Bibliotherapy

Bibliotherapy is the considered use of literature to help improve mental health and wellbeing while developing or extending confidence and social skills in people across all age groups.

Bibliotherapy is not a book club.

People choosing Bibliotherapy services, or wanting to know more about what bibliotherapy is, come to a session willing to listen, think, and talk about their responses to the text read aloud by the group facilitator. Copies of each text is provided for participants.

For some people, their first responses or thoughts might not lead them to talking or joining in the discussion. Sometimes, people like to hear how others respond as this tests their thoughts with or against what they’re hearing before joining in at a later session. This thinking time is part of bibliotherapy’s confidence building and important for personal growth.

The bibliotherapy facilitator does not read a whole book to the group. Instead, a short section of text – less than a chapter – is read. Texts used in each bibliotherapy group session are always a surprise. This helps ensure that responses to the text are unprepared. Texts can range from Shakespeare, the classics, to possibly a recent or bestselling novel. Poetry is often part of a bibliotherapy session.

Using literature and poetry with seniors can reawaken experiences of childhood joy, happy days and beautiful places, as well as remembrances of friends and loved ones, or feelings of peace and being at one with the natural world.

In bibliotherapy, the words from literature and poetry are able to soothe, calm, help and support many people experiencing all sorts of challenging circumstances including anxiety, depression, social isolation, sadness and grief.

Nerelie travelled to The Reader in Calderstones Park, Liverpool, UK, to do the training as a Bibliotherapy Group Facilitator. She was thrilled when a passage from Alan Marshall’s Australian classic, ‘I can jump puddles’ was read aloud to the group of international students.  Nerelie has also completed a Diploma of Bibliotherapy Studies.