Two Sylvias' Weekly Muse: May 7, 2023

Issue 54

Welcome to May, Writers and Poets!

Have you ever heard of the term, bibliotherapy? This word is a combination of biblion and therapeia (the Greek terms for book and healing) and is, as you may have guessed, a therapeutic approach of employing books to support a person’s mental and/or physical health. Though the books chosen for such an approach can be of any genre, the most common are memoir, fiction, and poetry.

Bibliotherapy can help us deal with anxiety, depression, or other mood disorders; struggles with trauma or addiction; or if we are going through grief, a divorce, or other relationship-related challenges. It is also a valued approach if we are in a situation where we are being bullied, or if we are suffering with issues having to do with self-image and self-esteem. Bibliotherapy is becoming a more common tool in the arena of medicine as it can help us in dealing with chronic physical illness and other ailments.

Although bibliotherapy can be part of an approach used by both psych…