TO WRITE: What are you willing to risk?
In her book on depression You Are Not Alone, Julia Thorne writes:
"Getting better means taking risks. The first risks I took were physical, like starting ballet classes at age 37. Then, I took emotional ones. I began expressing my thoughts. I joined a support group. I made new friends. If there is something good for you that feels emotionally risky, try writing it down. Sometimes seeing it in print gives you courage."
Play with this...
Take five minutes to make a list of things you could do for yourself that feel "risky." Then choose one and write continuously for 15 minutes. Imagine clearly how you could do that thing and describe in detail how it would feel. The next day, reread what you've written and see if you've gained any courage.
Beth
About Me
- Elizabeth Maynard Schaefer, Ph.D.
- My book, WRITING THROUGH THE DARKNESS: EASING YOUR DEPRESSION WITH PAPER AND PEN, was published by Celestial Arts in June 2008. I've been a science journalist, textbook editor and author, poet, memoirist, creative writing instructor and -- sometimes -- a bipolar depressed person, since earning my Ph.D. in biology at Stanford University in 1991. For the past ten years, I've combined my interests in writing and mental health by teaching creative writing to other people with mood disorders in a class meeting at Stanford's Psychiatry Department. I speak on mental health topics, both personal and professional, to a wide variety of groups.
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