Therapeutic Writing: Tools Everyone Can Use - CASW 2022 Maureen Pollard MSW, RSW

Tips to Reduce Risk • Ensure privacy for your writing • Time yourself and set limits • Write freely, honestly, without editing • Give yourself permission to stop anytime • Have a plan in case you become upset Expressive Writing Tips • Give yourself quiet, contemplative time • Don’t hold back or censor yourself • Include your dreams & quotes that inspire you • Date journal entries • Try to end on a. [...] (question prompts) Consider Providing Supplies • Journals • Pens • Stickers and/or bookmarks • Handouts with instructions Consider Guided Writing Sessions • Give prompts and allow time for writing in session • Make voice or video recordings with personalized prompts • Share a list of resources that contain writing prompts on a topic that would be useful for the person’s circumstances Let’s Experim. [...] Make Some Lists (30 seconds each) • What you were planning before • Things that have surprised you the pandemic happened about yourself during the • pandemicStressors that have had an impact since the pandemic • Things that have disappointed you began during the pandemic • What you have learned to do • Words or phrases you never want since the pandemic began to hear again Timed Free Writing (5 min. [...] Warmth & Wisdom (1 minute each) • What do you hope for your writing practice? • What will help you when writing is hard? • What wisdom do you want to remember as you write? What did you notice? • What did it feel like to make lists? • Did making lists inspire your free writing or did something else come up? • Did your pen move easily, filling the page, or were words hard to find? Was it the same w. [...] Putting it into Practice • Would you feel comfortable sharing these activities with people you work with? • What will you want to remember as you begin to invite people to write to heal? Suggestions for Using Therapeutic Writing • Offer invitations as “homework” in individual work • Provide supportive instructions to reduce risks • Allow the person the freedom to structure the writing experience a.