Poetry and Mental Health

“Poetry is thoughts that breathe, and words that burn.” - Thomas Gray

Poetry is something that spans thousands of years through different cultures in different ways. It is a language that expresses emotions and experiences through a rhythm of words, similes, and metaphors. The way these words are delivered differs depending on the person and the context of the poem. I remember when I worked at an inpatient rehab facility for teen boys. I did a life skills group, and we talked about anger and releases of anger in a “healthy” and “unhealthy” frame. A lot of them enjoyed Rap and Hip-Hop and I asked them to write me one. I only had 2 rules:

1. No Sexual Themes

2. No Active Drug Seeking
   I explained that writing about their experience and feelings was fine, and I had to impose this so no one got in trouble.

I was met with one of them telling me they weren’t allowed to Rap or Hip-Hop in the facility, and so I changed it. I told them to instead write me a poem because what is Rap but poetry with a beat. I watched as a few faces lit up and they got to work. 

One of them has stuck with me as I’ve moved forward to become a mental health counselor. Not only did this individual have a space where he could spill his whole story, but he also had someone willing to read it and keep it a safe space for them to be heard.

All this to say, poetry has a lot of impact on our mental health and allows for an outlet for someone to express how they’re feeling in a different way.

Poetry as Therapy

When discussing Poetry and words as healing, we must examine the history of poetry and the idea that words have power. This idea has existed for thousands of years and can be traced back to Shamanistic healing in different tribes. While there is a spiritual component to these words, the words themselves were believed to have power as well. 

When looking at what “Poetry Therapy” is, there are a few main goals as outlined by Cathy A. Malchiodi in her book, Expressive Therapies

• Developing an understanding of oneself and others through poetry and other forms of literature.

• Promoting creativity, self-expression, and greater self-esteem.

• Strengthening interpersonal and communication skills.

• Expressing overwhelming emotions and releasing tension

By learning the words to express and understand how we are feeling, we can then communicate better to both ourselves and to others how we are doing. In doing this, we have a better footing in moving forward. 

One phrase I used to say was “I’m physically here, but emotionally, I’m in a Walmart Parking lot.” This doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone, but those who get it, get it, but more importantly, I was able to express myself in a way that was honest to me. I knew what those words meant and by admitting them to myself in a way that was more specific than the single emotion words we have I was able to understand where I was at mentally.

Do I have to be good at Poetry?

No. When it comes to writing for emotional understanding, you do not have to be good at it. Poetry has come to mean so many different things than the traditional structure of a poem. If you look at more recent poets such as Courtney Peppernell, Neil Hilborn, Rudy Francisco, and Siaara Freeman, we see that they fall under a different type of poetry and sometimes lean more towards prose. 

The important thing is not to be good at it, but to recognize if you got out what you were feeling in a way that you understand and communicates it to the people it needs to be communicated to. 

So here’s a challenge, take a minute or two and write something that explains how your feeling in an abstract way.