Citation

Stepakoff S. Arts Psychoth. 2009; 36(2): 105-113.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.aip.2009.01.007

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Survivors of suicide must contend not only with traumatic grief but also with shame, stigma, and silence. Poetry therapy is a powerful tool for healing in this population. The utilization of preexisting poems, along with the expressive writing of poems, letters, and journals, contributes to the desensitization of traumatic memories and helps the bereaved move beyond formless anguish toward a capacity for the verbal representation of psychological pain. Further, creative expression serves as a means for rejecting the implicit message of destructiveness that characterizes suicide. The author describes a variety of techniques that can be used as part of self-directed efforts at psychological repair (i.e., "auto-poetic healing"), as well as with individuals or groups in the context of professionally facilitated treatment. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

human; suicide; stigma; Suicide bereavement; shame; article; priority journal; psychotrauma; grief; survivor; emotional stress; writing; Traumatic grief; Suicide survivors; art therapy; personal experience; verbalization; Creative arts therapies; Expressive writing; poetry therapy; Poetry therapy