Maria João Figueiras (**)
Dália Marcelino (**)
RESUMO
O presente artigo apresenta uma breve revisão sobre o paradigma da escrita terapêutica e a sua aplicação em contextos relacionados com a saúde. Refere ainda a importância dos aspectos cognitovos e emocionais para dar sentido às experiências vividas através da expressão escrita, salientando benefícios ou eventuais dificuldades sobre a utilização deste recurso. Esta revisão incide ainda sobre a forma como usamos as palavras na expressão escrita e como estas podem traduzir informação importante sobre o indivíduo, ou marcar a diferença entre temas considerados banais e temas significativos. Inclui também uma referência sobre a forma como a partilha social das emoções pode contribuir para a construção de uma memória sobre as experiências significativas, assim como a transformação dessas emoções em linguagem escrita pode promover o processamento mental com o objectivo de encontrar um significativo para o evento. A utilização da expressão escrita como uma ferramenta terapêutica pode ter grande potencial de utilização em contextos de saúde pode ser uma forma de auto-ajuda, quando usada só ou em conjunto com outras técnicas terapêuticas.
Palavras-chave: Escrita terapêutica, expressão escrita, partilha social, emoções.
ABSTRACT
]]> This article includes a brief revision of the expressive writing paradigm and its application in health settings. It also refers the relevance of the cognitive and emotional factors for making sense of life experiences through the use of expressive writing, highlighting the benefits or difficulties concerning its use. The way in which we use the words in expressive writing gives important information concerning the individual and it is also an important aspect to differentiate between significant and usual themes. The social sharing of emotions can also contribute to build memories concerning significant events. Moreover, the expressive writing of these emotions can promote cognitive processing in order to make sense of the event. Using the expressive writing as a therapeutic tool in health contexts, either as self-help, or in combination with other techniques can have an important contribution for health outcomes.Key words: Expressive writing, social sharing, emotion.
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]]> (*) Agradecimentos: Queremos agradecer aos indivíduos que contribuíram com os seus relatos para este trabalho. Os textos foram transcritos exactamente como os originais, incluindo a sua pontuação e eventuais incorrecções ortográficas. Alguns excertos dos textos foram omitidos, no sentido de não permitir a identificação de pessoas ou locais.
(**) Unidade de Investigação em Psicologia Clínica e da Saúde, Instituto Piaget, ISEIT, Almada. E-mail: mfigueiras@almada.ipiaget.org
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