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Writing protects against the effects of stress
August 23, 2004Writing about traumatic events has been found to protect against the negative effects of laboratory stress in individuals who are normally unable to express their emotions.
These are the findings presented today, Thursday 9 September 2004, by Dr Daryl O'Connor and colleagues from the University of Leeds, at the British Psychological Society's Division of Health Psychology Annual Conference, hosted by Queen Margaret University College and taking place at Pollock Halls in Edinburgh
Research by psychologists has previously found that disclosure of traumatic experiences can improve mood, boost immune function and improve well-being in clinical samples.
In this study, half the participants were instructed to write on three consecutive days about a traumatic, stressful event and half acted as a control group wrote about a non-stressful event. At the beginning of the study, the extent to which the participants normally express their emotions was assessed. Two weeks later the participants were 'stressed out' in the laboratory and their blood pressure, heart rate and psychological distress levels were subsequently measured.
The results showed that the participants who do not normally express their emotions and who wrote about a traumatic event had lower blood pressure levels in response to laboratory stress compared to those who did not write about a traumatic event.
They also found that increased levels of psychological distress were associated with writing about traumatic events in individuals who are normally unable to express their emotions.
Dr O'Connor said: "These findings are very interesting as they suggest that in individuals who do not normally express their emotions, writing about traumatic events may have beneficial effects for how they cope and react to stress. Although further research is required before firm conclusions can be made."
British Psychological Society (BPS)
In this study, half the participants were instructed to write on three consecutive days about a traumatic, stressful event and half acted as a control group wrote about a non-stressful event. At the beginning of the study, the extent to which the participants normally express their emotions was assessed. Two weeks later the participants were 'stressed out' in the laboratory and their blood pressure, heart rate and psychological distress levels were subsequently measured.
The results showed that the participants who do not normally express their emotions and who wrote about a traumatic event had lower blood pressure levels in response to laboratory stress compared to those who did not write about a traumatic event.
They also found that increased levels of psychological distress were associated with writing about traumatic events in individuals who are normally unable to express their emotions.
Dr O'Connor said: "These findings are very interesting as they suggest that in individuals who do not normally express their emotions, writing about traumatic events may have beneficial effects for how they cope and react to stress. Although further research is required before firm conclusions can be made."
British Psychological Society (BPS)
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