Write Your Way to Happiness and Healing

How Writing Meditation Transforms Creativity and Wellbeing - By Jilly Shipway

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In the spring of 2020, I spent a lot of time walking, writing, and crying. In the early part of the year both my parents had died within a few weeks of each other. I experienced a tsunami of grief, and as a survivor of childhood abuse my grieving process was complicated and messy. In my Chakras for Creativity book, I describe how yoga and writing meditation helped me to deal with and emerge from the trauma. However, you do not need to have suffered from trauma to benefit from the type of writing meditation that I will share with you in this article.

Journaling has enjoyed a huge resurgence of popularity recently. This isn’t surprising because therapeutic writing is a great way to boost your creativity and enhance your wellbeing. Studies show that therapeutic writing reduces stress, boosts your mood, reduces symptoms of depression, helps to manage anxiety, strengthens the immune system, lowers blood pressure, improves sleep, and generally promotes good health.

The Free Flow Writing Meditation, described below, can be done as standalone practice, or can follow a sitting or walking meditation, or be done before or after your yoga practice. It’s an effective way to get your ideas flowing and gain access to the wisdom of your subconscious mind. If your creativity is blocked the meditation will fire up your imagination. If you have come to an impasse in your life, it will help you to reorientate and get moving forward again.

Personally, I like the physicality of writing with pen and paper. However, it’s fine to work digitally too.

Free-Flow Writing Meditation

The object of this meditation is not to pen a polished piece of writing, but rather simply to observe and record thoughts and feelings as they arise. The writing doesn’t have to be smart, clever, witty, or even interesting. All you’re required to do is to listen, observe, and be present to whatever arises in your mind during the allocated meditation period, and your job is to simply get this down on paper.

Be reassured that whatever you write during the meditation is for your eyes only. No need to pay attention to handwriting, neatness, spelling, grammar, presentation etc. If your writing is legible and comprehensible to you, then anything goes.

Find yourself a comfortable position, bring your awareness to your body, and notice any bodily sensations that are arising. Now, bring your awareness to the natural flow of your breath. During the meditation maintain a background awareness of your body and breath.

Set your timer for 10 to 20 minutes…and…start writing. Always keep your pen in contact with the paper and keep writing until your timer goes.

Write down whatever comes into your head. Your aim is to capture the stream of thoughts and feelings as they flow through your mind. Let go of your inner editor! It doesn’t matter how off the wall your thoughts are—just get them down! Later, you can read the writing and see if there are any nuggets of gold among the stones and grit. But for now, just keep that pen moving!

Be aware of the physical act of writing and how it feels to be someone sitting here writing. Relax any parts of your body that do not need to be engaged with the act of writing. If you find that you are tensing up, slow your writing down, relax, and reconnect with the flow of your breath. At the same time, keep writing! A relaxed attitude will help you to access your subconscious mind, and it’s here that we uncover our gold.

Once your timer goes, put your pen down. Notice how your body feels, how you are feeling in yourself, and the natural flow of your breath. And when you’re ready, carry on with your day.

On my online yoga writers’ course https://yoga-through-the-year-with-jilly-shipway.teachable.com/p/the-yoga-writers-handbook I encourage my students to establish a regular Writing Meditation practice. Writing Meditation is for the writer, what a home yoga practice is for the yoga teacher. Writing meditation is done just for you, we're not trying to get anywhere. It's your opportunity to commune with yourself in an accepting, safe, playful environment. One of my students, Jessica, said, “I learned some great tips on the course about using writing as a tool to heal which is in itself a yogic practice that I will continue, regardless of whether it gets published or not!”

Writing meditation is for everyone, regardless of whether they want to be a writer or not. On a grey day writing meditation reveals a rainbow of colours. When you’re low, it lifts you up. When you’re perplexed, it shows you a way through the maze. When you’re feeling dark, it reignites your Inner Light. Go on, try it!