USATODAY.com - You've got trauma, but writing can help

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You've got trauma, but writing can help

By Marilyn Elias, USA TODAY

Pouring your most painful traumas out on a computer screen can improve your

health, according to one of the first studies on how e-mail may influence

well-being.

Evidence has mounted in the past 15 years that writing in longhand about

traumas ‹ from rape to family deaths ‹ leads to better mental and physical

health. Now it looks as though laptop diaries or e-mails can work, too.

In the new study, 143 college students were randomly assigned to write

e-mails about either the most traumatic experiences of their lives or

neutral topics for 20 minutes a day on three consecutive days. They sent

their e-mails to psychologists at Texas A & M University and were guaranteed

anonymity. Then participants filled out weekly e-mail health surveys for

five weeks.

Even though college youths overall are a healthy bunch, significant

differences turned up between students who tackled traumatic topics and

those who wrote about unemotional issues. Those who wrote about painful

memories felt sick for four days during the period, compared with nearly six

days for classmates whose e-mails covered neutral themes. Those writing

about ordinary topics also missed more class than students asked to write

about traumas.

In past research using paper diaries, health benefits were strongest for

those who moved from " venting " to new insight and perspective, says

psychologist Brown, co-author of the new study with Brad Sheese. They

didn't check to see whether the same was true for e-mailers. But it probably

was, " since those who begin to use words like 'because,' 'understand' and

'realize' show signs of processing the trauma and letting go of the stress, "

Brown says.

" Just blowing off steam isn't sufficient, " emphasizes University of Texas

psychologist Pennebaker, whose studies were the first to show the

health benefits of writing about trauma. Improved immune function, lower

blood pressure and heart rate, even healthier liver enzymes (from less

drinking) have been found in those who committed terrible experiences to

paper " and got some perspective and growth from that, " Pennebaker says.

The e-mail findings " take this to a new level, since more people are doing

their writing on computer screens, " he says.

That doesn't mean e-mailing about traumas to just anyone will help, adds

Syracuse University psychologist Smyth, co-author of the new book The

Writing Cure (APA Books). Study participants received no replies. In real

life, " people do respond to e-mails, for better or worse ‹ and often I

suspect it's for the worse, " Smyth says. Also, disclosing terrible traumas

in an e-mail raises legitimate privacy concerns. So using the screen as a

private diary may be a better bet, he says.

In Smyth's paper-diary studies, rheumatoid arthritis patients had less pain

and better range of motion, and asthmatics improved lung function, after

writing about the most stressful events of their lives. " But there's nothing

magical about writing in longhand, " he says.

http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/07/01/email.htm