Self therapy is a necessary component for writers. It can improve your writing in a number of ways. How then, can you do self therapy?
Daily creative writing is the best way of doing self therapy, and it can improve your prose drastically.
Once you master this, there really is very little holding you back. Let me just explain exactly why that is.
Why Does An Amateur Author Need Self-Therapy?
An amateur author would need self therapy because psychological issues such as depression and anxiety deplete your verbal fluency, decrease productivity, and worse lethologica.
Simply put, writers and most creative peoples are prone to having depression. In addition, they tend to have a lot of anxiety. This is caused by a number of issues; the uncertainty of financial stability, the complexity of having to arrange so many imaginary pieces, and finally, the disconnect that comes from returning into the physical world from their imaginary world. All of this and how to continue on being productive while experiencing these is covered in a here.
These feelings of depression, and anxiety lead to the poor writing performance. High anxiety has been correlated with ow verbal fluency. Verbal fluency is the ability of the mind to retrieve words that are relevant to the situation. Low verbal fluency obviously impacts prose, and writing.
On top of that, the more people love their jobs, the higher their expectations. These high expectations increase anxiety. Failing these goals leads to low motivation, which leads to low productivity. This low productivity means when they do write, it comes out bad, because of lethologica, and low verbal fluency, which can actually cured.
Cures and fixes
Self talk would help improve your self image/ identity, which will improve your writing, motivation, productivity, and finally, improve your writing.
However, an amateur writer won’t know that. They will just see that they are not writing, and assume it is because they just were not made for writing. The truth is, every writer feels like that. They just have tools that assist them with these turbulent feelings.
These tools include therapeutic writing. A study was conducted by PubMed Central. The relationship between self-writing and well-being in cases of major traumatic events have been well documented, but this study wanted to find what the value of keeping a daily diary in promoting small change. They found that writing actually helped.
Other studies agree with this, pointing out how daily writing exercises helps lessen anxiety, and heighten self-confidence.
So, we have established that an improper mindset, and psychology can ruin your writing. We have given proof that writing can be therapeutic, and helpful to your psychology. We must then close of with what techniques you can use in your writing sessions to begin your self therapy.
How Could An Author Use Self-Therapy?
1. Self Therapy Begins When You Recognize Your Life’s Composition
The first step to your self-therapy would be writing a map of your life thus far.
Before you can learn where you want to go, and how to get there, you first need to learn where you are.
We’ve all heard about the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The theory argues that there is a hierarchy of needs that needs to be met for humans to be fulfilled in life. As soon as humans have filled the first layer, they are unsatisfied until they have filled the next layer.
The first layer is physiological needs (food, shelter), safety and security (health, employment and family), love and belonging (intimacy, family, and friendship), self-esteem (confidence, achievement) and finally, self actualization (morality, experience of purpose).
This can help you contextualize your life, and show you just where you are. Also, where you need to go. The question becomes, how can you assess your life in order to see how many of these you have achieved?
You should assess your 4 spheres of life; financial, social, physical, and intellectual sphere.
So first, write this triangle down.
2. Financial Sphere
Your financial sphere refers to how you make your source of income, and how much control you have over it. Specifically, if you can increase it as you wish, or decrease it as you wish.
So, this sphere focus on your source of income. The quality of your source of income, to be exact. You need to create a proper financial sphere, and build it up to the point where you are satisfied.
Before you can begin building it, you first need to diagnose it.
If you have made it to your late teens, it means that you have been getting enough sustenance to survive. This is where we can begin the assessment. As you begin writing you self therapy, write the Financial sphere, and underneath this heading, start listing out facts. Where have you received your food from? Is it from your own hands, or someone else’s investment? What about where you stay? Or your water? Do you pay for all these things?
Finally, where do you get your money from? Your parents? The government? Or your own job?
When you have written down these answers, you will have your source of income. Then, can you do more to earn more money from your source of income? If it is from your parents, maybe you could ask for more chores then get payment. If it is from the government, get a job (now that easy, I know).
The point is, you may realize that the best way to gain control of your financial life is to create some sort of business. School is good too, as it is a form of potential for finances (since being college educated increases your chance of getting a job).
Fill in this portion of your financial sphere, adding your source of income, and potential sources of income. It will give you a idea of just where you are, and where you’d need to be to live the life you want. Also, possibly how to get there, if you get some idea to monetize your talents.
3. Social Sphere
The second thing to write about is your control over your social sphere, specifically you ability to control who you interact with when you are lonely, when you are missing intimacy, and when you need help (either in your job, or in general).
This is a list I usually split into friends, lovers, family, and accomplices. However, its worth noting that some people can have just 1 person who is their friend, lover, and family (a spouse) and still be content with life.
Anyway, the point is, can how much control do you have in creating, cultivating, and maintaining these relationships?
Friends is defined as the people who you do fun things with. They mostly exist for being around with you when you are doing activities. Also, you need to be there for them when they need help, as they are for you.
Can you create friends whenever you want to? Introverted people are comfortable being alone, but if you find yourself suffering from unintentional loneliness, then it is note worthy.
Family obviously refers to your blood relations. You may not hang out with family for fun, but it is good to take care of your family. Also, if you do happen to hang out with your family for fun, then it would be awesome. So how is your relationship with family members? Can you communicate with them? Can you guide them? And are there people who you can talk to when you wish to be guided?
