Blog — bibliotherapy

April is National Poetry Month and naturally a great time to explore the immense therapeutic powers of poetry. Reading and writing poetry both engage our senses along with our emotions, making the art form experiential and hugely effective in connecting with our minds. Both writing and reading poetry, through their expression of feelings and words have highly therapeutic effects on the mind. The structure of a poem favours brevity yet the best poems also capture succinct detail, making them incredibly powerful in getting a message across to the reader. Writing poetry requires the poet to be extremely disciplined with his...

Throughout my 35 years’ of life, I have always relied on a book for some friendly comfort and non-judgemental advice. I can remember from my toddler years, I’d never leave a book store without throwing a tantrum — my parents had to buy me a brand new book to take home and discover. I would read at every opportunity — at my nan’s home, in the car, on restaurant tables or out in the garden in our family home in Nairobi. My passion for reading and my love of books sprouted a real interest in the personal development space (including psychodynamic psychotherapy, counselling and...

This blog is dedicated to our loyal clients and readers, who have supported us on our little journey to spread our love of books; and how they can lift you from difficult moments. Yes they truly can give you wings 😊 Jenny Stone: I have been reading books for years and never realised that I was self-dispensing therapy. Whenever I can empathise with a narrative it influences my mood, my mind, my emotions. Ironically I feel understood. It eases my mind and relaxes me, even if I don't have a solution straightaway. I love all of Bijal's book prescriptions - she just...

Best for book serendipity in a world where we are overwhelmed with books. Bibliotherapists or book therapists are experts on books. There are so many books, many of which we may never know about were it not for someone who has read extensively and is aware of what book is the most relevant for your particular needs at a given point in time: the magic of the right book at the right time. In that respect a book therapist can be life-changing and in a world where we are all fighting for time, it might just be the best investment...

Self-awareness, empathy and mental well-being Reading is more than just voraciously devouring words as we hurriedly rush through the chapters of an engaging J K Rowling book for example. It is the connection that we feel with the characters, the identification with those characters, the sense of comfort and the feeling of being understood.  A 2011 study published in the Annual Review of Psychology confirmed that when people read about an experience the same part of the brain lights up as having experienced it themselves. This suggests that people who read a lot, tend to empathise better with others, and are able...