The Full Story
Prison Break: Writing as a Tool to Escape
I am a prisoner. Except for what consequence am I stuck here. I’m not in confinement, suffering a sentence based off of a criminal offense. I’m not in a state jail cell; I’m sitting at my desk at one of the top universities in Connecticut. I wear privilege on my back: a roof over my head, food at my disposal, and a supportive family that has given me their entire life. And still. I am a prisoner.
This passage was a part of a longer essay that was locked away in my notes app for years. Whereas most people use the app to write down their grocery list, mine was a vault of emotions, thoughts, and confessions I couldn’t bring myself to say aloud. My notes app became my refuge, a space where I could confront the weight of my own contradictions. During this period of my life, I battled severe depression and anxiety for years but struggled to acknowledge the depth of my struggles. I felt unworthy of my own pain and suffering, believing I had no right to even experience these emotions when I was living a life that many would consider ideal. How embarrassing that I had no life altering event that made me this way–this is just the way I was. As a result, each entry was a whisper of a truth I couldn’t share with friends or family–a battle between gratitude for what I had and the inescapable sense of suffocation.
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One day in a Writing and Responding class, we were discussing different genres and were asked to pull out a piece of our writing to share with a classmate. For whatever reason, I felt inclined to pull up an essay that was in my notes app. I handed my phone to the girl sitting next to me, and as she silently processed the text on the screen, I was filled with immediate regret. She was a stranger; I didn’t even know her name, but she was reading something I never thought would go beyond the yellow app on my home screen. When she was done reading the excerpt, there was no discussion of the genre, tone, or anything about what it had to do with the class. She looked at me with empathy and said, “I wish everyone in the world could read this.” That moment shifted my entire perspective on my secret bank of turmoil; why shouldn’t everyone in the world read it–how many other people in the world are unopened books full of narratives that could change even just one person’s perspective?
Writing as Healing
Writing healed me in ways that traditional therapy couldn't. In doing research on the connection between emotional healing and writing, I found that I am in fact not some rare phenomena; there as been conversations about the measurable health benefits of expressive writing for over three decades.
In their seminal study on expressive writing, Pennebaker and his co-author Sandra Beall (1986) describe their research motivations:​ To not talk about or otherwise confront major upheavals that have occurred in one’s life is viewed as a form of inhibition. Actively inhibiting one’s behavior, thoughts, and/or feelings over time places cumulative stress on the body and thus increases the probability of stress-related diseases [...] It would follow that if individuals actively inhibit divulging personal or traumatic events, or both, allowing them to do so in a benign setting could have the positive effect of reducing long-term stress and stress-related disease. The original purpose of the present project was to learn if merely writing about a given traumatic event would reduce stress associated with inhibition in both the short run and over time. (275) Spoiler alert: writing can. Pennebaker and Beall’s foundational study demonstrated that writing about both traumatic events and associated emotions led to improved physical and mental health. Subsequent studies have confirmed these findings across diverse populations, including individuals coping with chronic illnesses, relationship struggles, job loss, and substance abuse. Clinical trials have further linked expressive writing to benefits such as improved immune function, wound healing, and emotional well-being in patients with conditions like cancer, heart disease, and mood disorders
Narrative Therapy
Narrative therapy is a form of therapy that aims to separate the individual from the problem, allowing the individual to externalize their issues rather than internalize them. It relies on the individual's own skills and sense of purpose to guide them through difficult times (Narrative Therapy, 2017). As my interests evolved into personal stories that were not my own, I realized the power that comes from sharing narratives.
Storytelling is therapeutic because it allows individuals to externalize emotions, gain clarity, and reshape their perspectives on life experiences. By narrating personal stories—whether through writing, speaking, or creative expression—people can process trauma, reduce emotional overwhelm, and create a sense of control over their narratives. This process enables reframing, where painful experiences can be viewed through a lens of growth and resilience rather than suffering alone. Storytelling also provides emotional release, offering catharsis and a pathway to healing. Additionally, sharing stories fosters connection with others, reducing feelings of isolation and reinforcing the idea that struggles are part of the human experience.
Write your own story
Your trauma does not define you. Your past does not define you.
The pain you’ve endured, the struggles you’ve faced—they are chapters in your story, but they are not the whole book. You have the power to turn the page, to write new beginnings, and to redefine what your life means.
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Trauma may have shaped parts of you, but it does not own you. You are more than your wounds; you are the strength that rose from them. You are the resilience that kept moving forward when everything tried to hold you back.
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Every day is a new opportunity to take control of your narrative. You have the right to heal, to grow, and to become the person you choose to be—not the person pain tried to make you.
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Your story is still unfolding, and you are the author. So write with courage. Write with hope. And most of all, write with the belief that you are more powerful than anything that has tried to break you.