Jackee Holder - 49 Ways to Write Yourself Well. The science and wisdom of writing and journaling

If you have selected this book, you may be looking for practical ways of improving your well-being. If you are a health and well-being practitioner or therapist, you may be helping your clients to improve theirs by encouraging them to practise some of the approaches it is based on. Well-being is a subjective state of feeling good which has physical, mental, emotional and even spiritual dimensions.

Because these dimensions overlap and interact, it is possible to improve well-being by making positive changes in any one of them. For example, taking up regular exercise (a focus on physical well-being) may improve concentration (mental well-being), happiness (emotional well-being) and sense of purpose (spiritual well-being). This series of well-being books is designed to provide a variety of routes to recovering, sustaining, protecting and enhancing well-being, depending on your interests and motivations. While some emphasise psychological techniques, others are based on physical movement, nutrition, journaling and many other approaches.

Each book in the series provides 49 practical ways of improving well-being, based on a particular therapeutic approach and written by an expert in that field. Based on tried and tested approaches, each title offers the user a rich source of tools for well-being. Some of these can be used effectively for improving general resilience; others are particularly helpful for specific problems or issues you may be dealing with, for example, recovering from illness, improving relaxation and sleep, or boosting motivation and self-confidence.

Enjoy dipping into any 49 Ways book and selecting ones which catch your interest or help you to meet a need at a particular time. We have deliberately included many different ideas for practice, knowing that some will be more appropriate at different times, in different situations and with different individuals. You may find certain approaches so helpful or enjoyable that you build them into everyday living, as part of your own well-being strategy.

Having explored one book, you may be interested in using some of the other titles to add to your well-being toolbox, learning how to approach your well-being via a number of different therapeutic routes.

For more information about the series, including current and forthcoming titles, visit www.stepbeachpress.co.uk/well-being

Welcome to 49 Ways to Write Yourself Well. As you explore this guide, you will be learning about and using a wide range of ideas and techniques to improve your well-being, drawn from the broad fields of creativity, contemporary psychology, psychotherapy, journal and writing therapy, coaching, personal development, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) and sometimes plain common sense. The practices and content have been sourced from research into the therapeutic benefits and value of writing and the strong links between our thinking, emotions and behaviour. By sharing some of the research, science and kitchen-table wisdom behind the therapeutic benefits of creative writing, the book shows you how writing can help you gain a deeper and more creative understanding of yourself and what really matters to you.

This guide will steer you around the pitfalls of negative thinking, managing difficult emotions and stress-led behaviours that have an impact on your physical, emotional and mental well-being. Youll learn how to use writing as your own self-therapy, offering insights into your inner life. You will draw on your own creative resources in positive ways to explore your thoughts and feelings, your relationship with yourself and others, and how writing can help you discover yourself in simple and significant ways Youll discover how writing can help you find answers and solutions to your own questions and how establishing a regular writing habit will guide you towards what is real and important to you.

By the end of the book, youll be confident to take to the page, write wholeheartedly about your feelings and emotions and use a range of models and techniques to help you with any difficulties or challenges you may be experiencing in your life or at work. Writing is a journey of discovery and youll be surprised by what is revealed by the imprint of your hand moving across the page, day after day.