Lovers refers to the person in your life who you hang out with when you are lonely in the night. However, the best part about lovers is that they can take the part of the other two, friend, and family, if you play your cards right. However, it is extremely important that this relationship have the underlying sexual element. That’s what distinguishes it from your other 2 relationships. So then how much control do you have over this? Can you get lovers? And can you get the relationship to the right level you want?
So in general, how do you come across to people? Is it in a way that can attract them? Answer all these questions in these 3 levels, and you will have mapped out your life.
4. Physical Sphere
Next thing to write is that I will need to write is how your physical health helps accommodate your previous 2 spheres.
The physical sphere refers to your physical health. Specifically, we are trying to see how well your physical body serves you in attaining the first 2 spheres. And the fourth sphere in fact.
Basically, can you control your body so that it does what you want it to do so you can achieve those other steps? Let’s say its the social sphere. You will need to go out with friends. Can your body stay up into the night with your friends? Or can it help you play the gaes taht you would play in camps and stuff? What about with family and lovers? Can your body give you the energy to pursue lovers, and satisfy them? And can you be mentally present around your family so that you can spot what they need from you?
This also takes into consideration your mental state by the way.
Can your brain serve you in your financial pursuit? This means that in the era of low attention spans, can your brain concentrate enough for you to finish reading your school work? Also, can you stay still long enough, and concentrate so that you can finish your job? Finally, can your body provide you with enough will power to tolerate the months it takes to start a new business?
5. Intellectual Sphere
This sphere refers to your control of knowledge generation and application.
You need knowledge to do stuff.
You need knowledge to start a business. Also, you need knowledge to know how to start friendships. Even when it comes to starting romantic partners, and starting an exercises regime that will increase your concentration and will power.
You need knowledge.
Therefore, do you know where to go to get this knowledge? Usually it is a mentor of sorts who teaches you. This is the best source of knowledge. But if you can’t find one, do you know what videos to check out? Do you know what books to use?
Finally, knowledge application.
Of all the knowledge that you’ve learned in your life- whether online, or from school/mentors- how much of it have you implemented in your life and it led to observable improvements? In fact, can you implement knowledge in your life in a way that it leads to observable improvements?
Write the answer to these questions down, and your intellectual sphere will be set.
6. Look For Leakages In Your Sphere
Search for the locations in your life where you are failing to live up to the necessary standard for your life to observable improve.
If you have written down these spheres, you will have a clear picture of where you are. The question now becomes, do you have control over your spheres?
It does not have to be yes.
Its alright if you do not have control over your spheres. As long as you are satisfied with your spheres. So the question becomes, are you satisfied with your financial situation, your social situation, physical, and intellectual situation?
The point of this exercise is to help you discover yourself. What does satisfaction look like to you? Only you will know the answer to that. However, if you have the answer and you find you are not satisfied, then there is some work that needs to be done.
That right there is a sign of a leakage.
So look at the leakages in your spheres. e.g. you wished you had enough money to pay your own apartment, but you do not. That’s a financial leak. You wished you had people to call on Saturdays to go bowling with, but you do not. That’s a social leak. You’ve always wanted to read the book on how to make music, but you do not have the willpower to do it. That is a physical leak. Finally, you do not know where to go to learn how to start that business so you can pay your rent, how get bowling friends, and how to get enough willpower to improve your reading skills. That would be an intellectual leak.
7. Try To Discover The Causes Of The Leakage
The next stage is to write down why you have not closed up those leakages yet, and what exactly is stopping you from doing it.
This is where the self therapy finally starts in earnest. You know where you are, and where you want to be. Finding out why you are not there will show you the source of your anxiety, and depression, probably buried so deep that not even you noticed it was there.
This is a 2 step process.
First, you will need to write down “I can’t get bowling friends because” or “I can’t get something that will teach me how to improve my will power because”. You see what I did there? You write down that you can’t do your leakage, and end with a “because”.
Secondly, get a timer. Set it to 1 minute, then begin speed writing. Give 5 reasons why you can’t close those leakages.
So, why is this so effective? The mind likes keeping things from us because they are too painful to confront. It is protecting us. But it is in discovering those things that we can finally learn how what is wrong with us, and finally, get the chance to change it for the better.
8. Discover Your True Self
Write down what your true wishes and desires are for the future of your spheres.
By now, you should have a clear list of exactly what is wrong with your life. You will have an idea of where you want to be, where you and why you are where you are. This is important because it will teach you more about yourself.
You will realize what you want. Maybe you want a small paying job, 1 friend, a lover, and some privacy. But above that, you will realize what you need. Maybe you will learn that this is not actually good for you and it is just a way for you to remain avoidant, and you will try to get more than one friend, try to connect with old family, and finally, try to go sign up for that club membership that you’ve avoided.
The point is that writers have anxiety, and depressive tendencies, and most of the time we try to fix them with pharmaceutical measures, or speaking. With this trick, you will see the concrete, physical things you must do to change and improve your life.
Obviously, this is just something I’ve tried for myself, and it has worked wonders for me, honestly. If you have an additions or subtractions, then please share so I can grow too. Think about it though, imagine how far we can get if we master self therapy? We will DEFINITELY be on our way to MASTERING MASTERY, BABY!