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Blogging As A Form Of Therapy
wellington writes "According to an AOL survey, blogs are more likely to deal with personal matters than politics or current events, and nearly 50% of bloggers see the activity as a form of therapy."
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Old school = Journal / Diary
Now = Blogs
Future = Video Blogs
Also a form of therapy?
I think it more or less comes down to the fact that if you are a decent writer with a somewhat interesting life, your blog, like any personal journal, will be good. If you are a crappy writer in the real world, you will be a crappy writer in the blogging world. (I refuse to use the term "Blogosphere").
If you have something to say, and an interesting way to say it, people will listen to what you have to say.
99% of blogs that I have read are poorly written, boring, and in a nutshell, sheer crap.
And All I Ask is a Tall Ship And a Star to Steer Her By
(I refuse to use the term "Blogosphere").
:P
You just did.
I do agree with you. I have thought about starting a blog (or even keeping a journal here or on paper in my desk), I never do, mostly because I can't stand to read my own writing (when on the topic of discussion). If I can't stnad to read it, then I'm not even going to expect anyone else to do so either.
Besides, therapy is what my shrink is for.
-nB
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I wouldn't say Therapy (big t) as much as venting. If something pisses you off, you can write about it, and maybe someone will comment on it and agree with you, which is always nice. Therapy is what you go to when you have a problem, while blogging is just blowing off some steam. Related but not the same.
There was a time when people used to sit around on the porch, in the living room (hence the term "living" room), the kitchen table, etc, and actually talk to each other deeply. I think we humans need that kind of thing. For some reason, that does not happen much in our modern culture. A lot of blogs are kind of an unconscious outreach for that kind of thing, I think. We used to freely give each other therapy on a daily basis - now you have to pay for it and it's seen as a sign of weakness. Blogs offer a sort of new and hip way around that cultural barrier. It is still no substitute for real, honest, caring human interaction - but sometimes it might be all that's available.
Hexy - a strategy game for iPhone/iPod Touch
At least that's what I've done. I run a couple of blogs, some openly associated with me, and some which I write in annonymity(sp?). The ones which are openly associated with me aren't the ones I'm too open in because -- well, I don't think my mom would much appreciate it if I was writing in my blog about that seriously hot japanese girl living in the appartment building across the street, if you get my drift.
The ones I write in annonymity I'm totally open on. Some -- err, most -- are thematic, written in novel form, for example, with characters which are either me, or aspects of me, or people I wish I was. These tend to be my way of becoming a better person than I am, some how. For example, when this whole Katrina thing was going down, I remember writing a story about a Cassandra-like character, in Louisiana, trying to warn people about what was going to happen. It was my way of getting a handle of what was going on. (I'm a news junkie, and after 168 hours worth of news -- well, you can feel pretty helpless. Fantasizing that I'm not -- or wasn't -- is my way of getting over that.) Other times, I've written stories about living in the mid 1940's, as myself, and having a conversation with a person from that time, telling then what history held for them. (Yeah, they're both thematically the same: someone who knows the future talking to someone who doesn't. I happen to like that theme.)
But why do I write it in a public forum? Maybe it's because I feel like I'm talking to someone about this, like I'm telling a story, or being open in how I feel, something I find difficulty in doing with people I'll have to see again and again. I think it's got more to do with the fact that I'm a showman. Been one my whole life, and I don't think I'd have it any other way. As such, I've tried diaries before, but -- no, Not the same. There's just something appealing about someone else reading what you've written, regardless of whether they like it, hate it, or don't care about it. (Of the three, I always hope for the first, of course.)
So blogging, as a form of therapy? Yeah, you could say so. The down side is that if you've been through something really traumatic, then writing about it will likely only embed it more deeply into your mind. I can see that causing longer term problems. Of course, by writing and living vicariously through your writings, so to speak, one could preserve their own little corner of blissful Earth -- in escence giving a sort-of life to some small level of insanity as an escape from an otherwise harsh world. In this world, where some willingly go full time just to find happyness, we can be who we want to be without limitations or challenges from the outside world. It's not quite insanity, but a rather gentle and temporary madmess.
In essence, I suppose then that blogging is a form of escapism for me, and probably -- likely -- many others. Although I'm well adjusted in my own life, it's nice to be able to escape not just the drudgery of everyday living, but your existence entirely, and become someone else for a little while, thereby transcending into something a bit more permanent, if not eternal. I guess it's nice to slip into some new skin once in a while. And blogging does that. (As a form of "therapy", of course.)
I find personal blogs that just constantly run on with someone's personal life to be the dullest reading
While that may be true for many blogs, you obviously haven't found the interesting personal ones. Let me tell you something - most fiction out there is just the same thing done in a different and interesting way. Hence, it it is the same with blogs; they may all talk about the same overall themes in their lives, but the good ones make it either more poignant, meaningful, or somehow universally applicable to the reader (and therefore create a connection). Some can do this through language, others through their particular point of view, but trust me, there are good personal blogs out there. One that I read is so entertaining on so many levels (literary, humorous, emotional) that it's almost overwhelming (and I also have a feeling that the person is actually a well established writer - it's been hinted at in his entries). The thing is, this blog is just an account of his day to day activities, none of which are significantly more interesting than your typical individual, yet it's written to be completely enthralling.
Most creative writing classes always say "know your audience". What I think makes this blog so interesting is that while he knows their is a potential audience out there, it's not pandered to. There are no silly quizzes, "memes" are avoided, and the usual personal blog garbage is not to be found. Or to put it another way, he knows his audience is him, and *maybe* some other readers. It makes for some interesting reading.
