Healing Through the Page
Exploring the Mental Health Benefits of Fiction
Marianne has had an awful day.
It started with oversleeping, followed by a spat with her kid on the way to school. She forgot her deodorant, something she didn’t realize until her 10 am meeting with her boss. She also forgot her lunch, packed neatly and sitting forlornly on the kitchen counter. Forking out close to $20, she bought something at the nearby diner that tasted like it was cooked yesterday and reheated.
After work, Marianne banged her shin on the car door and walked into the house to find the cat had shredded the new chair cushion.
She’s more than looking forward to a long soak in a hot tub with a novel.
Whether it’s a blip in your week or a longer-term issue—like the death of a loved one or a pet—fiction can be an excellent way to de-stress and disconnect from the real world for a little while.
And we need that.
Americans: Stressed and Disconnected
The American Psychological Association (APA)’s “Stress in America” study in 2024 found that, “More than 7 in 10 adults said the future of the nation (77%) is a significant source of stress in their lives.”
Gallup reports that Americans are affected by loneliness at a rate of 1 in 5, with those lonely reporting this as a daily occurrence.
The Pew Research Center polled individuals from 24 countries. The poll asked survey respondents how close they felt to their countrymen and/or community members.
The United States fell dead last when it came to a sense of solidarity with countrymen: Only 66 percent of Americans said that they feel close to others in their country, while the median for all the countries surveyed was 83 percent. ~ Walker Larsen, Intellectual Takeout
The Need for Healing
This isn’t meant to be a polarizing article. Instead, let’s look at things most of us can agree on.
Many Americans are stressed and hurting
Lots of people—from all generations and backgrounds—are lonely
We feel distant from others, which causes more distance
Life can often feel overwhelming/too busy/like it’s hard to keep up
Relationships are fractured in many cases, strained in others
Social media often causes divisiveness
People feel they don’t have anyone to talk to
Are any of these stressors familiar to you?
If so, what can you do about it? While things like good self-care, healthy relationships, and even therapy might be part of the answer, the other part, I believe, is good old-fashioned stories.
The Power of Fiction
Stories have been around since the dawn of time. Cavepeople drew their stories on the walls of their homes. Our ancestors told stories around their fires that their great-grandparents had taught them. Jesus often taught in parables and stories.
Some stories powerfully communicate truth. Fiction can break down barriers and lift someone at the same time. Short stories and novels can build a connection between two perfect strangers—reader and author—as the reader marvels at how seen, heard, and understood they feel . . . . by fictionalized characters.
Therapists sometimes assign books—nonfiction and fiction—to their clients as part of bibliotherapy, a specialized type of counseling. The “prescribed” book might be intended to help someone feel less alone in their struggle, or might offer a different viewpoint and encourage empathy for others.
It might help them to identify that, like a certain character, they, too, are using anger, negativity, or learned helplessness in their own lives. Narrative therapy also offers a “storylike” feel to therapy, putting the client in the driver’s seat of their own story.
These books don’t need to be powerfully deep, either. While reading things like Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl or Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, are likely to be powerful and thought-provoking experiences, “fluffier” books work, too. Stories that, on the surface, do little more than entertain, engage our imagination, and give us a reprieve, temporarily, from the struggles of life.
If you’ve ever had a bad day like poor Marianne, you know that even a short amount of time with a good book can make things feel better.
But What’s Healing About Reading Fiction?
Reading fiction can:
reduce stress
increase empathy
help you think more creatively
improve your memory
help you think more critically
encourage better sleep
And those are only several of the many benefits of reading fiction.
A lot of research has been done on bibliotherapy. . . It has been shown to help with numerous issues including anxiety, depression, substance use/addiction, relationship issues, eating disorders, isolation, grief & loss, trauma, stress, anger management, rejection, and more.
~Dr. Inverpal Braich, Integrated Psychology
“I don’t have time to read.”
Some people don’t have a solid half hour, hour, or afternoon to delve into a book. But according to one study, reading for as few as six minutes each day can reduce one’s stress levels by 60 percent. It can help lower our heart rate, reduce muscle tension, and help us move into a more relaxed frame of mind.
With all the benefits of reading fiction, isn’t today the perfect time to crack open a new or favorite book and spend a few minutes in its pages?
J.P. Choquette reads in front of a cozy fire in the winter and on the front porch in the summer. She believes that a tea or coffee in hand only adds to the enjoyment of reading. You can find J.P.’s books on Amazon, at many independent book stores, and on her website.
Great post. It’s amazing how much taking a walk and diving into a good book can make you feel better.