The writer Joan Didion opines — “we tell ourselves stories in order to live”. When one is in the depths of a health crisis stories matter as a way to gain hope, healing, and understanding. Research has suggested that writing about our experiences, in the form of journaling, may be helpful in managing our stress and building resilience. In this episode of Raising Resilience, Pam Ressler speaks with author Faith Wilcox about hope and healing through journaling in pediatric intensive care units.
A longtime resident of greater Boston, Faith leads a journal writing program, Journals of Hope, at MassGeneral Hospital for Children for patients and their families designed to give participants the opportunity to express themselves, alleviate stress, celebrate victories, and honor their grief. As co-chair of MassGeneral Hospital for Children’s Family Advisory Council, she works with parents and medical staff to improve the lives of patients and their families.
Faith believes that self-expression through writing leads to healing. Her writing is reflective of a growing body of medical research about “narrative identity,” which illuminates that how we make sense of what happens to us and the meaning we give to experiences beyond our control directly impact our physical and psychological outcomes. Faith learned these truths firsthand when her thirteen-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, was diagnosed with a rare bone cancer that took her life. Faith’s journey from grief and despair to moments of comfort and peace taught her life-affirming lessons, which she shares today through her writing.
Faith is the author of Hope Is A Bright Star: A Mother’s Memoir of Love, Loss, and Learning to Live Again that will be published in June 2021. Faith is also the author of Facing Into The Wind: A Mother’s Healing After the Death of Her Child, a book of poetry.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Faith Fuller Wilcox