Writing Your Way Through Cancer

Cancer patients today are writing for their health. They are among the hundreds of thousands – from poets and monks to homemakers and politicians – who practice journal writing to find equilibrium in times of stress, clarity in moments of decision, and optimum physical well-being. Cancer patients know that successful treatment depends upon a strengthened immune system. Researchers like James W. Pennebaker, Ph.D., author of Opening Up, The Healing Power of Expressing Emotions (1997), have confirmed that people who write about their upsetting experiences show improvement in immune system functioning.