Poems That Heal

Poems That Heal seeks brief, thoughtful essays examining the therapeutic value of individual poems. If you would like to write for us, please follow these guidelines: Each post should be in the 500-750-word range, approximately. Please focus on a single poem. Identify the poem by title and author. If possible, insert a link to the text of the poem. Take care to properly acknowledge sources of poems and any other materials. The poem should be previously published, and it should not have been written by the author of the post. In our best posts, the writers have a clear grasp of the uses and benefits of poetic therapy. Writers also have a clear grasp of terms such as inspiration and empowerment. It is up to the writer whether or not to discuss their own personal life. Doing so is neither required nor forbidden. In any case, it should be clear what kind of person the poem would be most therapeutic for. Please make an effort to craft a well organized blog post. It does not have t...

The idea that reading is therapeutic goes back many centuries. Over the entrance of the library in ancient Thebes was the inscription, "The Healing-Place of the Soul." The notion persists today, as we subscribe to the value of reading to children and the infirm. Many social workers, psychotherapists, and counselors share literature with their clients. The formal use of literature in clinical practice is known as bibliotherapy. Poetic therapy is a form of bibliotherapy in which the counselor uses poetry with their clients. This site is dedicated to the idea that poems can be comforting, inspiring, or even empowering, and as such they can be therapeutic for readers. Our purpose is to spotlight individual poems that may be therapeutic for readers in certain circumstances. Contributors to the blog are not therapists themselves, but each writer offers a personal, heartfelt appreciation of the potential therapeutic value of a poem.