Writing is therapeutic
If you follow me on social media, you have probably noticed that lately I have been talking a lot about letters. Whether that’s about the upcoming love yoself workshop I am co-hosting, or about the love letters class I have hosted in the past (and will again) or just about writing letters in general, it’s because I am really finding out how powerful and therapeutic and life changing writing can really be, and I am so passionate about sharing this with you all.
Writing is another form of healing. Of letting go. Of accepting your past, your present, the people and situations in your life that you cannot change, of dealing with hurt, and especially going through life challenges that can never really be explained.
I have wrote to myself a few times over the years, many of us have, keeping a journal is a great example. But there is something different about putting your feelings, belief, experiences, hurt, pain, emotion, hopes and dreams, hate, anger, etc. onto paper that really makes it more powerful. More meaningful. It can be the catalyst to a true change.
The first time I really sat down and wrote a real “letter” to myself, to my future self, I was living in the women’s homeless shelter with 4 children, 3 of my own and one I had temporary custody of. I was at the lowest point in my life. I was depressed, broke, lost, scared, hurting, I had no sense of direction and no real purpose with my life. But I knew that something had to change.
And I didn’t know WHAT had to change, trust me, I didn’t snap my fingers and make something happen over night. But I started putting pen to paper while my babies were sleeping, letting the ink flow as my tears flowed, letting it all out. I let out the hurt and the frustration and the anger, and that let me focus a little more on other things I was feeling. Then came the sadness and the scared uncertainty. And then came the visions. The wants and dreams, the needs and must haves in my life.
In all honesty, with less than $2 to my name most days and living in the women’s shelter, I didn’t have a whole lot of faith in the things that I was writing down. But I put them down anyway.
Feelings, thoughts, desires, passions, wants, needs, love, bucket lists, life, everything went down onto paper, and out of that, I started a few letters to myself. Letters to myself in 6 months. In a year. In 5 years. It can take 5 years of true hard work and passion and fire to make the biggest wildest changes in our business, in our futures, but it can start with a single moment, a single thought, a single new habit or decision to make a change, to make things different.
Seeing everything on paper, it’s powerful. It reaffirms your future. Reading it, envisioning it in your mind, helps weasel it into your subconscious that this is your future. Your new reality. That those things you have hurting inside of you are gone. That you have let go of what’s holding you back. That you can make the changes, feel happy, live positively, have the life you desire.
I wrote letters to people who broke my heart. Who wronged me. Who hurt me. Who damaged me when I was at a very low and vulnerable place in my life. I cried over those words. I wet those pages with ink and tears. And when they were dry, I sat outside in the dark night and I burned those letters into ashes. And it felt amazing.
I wrote down parts of my life I was struggling with, events in my past, negative habits and beliefs about myself I was trying to change, and I burned all of those too. Well, some I ripped into tiny pieces and flushed, that was powerful too, although probably not all that great for my plumbing or the environment. My bad.
Writing unlocks doors and windows inside of your mind. It releases thoughts and feelings that may even be lying dormant, because writing opens up the creative side of our brains, a side that many of us do not use as often as we should.
Sometimes we don’t even know what we are going to write when we sit down to write. That blank page is daunting. Start doodling. Start writing what you’re feeling right this moment. Are you uncomfortable? Warm? How is the seat you’re sitting in? What sounds can you hear around you? How did dinner taste last night? Describe your clothing. What are you grateful for in this moment?
There are a hundred ways you can start, that’s the beauty about writing. And once you start, you will likely be really surprised at what starts flowing.
So here is my challenge to you, my dear readers, fans, friends and loved ones. Do some writing. Grab a pen and paper and start putting down the ink, see what flows. Write a letter to your future self. Write a letter to your past self. Write a letter to someone who you have festering yucky feelings for, and burn it. Write a letter to someone you love, and SEND IT! When was the last time you received a letter in the mail? A real letter, not a bill. Do you remember how that made you feel?
If you’re struggling with this, send me a message. I’d love to chat. I even offer workshops on this. This is just another avenue I have found a passion for, a purpose in, and I’ve love to help.
Thanks for reading friends. Thanks for being here. Now go out there and write. And see what happens.
Much love,
Author Carissa McIntyre,
Lady Mack xo
#writing #selfhelp #therapy #mentalhealth #takingcareofyou #lettinggo #ladymack