As you are doing your emotional writing job, you also assume better responsibility for your and others’ mental health outcomes. If you think that emotional writing is not something that you can reasonably do, it is your time to test your writing capacity. Authors who write about mental illness actually fulfill two valuable purposes. They express the concerns and anxieties that are facing many of their readers. They also make it easier for themselves to cope with their mental illness. Mental health essays are gaining prominence as an instrument of self-expression.
However, if you think that mental illness can become a barrier to creative writing, you are definitely wrong. The thing about mental illness is that it can become a framework for shaping the most unbelievably creative stories. Remember the biographies of many talented writers who were mentally unstable. They stories keep capturing the hearts and minds of readers across the world. Mental illness can become a source of talent. However, it does not really make writing easier.
How Mental Illness Affects Creativity?
It is a difficult question. What is obvious is that writing is a problematic and challenging endeavor. It is not even similar to what you will see in industrial production. It is does not even resemble the process when you put materials into a machine and it gives you back the product. Rather, writing is a mental and emotional process. It is what you do when you have a head full of thoughts and want to pour them onto the paper. Sometimes, writing is tough. Sometimes, it is like an inspiration that governs your hand and makes you stick to the topic of your writing. You must be ready to spend quite a lot of time doing your writing job. If you are in trouble, it can also inspire you to write. However, never try to hide who and what you are from your audience. You must be real. You must be observable. This is what your audience will like about you.
You can hardly find a good answer to the question. Most likely, you will observe some connection between how people deal with their anxiety and how they write. Because writing is about translating thinking into a piece suitable for reading, it is possible to assume that mental illness will greatly influence the quality and effectiveness of all writing endeavors. Moreover, writing is like a journey that a person takes down his or her heart and mind. Therefore, if mental illness is in place, the direction of this journey will also change. It can be considered as weakness, but it can also be regarded as a good subject for literary observations that will keep the reader glued to the book.
Mental health essays can be equally horrible and fascinating. The secret of success lies somewhere in between. Writing can be a great thing to do, when it is driven by inspiration and fascination. It can be equally horrible if it is made against one’s will. Just imagine that you must write an essay that you do not like and compare it to a diary that you are writing on your own. This is where the difference is. So, if you are going to become a writer, you will have to be ready to face risks and challenges. Moreover, you will have to be ready to acknowledge your difference. You should not be afraid of it. However, you should be realistic about the amount of judgment and criticism you will face when you decide to come out. It is like opening yourself to your audience without expecting anything in return.
Essays on mental illness are becoming more popular among readers. However, they also generate a lot of criticism. Do not forget that even in the developed society, mental health stigma is still a reality. You just cannot get rid of it. No one says that you are writing about real things. Your mental illness may still be a product of your imagination. However, your audience will judge you for this. Be ready and enjoy the process! You are the writer now.
When you are writing, it is important to monitor your own emotional health and wellbeing. At first, you should not overload yourself with writing. You will see that excess writing can be a serious emotional load. Even the best writers can find themselves in a situation when they are losing sanity because they keep writing. Remember also that, at times, writing can be different from what you used to do in life. If you have spent years working as an electrician, a pilot, or a doctor, and suddenly you sit down to write a story or a book, it certainly impacts your personality, your mental health, your emotions, and your lifetime experiences. Besides, when you are facing tough deadlines, you may feel even more tired and emotional exhausted. One thing is when you are writing for your own self. Another thing is when you are writing because you are missing deadlines and you need to complete your course with 100%. When you are in a position to control your destiny, you may also be in a position to control your own writing. At the same time, you cannot know what your editor or publisher will tell you the next day. You cannot know that your editor or publisher will not change your deadlines tomorrow. At times, you may feel as if you are giving birth to a child. This is a very accurate comparison. Writing a book is difficult mentally and emotionally. This is why mental illness accompanies writing.
The role of writer in society is to communicate a message to the audience, to teach a lesson or to entertain. When you become a writer, your society automatically imposes new moral and entertainment responsibilities on you. These responsibilities certainly cause stress and anxiety. And this stress gives rise to mental illness. This is why so many modern writers experience mental health issues. You can be one of them or you can escape your mental health destiny. No one can say for sure if you are in a position to avoid these difficulties. However, at some point, you may find yourself writing mental health writing prompts.
The good news is that some writers do not have any genetic or emotional predisposition for developing mental health problems. Some others have some kind of resilience, which protects them from mental health risks. This is why some writers are better than others managing their writing and spiritual routines. Unfortunately, few writers are actually resilient to mental health problems. Most talented academics and fiction writers are just too emotional to keep themselves sane. At the same time, writing can become a source of mental health benefits for writers and their readers. The emotional and physical health benefits of expressive writing have been extensively recognized. Therefore, as you keep expressing yourself in writing, you reduce the scope of emotional issues that you are facing or may face in the future. It is also a good way for your readers to find their reflection in your writing. You save them, and you save yourself.
What is the Purpose in Writing?
If you want to reduce the risks of mental health problems, you must be clear about the purpose of your writing. Likewise, your audience should be clear about the purpose of your piece. In the meantime, do not forget to incorporate your experience into writing. At times, these experiences can be just terrible and seemingly unrealistic, but they shape your personality in a unique and incomprehensive way. For example, you may have some experience being unloved. You may have some experience being offended. You may some experience being infuriated. These experiences also shape your mental health and can further impact the quality of your writing.
Your mental health can also be a product of your current experiences and situations. For example, if you are going through a difficult period in your relationships, of if you are having problems in academic studies, or you are looking for a new job, these problems will have considerable effects on what and how you write.
What is the Role of the Writer in Writing?