This shouldn't really come as a surprise. Writing or talking about your problems obviously works in a therapeutic way, The job of most therapeuts consists for 50% out of listening.
Even if one doesn't write about his own problems, but just rants about a random issue, it can work relieving. Creative Therapy has been recognized and encouraged for many years now.
The fact that writers 'know' that somebody is reading their blog, is interested in what they have to say, and that they actually mean something to one another, should prove helpfull too.
The real surprise is that 50% of the bloggers realises this. I'm assuming it does help the others too, to a certain degree.
Blogs are fine. At least you are not forced to read them. If you do go to someone else's website, it is through your own volition only. Blogging is fine. It's your fault if you subject yourself to someone else's misery online.
However, out of the clear blue, my Crohn's Disease came back from out of nowhere and I went from a leisurely vacation to a 5 day hospital stay complete with heavy helpings of shots, IVs and a naso-gastro tube up my nose and into my stomach.
Feeling miserable, I started up a blog just to chronicle all of this and joke around about some of these truly awful things that were happening to me. As it turns out, it's the most efficient way to share what's going on with the people who care about what's going on and I don't have to write/tell the same stories over and over again.
As it's taken a life of it's own, I've found that it's not only helping my friends and family understand what's going on, it's helping me work through everything as well.
And as for whether or not you agree or disagree with this, it really doesn't matter. A personal blog/site is just that...personal. No one asks anyone else to read these types of things unless the author is going out and setting up Adsense accounts and creating Technorati profiles. Furthermore, it is the individual's choice to read something or not...
Good point.
The problem with blogs is that they generally fall into one of two categories:
1. Well thought out and refreshing material whether it be code, commentary, or information unavailable anywhere else.
2. No unique content, just links to the first type of site.
It seems like pagerank would already eliminate the second type of blog so I don't see why its even an issue.
I would rephrase thusly: "If you are a crappy writer in the real world, you will be a less crappy writer in the blogging world."
I find that the fitful, occasional posts I make to my "blog" help me remember how to formulate my thoughts into coherent paragraphs instead of incoherent rantings. You can lose this skill otherwise, for example if you have a job where you work with poor communicators or where effective communication skills are not encouraged or rewarded.
No one reads my blog and I don't care, it's not really therapy as much as "writing practice".
Give a man a fish and you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and he'll say "WHERE'S MY FISH, YOU IDIOT?"
This must happen for search engines to be as easy and timeless as they have been in the past unless the novelty of blogging wears off, but who knows when that will happen.
So, say I'm searching for a local restaurant in Apple Valley, MN. I'm going to likely get a list of some (perhaps all) of them. It's going to include the address and telephone number perhaps and the name. Someone might go there and the food could just absolutely blow. They have just wasted their time and money on something that any number of people may have written about on a "blog".
I frequent plenty of local establishes (both chain and non) and write about my experiences on my website. The top three searches are for local restaurants:
1 17 3.78% divinci's pizza
2 15 3.33% carbone's pizza
3 15 3.33% longfellow grill minneapolis
Divinci's Pizza is one of those places that I warn people to ignore due to bad service. Carbone's in Lakeville (they are a local chain and have a couple restaurants around) is one of my favorites and I explain why -- their URL was nearly unfindable if you hadn't been to the restaurant itself and seen it advertised there). Longfellow Grill is another awesome spot that I have been to twice for breakfast and once for dinner. Perhaps they would have found Longfellow Grill's URL or any of the more "well known" restaurant review sites but I really feel that I have given something else out there.
So, if Google decides to throw out my entries and instead only shows them on blogsearch.google.com then what? Those people might not ever find out what a "regular guy" thinks about those places.
Boo.
People may find it cathartic to discuss some of their deepest feelings on their blog. But sometimes they seem to forget that the medium they are using to express these feelings is the Internet. Blogs may feel like on-line journals, but they are journals millions of people can read. Indeed most blogs are ignored, but you never know what will catch on.
Bloggers perhaps comfort themselves with the idea that this is an anonymous medium. But in general the anonymity is illusionary unless you have a hackers skill at hiding your tracks. And even then you have to be careful about posting recognizable detail. The criticism of your spouse or your boss may come back to haunt you. It has with many people.
When ever you post material on the Internet in an anonymous forum you should consider if you can live with it being connected back to you. If you might find this unpleasant, but not horrible, then perhaps it is worth the risk. But if you're blogging about your adventures with sex workers, drugs or the stupidity of your boss and management chain, then you may pay a price if you become known as the author.
Anyway, blogging every night when I got home was very relaxing. It helped me to put the day in perspective and look back to see her progress that was difficult to see hour by hour. It also had two unforeseen benefits: I have a nice detailed record of the first 3 months of my daughter's life, and we didn't have to answer the same difficult questions over and over from concerned family members. It's far from great literature, mostly just a factual account that a stranger would find boring, but for me and my family it is priceless.
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Hence why nobody reads them. I keep an online journal (blog if you must use the accursed word) mostly because I like shiny things (screwing around with PHP/MySQL), but I honestly don't expect anybody to read it except a few family members and friends. If I were some random guy wandering in off the larger internet, I know I'd think my site was almost as boring and unoriginal as reality TV. Unless you're someone interested in what's going on in iamlucky13's life, the only thing my site has going for it is the fact that it doesn't look like a blogger, livejournal, or myspace creation.
As for myself, I don't even find most non-personal blogs interesting, like you do. In general, the organization and delivery of content is much better from more established sources, like slashdot, NASA, ars technica, space.com, etc.