Your bookshelf is full of cathartic tools for healing
The Anxiety Pandemic
The data is staggering: over 40 million adults in the United States suffer from anxiety, while 7% of our children experience episodic anxiety each year. That means we’re a society constantly on the run…either trying to meet all the demands of our outer worlds or grapple with the chaos of our inner worlds. The toll we pay is one of physical, mental, and emotional health and the expense is more than just an inconvenience. The solution is hardly ever simple; therapy, lifestyle changes, and even medication are sometimes the best ways to manage anxiety. Thankfully, there is a wealth of expertise in the mental health community trained to find what works best for each patient. Help is always just around the corner in your journey. Sometimes, that help may look a little more creative than what you expected.
The Rx of the Written Word
It reads like the poster on the wall of a school library: Read to Escape. Maybe there’s a hot air balloon with a kid waving from the basket as it floats up into the sky. It seems cliche but there’s truth to the maxim. Picking up a book is one of the easiest, most accessible ways to leave your present state of affairs and float into someone else’s universe. If you’re not a naturally inclined reader, the practice may not feel all that appealing, but there are options for embracing the written word and creating a rhythm that heals, soothes, and restores you.
Known as bibliotherapy, reading to rest, refocus, and even gain insight, was first recognized in the early twentieth century. When prescribed by a mental health professional, bibliotherapy may look like reading a self-help book that deals with the patient’s specific trauma. Spending time alone with a book that shares guidance and clarity can give the patient a sense of control over their situation as well as provide practices for healing. And the time in a book is beneficial in and of itself. Picturing written scenarios, focusing on the nuances of language, and even simply being still, all increase endorphins and lower blood pressure.
The Magic of Catharsis
One of the most impressive ways reading can be beneficial to the patient involves feeling emotion. Just as you may watch a play being performed and feel as if you’re part of the scene, reading a gripping novel, falling into an imaginary world, or identifying with a fictional character can put you in the position of experiencing catharsis. Catharsis allows you to feel the appropriate emotions of a scenario without actually being in the scenario yourself…a type of living vicariously. Because of how purely catharsis can be experienced, therapists will sometimes encourage their patients to read novels that carry the reader through a storyline not unlike their own. Looking at trauma or abuse through a new perspective, or seeing the effects of anxiety or stress from the outside in, may be empowering to the reader and give them a new way to think about their own struggle.
The Childhood Experience
Distracting a child with a good story has been a nighttime trick since the beginning of time. But imagine the power of engaging a child’s ready imagination during an especially anxious moment. Engaging picture books…even for older children…could help regulate breathing, steady spiraling thoughts, and spark imagination. Even better is the practice of reading aloud. Gathering your family for a pleasant read-aloud could make all the difference for all of you at the end of a stressful day. Reading something inspiring or beautifully written can cast a vision over your life and cause you to reach outside of yourself for significance and purpose. Reading something humorous can ground you and disengage you from your trouble. Rethink reading as not just a frivolous pastime or something to dread from school days, but as a therapeutic practice that can quite literally add a little more character to your life.
Verified Reliable Sources for the Content in This Article: Psychology Today and Read Aloud Revival
Put It Into Practice
Tips for dipping your toe (back) into reading: Picture Books. Don’t be afraid to offer picture books to children well into their teens…or even pick up a few for yourself. Reading along with pictures is not elementary! Often, the simple yet elegant language of good picture books can be quite sophisticated. And no one dislikes beautiful illustrations! The quality of reading a novel versus a picture book does not vary one bit and sometimes, we need stories that are more efficiently told.
Change up your usual fare. Are you drawn to non-fiction? Commit to finding a fictional novel or two and notice how you engage with something completely made up. Does this reading feel less “practical” to you? Challenge yourself to find the benefits of diving into stories. Do you avoid non-fiction? Grab a recommended book on a topic you’ve always been interested in and jot down a few notes as you read.
Blend other therapeutic practices into your reading routine. Try deep breathing before each reading session. Relaxing your body and feeding your soul is true self-care.
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