A Surprisingly Simple Care Strategy for Young Adults Dealing with Trauma
Written by Frank Samuelson, Posted on , in Section Teens & Tweens
A recent study shows that writing about problems can actually heal wounds of the mind - and the body. Therapists have long known that talking about problems is an effective way of easing emotional trauma for their patients. Now they are finding it may also speed up the recovery of physical pain, which can include the disease of additions. Young Adults who are dealing with these issues may have a new strategy to aid in their recovery.
Writing About Problems Can Help
Research led my Elizabeth Broadbent, a senior lecturer in health psychology at the University of Auckland in New Zealand, found that seniors in a wound clinic who wrote for three days in a row about their most traumatic experiences in life, while being encouraged to include thoughts and feelings never shared before, healed at a rate of nearly twice as fast as those who wrote only about their plans for the next day or up coming week.
"This is the first study to show that writing about personally distressing events can speed wound healing in a population that is at risk of poor healing," says Broadbent. However,this is not the first study to find a connection between the state-of-mind and physical health. But these new findings do offer more hope for young adults who are struggling with physical addictions to drugs or alcohol. Lions Gate Recovery also uses writing as a means for their patients to express pent up emotions. It has also been found that writing about traumatic experiences allows the person to judge the severity of their experience from a calmer position, often leading to reduced stress and anger due to a new perspective.
A huge side benefit of expressing negative emotions on paper is the ability to get a better night's sleep. A lack of sleep produces fewer growth hormones, which are essential to healing both physically and mentally. Lions Gate Recovery uses emotional writing and all positive therapies and techniques to help young adults who struggle from trauma and additions.
