I would highly recommend that if you're looking for information about the physiological and physical affects that mental illness and trauma can have on people, and the benefits of expressive writing, that you pick this book up. They focus primarily on sociological and scientific research, so if what you want are writing exercises or a how-to, this is not for you. There are some to get you started and to help you understand what the authors are trying to convey, but it is not a workbook by any means.

As boring as reading about research studies sounds, it's not like that at all. Pennebaker's writing is readable and not at all dense as academics tend to be when they're trying to put an over priced degree to good use. It's not at all like reading a thesaurus from start to finish. The author(s) provide a lot of real life examples and present their studies in a story telling or conversational format. It's like if one of your friends was telling you about a time they interviewed someone. They discuss personal experiences and the effects mental ailments had on them. They cover a wide variety of conditions and situations, as well as studies that other researchers have done, and pull it all together in a simple and digestible way. This isn't a textbook.

This book is more like someone saying "Hey, I think this would probably help you. It won't cure you but I see you're hurting and want you to get better. You seem skeptical so I'll tell you why." The best part of their research is that they are honest about the methods in which the studies were conducted, any potential bias the facilitators may have had or expectations that they had, and they pull studies and collaborations from universities world wide so they are not just presenting their own work exclusively. They are open about ambiguous data that may not have significant findings, or have not been studied enough to be conclusive, but are worth noting, as well as studies that resulted in findings they didn't expect or could have been done better in hindsight. You get an overview of the history of their field, the ground breaking accomplishments and shortcomings (something most departments don't readily admit).

Most importantly they are blunt about the reality of what Expressive Writing can and cannot do. I was worried a couple pages into the introduction that this would turn into an ad for a magical life solving product or method (yoga, essential oils, that crazy wrap thing, for example), but that didn't happen and instead I was pleasantly surprised by author's integrity and passion for wellness, people, and their craft. It's incredibly easy and common for academics to manipulate their research. That's part of the reason we will never know if coffee is killing us or giving us eternal life, yet we tune it at 11 p.m. every time to find out the latest wishy washy science claims.

I wouldn't put expressive writing in that category. I've not only been able to use it to help myself in the middle of a divorce, while trying to cope with a mood disorder, depression, anxiety, PTSD, ADD, etc. There's a lot on my plate right now. I've been able to sit down and write with intention and focus to identify problems, solutions, and feelings, rather than ranting with anger and escalating myself. It's helped to not only work on coping and self soothing skills and preventative maintenance, but has improved the ways that I address community conflict through social media platforms. We can either be productive discussing social issues or we can seriously hurt ourselves and our peers by using careless language. Expressive writing and conflict resolution skills have helped tremendously.

I don't know what else to say. It's a good resource. I know it's irritating for some that it's not a book of writing prompts. I'm fairly certain the author does have one like that, though, and if not he does endorse an online journal website that provides them but I cannot remember the website name, but another author that specializes in expressive writing contributed an add on for it.

I'm quite thankful for the book, it was worth the price, and by far has been the most useful so far.

This book clearly explains many ways in which writing can help with emotional and other pain, as it says on the cover. However, it does not provide much in the way of practical exercise, specific guidance or example. In part this is on me as I did not read the description closely enough. I was counting on this part of the description "includes practical exercises to help you try expressive writing for yourself." and as mentioned there isn't much. So, 3 stars for me. If I was looking for a book on why writing could help and how it helps, with examples and case studies, I would have given 4 or maybe 5 stars. I will look for another book.

Good research paired with great writing exercises to work through what's holding you back.

This is the best book ever! The center of the universe when it comes to dealing with life.

Great book and very useful. Helped me a lot.

Well researched theory, but it's not a one size fits all. If you're a journaler, definitely read this. I think Pennebaker's journaling exercises are helpful in slowing down our thinking and making sense of our inner workings. Although, definitely not for everybody.

helped me with my block

I found the book to be crisp to the point. The authors summarize their research very well. Best if all is the last chapter that synthesizes the book very well.