Aimee and Tess Response

Aimee:

I found both articles shared to be extremely pertinent to our class discussions and textbook. Especially the article on memoir and writing for therapy read a lot like a chapter we would have read for class, touching on reoccurring issues in Writing and Healing such as content vs form, professor vs therapist anonymity. The idea of how to approach editing "therapeutic" writing is something I found really interesting that I feel we haven't talked about much in our class. I think this is a really important aspect to attend to when exploring how writing for healing can play out in real life. After all, while all traumatized individuals are welcome to participate, we must also consider our more serious writers (much like myself and my classmates) who may want to publish their writing rather than simply keep a journal. This year I have been struggling to write a memoir that contains some literary narrative surrounding a dramatic content, something this article also touches upon. Another interesting experience I've had with my memoir/healing writing is dealing with new emotional reactions to the trauma that I didn't necessarily feel until specific writing about it. There is something to be said about what you focus on/put your energy towards, and it can be very draining to revisit an emotionally traumatizing place with writing.

Tess:

I love writing letters! This is such a great topic for research within writing and healing. Letter writing or transactional writing is a technique that I have used and recommended for years now, especially regarding trauma experienced because of or with another. I have written letters to myself, my ex-lovers, my parents, my eating disorder and even my car that I totaled this summer. Some I have sent, others I never had any intention of sending. Either way, it has proven to be a great exercise in getting how I feel down on paper and coming to terms with what I've been through.