How it works:
You show up with a pen and paper. I provide a theme and prompts to get the juices flowing. You free-write for 20 minutes to my home-made, theme-related playlist.
Then – and here’s where the value lies – we read aloud what we came up with. Our peers support us and give us encouraging feedback. We inspire each other. We bond. We laugh. We cry. Together, as a group. Sharing our writing creates community as we bond over our similarities, hone our listening skills and learn how to give supportive and encouraging feedback to our peers.
Think you can’t write? Put that self-deprecating voice to rest. Drop the rules and quiet the editor in your head. This isn’t about skill or talent, it’s about expressing yourself and sharing yourself with others. You can do that. I promise.
Benefits Realized:
- Bonding with others on a personal, intimate level.
- Finding similarities where before we may have seen differences.
- Feeling genuine compassion and empathy for others.
- Developing interest in other people’s stories and lives.
- Tapping into memories. Using different parts of our brains.
- Increased self-esteem at the realization that others find us interesting.
- Finding purpose and something to look forward to.
- Finding a voice and a new interest/hobby.
- Doing something just for you. Taking care of yourself.
- Addressing so many of the self-care tools that we are assigned in recovery.
- Providing service to others. Yes, people want to hear your stories. It’s a gift.
Who am I? I am a person living a life of recovery and I am a writer.
That is to say, I’ve always written as a form of self-expression. My ability to put words together eloquently on the proverbial paper allows me to present my authentic thoughts and feelings.
Both writing and storytelling are forms of artistic expression that have tremendous value and contribute to our growth in numerous ways.
We crave depth, authenticity and connection, and in these groups, we find both. Eliminating the rules of writing frees us up. Hearing participants share and watching them grow and glow as they read to the group is an absolute honor. Facilitating these groups has given me a new sense of purpose and meaning. My mission now is to build community in recovery through expression and creativity using pen and paper as our tools.