Can Reading Fiction Help You Overcome Life’s Problems?
Novels influence our feelings more than you think
When I was young, I found an old book of Fairytales left behind in a motel room where our family vacationed. Another girl’s name was scribbled on the inside cover. The pages in the large, illustrated book were worn and smudged. Some pages were ripped and had scotch tape holding the stories together. My mother told me I could keep it if the girl didn’t come back for it.
I wished she wouldn’t come back.
She didn’t.
It was my favorite book even though I couldn’t read it yet. Every night I asked my mom for a new fairytale, picking it out from the pictures.
1958 THE FAIRY TALE BOOK Adrienne Segur Marie Ponsot Deluxe Golden Book, Thumbelina illustration
I loved the pictures as much as the stories.
Some were scary, especially the ones with wolves – but others intrigued me. The little girls in the stories often looked sad and lost, especially Thumbelina. I worried about her. She was so small, the birds and other animals so large.
Through Adrienne Segur illustrations I entered a new world.. I became Thumbelina or The Frog Princess .The stories sometimes were secondary to my imagination.
Safe in my bed I explored my feelings as I heard about Thumbelina. Would she find kindness even though she is small? Can she make friends?
I too felt little in my world, uncertain if I would find friends.
I still have that book, scotch tape now yellow and brittle on some pages. Whenever I look at it, I’m transported back in time and feel childlike emotions resurfacing – including the same uncertainty of finding new friends.
Perhaps you had a book when you were growing up that you still remember today.
Try this – Choose a book you loved when you were young:
Ask yourself how that book made you feel? List three or more emotions.
What was it about that book that made it so special?
● Was it the pictures that drew you in and held your attention?
● Did it take you someplace new?
● Perhaps you solved a problem by identifying with a character like Thumbelina.
● Did it help you understand your feelings about the world around you?
● Perhaps a scary wolf was defeated which made you safe.
Children’s books are a great example of what can be used to help young people explore their feelings. But it’s not just children who can benefit – it’s also adults.
Today the use of books to cope with emotions and overcome problems is known as Book Therapy or Bibliotherapy
In the summer of 1966 during grade school years I read several novels that left lasting impressions on me:
- Like Jo in Little Women, I decided to be a writer and an independent woman.
- Scout, in To Kill a Mockingbird, gave me courage and a sense of right from wrong.
- A Tree Grows in Brooklyn helped me understand my family and the lack of money we sometimes had.
Looking back as an adult I can see these books played a crucial part in molding me into who I am today.
The concept of reading fiction to solve some of our life’s challenges has been around for a long time. But recently it has grown in popularity. Books can be a way to supplement other forms of therapy or used for self-directed exploration into your thoughts and feelings.
A brief history of Bibliotherapy
The Ancient Greeks considered books a window into our lives. Aristotle’s literature was believed at the time to be a source of healing. In Ancient Egypt, King Ramses II built a library called “House of Healing for the Soul”.
At the start of the nineteenth century, physicians began using books in earnest to treat patients, hoping to reduce their suffering. Novels were also used during the first two World Wars as a means of helping soldiers deal with stress and PTSD.
Image from Books For Victory website
There’s scientific proof
“Stanford University researchers have found that close literary reading in particular gives your brain a workout in multiple complex cognitive functions, while pleasure reading increases blood flow to different areas of the brain…..Whether reading or experiencing it, the same neurological regions are stimulated.”
Is a character in your book peeling an apple? The olfactory region for smell in your brain is activated. Is your character trying to solve a problem? Your frontal cortex is activated moving the anxiety in your amygdala to problem solving.
In his book, Wonderworks, Angus Fletcher, a neuroscientist with degrees also in literature, describes how the brain functions when reading:
“… literature’s inventions can plug into different regions of our brain – the emotion of our amygdala, the imagination hubs of our default mode network, the spiritual nodes of our parietal
lobe, the heart softeners of our empathy system…pathways of our visual cortex – to alleviate depression, reduce anxiety, sharpen intelligence, increase mental energy, kindle creativity, inspire confidence and enrich our days with myriad other psychological benefits.
Research has shown bibliotherapy could have a positive impact on:
Feeling overwhelmed, lonely, or anxious in life?
Perhaps your relationships are falling apart, you’re struggling with your own self-worth, or grieving the death of a loved one.
The good news is that Book Therapy can be done any time and in your own home.
Reading a novel is available to everyone and can be a cost-effective way to explore your own emotions. For example you can go to the library, borrow a book from a neighbor, or find a little lending library in your community. There’s also an online ebook resource with free books at Project Gutenberg.
The simple act of reading stories opens doors that help you explore dilemmas that may be similar in your own lives, especially if we form an emotional connection with characters and situations, enabling us to see others in similar circumstances.
Reading is something I believe can make a difference in your life. There are several ways I can help you get the most out of what you read.
To get started, download a free copy of my reading journal here.
I’d love to accompany you on your personal Bibliotherapy journey!
