back the results.

[@amalksuresh2538]

​​@@jwpennebakerreporting back. Im glad it worked well.I had some body insecurity.Tried cbt before but it never worked. I have done the expressive writing 5 days 15 -20 minutes each .I felt terrible after the session. Honestly my insecurity and anxiety kind of intensified for the first week or so. Then about two weeks;something happened, I got new perspective on things and acceptance came to me miraculously .Acceptance was something I could never do before,I always felt Intense resistance to accept the some parts of me.This protocol kind of melted away the resistance. Im truly grateful for this. Now I will move to other troubling memories, anxieties and fears.🙏

[@jwpennebaker]

Thanks for the feedback.

[@Cleopatra12ification]

Excellent

[@parth2571]

How many days???

[@jwpennebaker]

There is not one true answer, it depends on you. Research finds that writing for 3-4 consecutive days for as little as 5-15 minutes is helpful. But other studies have found that writing only 1 day or as many as 5 can be helpful as well. If you are trying this for the first time, try writing for 3 days. If you feel you need to write more, then do it.

[@parth2571]

@@jwpennebaker thanks

[@thefulcrum]

@@parth2571, keen to hear how you went with it.

[@jessicawoods9314]

Been doing this for many many many yrs. Never knew it was therapy. Whoops

[@jwpennebaker]

It can be therapy but, like you, it was a method I had tried on my own and discovered that it seemed to work amazingly well. I prefer to call it a method rather than a therapy.

[@lorenacalderon5340]

hello