It has reference and relevance for your mental health. For example, if you find yourself in a stable and positive life situation, you are more likely to present yourself as a friend to your readers. However, if you are going through difficulties, you are more likely to present yourself as an enemy. You can be an enemy to yourself, but do not try to position yourself as an enemy to your reader. This is the worst thing that you can ever do in writing. What you can do, however, is putting yourself into your reader’s shoes. For example, if you are writing for a reader who is experiencing mental health issues, you may try to present an accurate picture of mental health issues. This way, your reader will find something familiar in your words and link themselves to your own destiny.
When you are writing, your task is to hear what your heart is saying to you. If you are in despair, then listen attentively to what your heart is telling you. Your task as a writer is to describe your feelings accurately. Be as thorough and detailed as you can. Your readers should not have any difficulty grasping the meaning of your words and sentences. If you sound ambiguous and if your words are difficult to read, your audience will quickly lose interest in your book or your story. You need to affect your reader in a positive and relevant way, even if you are writing about difficult or unhealthy things. Your writing should look like a lesson for the readers who are facing similar struggles in their lives.
Secrets of Writers and Mental Health
Writing comes from our hearts and minds. We are the sources of our own learning. However, because our heads are directly involved in writing, the things that are running through them also affect the quality and results of your writing attempts. If you are feeling awful, it may be good to take a pause and stop writing. However, it can be equally revealing and useful to take a pen and express your feelings in writing. It is not uncommon for writers to discuss their own problems even if they mask these problems as a fiction plot or a story involving some fictional protagonist. If you are reading a fantasy book, you can find some valuable themes that link its plot to the author’s biography. You just cannot conceal it!
Do not think that, once you become a writer, your problems will disappear and you will become a member of the distinguished cohort of recognized professionals. The truth is that you will always be yourself, no matter if you are a writer, a technician, a famous singer, or a musician. Your personality will never let you go. Your mental health issues will never let you go. You are you, and this is your best argument. Uniqueness is the best asset in the modern world, and you can do it.
Talented writers have a good mastery of words and sentences. However, it does not mean that they don’t need help. In reality, when so many thoughts and events are running through your head, there should be someone who will keep you down to the earth and help you organize your writing. Your book must be logical. Your writing must be expressive but not aggressive. Everything needs balance, and qualified editors should work with writers to deliver the best writing result.
Writing about Mental Health Issues: Taking Responsibility for Self and Others
Do not take your writing mission lightly. When you become a writer, you also assume responsibility for others. What you say in your book can influence the actions and decisions of your readers. As a writer, you can influence others. However, you should know how to influence others and what you can do to promote the interests and needs of your readers. Your words can change the world, therefore your task is to be very selective with words and writing. Your readers expect that you will teach them how to manage their own mental health issues. So, do not disappoint them. Make your readers enjoy the process and the result of reading your story!
However, do not fall into the faulty line of turning mental illness into your argument. Of course, stories of mentally ill maniacs and serial killers abound. They stir public imagination. However, they also become stereotypical. If you decide to follow the same thematic line, you may end up reinvigorating popular stereotypes about mental illness, instead of offering solutions to beat it.
Although you live in the 21st century when diversity and uniqueness have become the dominant forces of everyone’s success, you still cannot get rid of the centuries of mental health stigma that accompanies people with mental health problems. You are surrounded by biases. You cannot manage your everyday problems if other people know that you are mentally ill. Writing can become a potent means of self-expression, but it can also become a barrier that you will keep facing throughout your life, as long as people view you as mentally unstable. Fairly speaking, the past decade witnessed some slight progress in how society treats mental illness. However, the past three or four years were a turning point in the mental and emotional progress of the developed world. The unprecedented rise of extremist and radical right-wing forces has put an end to the decades of justice struggles in America and other developed countries. Diversity is no longer the best word to define the 21st century’s reality. New presidency, new hostility claims, and new approaches to everyday issues create an entirely new agenda. It leaves little room for open discussions of mental illness as part of routine reality. Instead, it condemns people for being different, no matter if they are feminists, black activitists, or mentally unstable talented writers. The symbolic power of this extremist persists. As a result, writers may find it difficult to challenge the established status quo. These problematic trends have huge impacts on writers. Some of them may no longer be willing to discuss their emotions and feelings with readers. Some others may still want to write but in a different, less revealing manner. However, if you are already a popular writer, many of these problems can become less meaningful. You will have a voice that is more powerful than of your extremist enemies. You will have an opportunity to change the situation. Your writing will become a weapon of positive influences on society. You will work and thrive, while your readers will follow your recommendations trying to make the world better.
The more popular you are, the most fans and followers you have, and the more you write, the better you will be positioned to influence your readers. If you have a clear message to send to your audience and you want to have a visible impact on society, then you are most welcome to use your word as influence. The more media and sources you use in writing, the more compelling your argument will become. Take yourself as a life changer, but do not forget about your responsibility in front of your readers. Also, do not forget about the risks that writing can pose to your mental health. If you take a responsibility that creates a huge burden on your shoulders, then you may end up being mentally ill, and without any lasting changes that your work creates in society. You are a creator. This is your mission. You can accomplish it professionally. You can do it with diligence and a profound understanding of the subject. Your fans will follow you on your journey to success, and this success will ultimately translate into a new social order that benefits everyone, including you.
Of course, the situation becomes much easier when you have no mental illness. However, in most cases, you cannot secure yourself from these risks. Your time will come, and you will know how to deal with the situation. However, do not expect this path to be smooth and easy. After all, the barriers you face on your way can well translate into an adorable piece of writing. You can make fun of your mental health issues and, as a result, empower your readers to do the same. These stories can enlighten the world. They can make it easier for your readers to overcome their life barriers. Your story can change the world. Think of it. Remember it, and do not let mental health problems keep you from writing!
