Making Amends / Asking Forgiveness

Writing can be a critical step in an individual’s recovery from physical illness, mental trauma or substance abuse. The first aspect of therapeutic writing is having the individual identify and articulate their own feelings: fear, anger, disappointment, anxiety, despair, confusion, and frustration are all common and valid feelings a person experiences. Writing about all these feelings can assist someone in healing and committing to the necessary treatment plan or steps on the road to recovery.

The second aspect of therapeutic writing is related to conflict resolution and strengthening past, current and future relationships. A commonly used technique in recovery from alcohol or substance abuse is to have the individual ask forgiveness or make amends for wrongs they have done in the past. Writing is a useful vehicle in tackling this challenge. Sometimes a person has been shut out because they have hurt someone badly. They may be able to communicate via a letter, or in some cases, the receiver does not accept the letter, but the individual has at least gone through the process of taking responsibility for their actions and asking for forgiveness on paper. The psychological benefits build from there as the person tackles living a better life in the future.

Creative Outlet (journaling / poetry)

A popular form of personal writing is journaling. Generally not meant for other people’s eyes, journals produce benefits that are almost 100% psychological. The act of journaling counteracts daily stress and is a useful tool to learn more about yourself and to clarify your life’s goals. Disorganized in your thinking? Not sure how you feel? Regular journal entries help you to work through everything that is going on in your life and those around you. As you put these thoughts to paper, you are working through these problems in your mind and subtly figuring out how to solve them.

Journaling also has a lighter side and can be used for the sake of creativity alone. Activities such as journal and poetry writing have been shown to improve mental function and stimulate creative thinking for people of all ages, children through senior adults. The process of writing can enable any individual to become a better communicator at home and in the workplace, for all of the reasons above and more. Creativity begets new ideas and new ways of doing things. It can be producing a piece of art for the pleasure of others. With writing, anything is possible.

Think of writing as nourishment for your brain. While writing cannot possibly solve all of your problems tomorrow, with some discipline and a regular schedule, gradually you will begin to see improvements in some areas of your life such as mood and mental health. Chances are your physical health will improve as well. As you make decisions, define priorities, strengthen relationships, and generate new ideas, the transformation you will achieve may surprise you.

Exercise your mind as you would exercise your body. The act of writing is to your brain like walking on the treadmill is to your body. The more regularly you do it, the more benefits you receive. Schedule time for exercise every day, or every other day as time allows and your body will begin to work better, feel better, and look better. The same is true for scheduled writing time. Done regularly, writing produces multiple psychological benefits such as improved decision making, strengthened relationships, and reduced stress in your daily life.

Decision Making (pros and cons)

One of the first benefits to putting your thoughts on paper is discovering clarity. Seeing the words in writing makes them real and solvable. This technique is particularly useful when it comes to making a tough decision. How many times have you heard the advice to fold a piece of paper in half vertically and write all the pros of the decision on one side and all the cons on the other? We know this advice but rarely do people follow it. The act of writing helps you to weigh risks and benefits of decisions, and hopefully leads to making better ones.

Even if you do not have a life-changing decision to make, writing is a beneficial tool to simplify your life and stay organized. To-do lists are a prime example of this type of writing. The greatest benefit of all is the psychological boost you get when you cross an item off your list! Writing helps you to remember important appointments and events, benefiting you and your family in being where you need to be on time. Feeling overscheduled as a family? Try writing down everyone’s activities and then ranking them, giving each member at least two or three activities they get to keep; have each person rank their remaining priorities and get rid of the ones that are not necessary or less important.

• Earth Child / Eco-Chic
  If you live for a cause and that cause is saving the planet, do not think you cannot respect the earth and use stationery at the same time. Today’s stationers offer more choices than ever of recycled papers and earth-friendly, soy-based inks. Some papers have partial recycled content while others utilize 100% post-consumer waste. Select natural fiber, unbleached paper for a chemical free alternative. Another way to achieve ecological balance is by choosing a supplier close to your home or who is certified as a carbon-neutral enterprise. (See our Eco-Friendly Stationery)
• A Formal Affair
  Have you always dreamed of growing up to be Emily Post? Showcase your excellent etiquette with formal personalized stationery. Formal designs include monogrammed style with three scripted initials standing as the only personalization on your stationery, as well as fine embossing, foil engraving, or raised ink styles. A nice finishing touch to your formal communication is a real wax seal. You can use a seal with an iconic symbol such as a flower or trefoil, or make it ultra personal with a family shield or custom initial design. If you are not quite ready for the hot wax gun, a personalized gold or silver foil sticker will serve as very nice substitute for the wax seal.
• Glamour Girl
  Dreaming of the glamorous life? Go glam’ with fun and girly personalized stationery designs. Choose designs depicting Hollywood-style sunglasses and hats, or how about a pretty pooch design? Any combination of black and pink or pink and leopard print makes a glamorous statement. Think Elle Woods from "Legally Blonde". A modern twist on the glamorous style is the use of large floral designs in bold and bright colors such as fuchsia, chartreuse, turquoise and chocolate. These floral designs can be accented with a personal or pet caricature or fashion accessories
• Hopeless Romantic
  Not to be overlooked is the Romeo-and-Juliet hopeless romantic. If you think about rose petals, flowing ribbons and flying doves when you think about writing stationery, then this is probably your type. Romantic choices include foil hearts motifs, soft pastel floral patterns, embossed flowers, watercolor landscapes and romantic "couples" portraits. A nice alternative to consider is finishing off your personalized stationery with a satin ribbon or lace bow. Consider a scripted or calligraphy-style text for your personalization.

The variety of statements you can make with your own personalized stationery goes on and on. Remember, your actions speak louder than words! Let your paper and envelopes do some talking as well. Make sure they are saying saying what you want them to say about you. Select a style that speaks to your own personal image.

The age of texting and email has not killed off the ancient art of handwriting. In fact, sending good, old-fashioned personal notes is becoming more popular than ever. With so much of our communications being electronic, people are recognizing the human-touch value of a solid piece of paper in handwritten ink. But do not think writing a note has to look old fashioned. We are not talking about your grandmother’s stationery. You can find a wide assortment of customized and personalized stationery that will make a statement all about you.

If you have not shopped for stationery in a while it is alright.  Over the next couple days, we will list of some of the different personalities you can express with your own personalized stationery.

• The Adventurer 
  There are many stationery styles for the globetrotting adventurer. Some papers incorporate classic geometric designs of traditional cultures such as a Moroccan tile motif or Swiss floral design. Other choices include tropical hibiscus patterns or safari animal prints in non-traditional colors such as fuchsia or hot lime green. A new trend in stationery with a more casual personality is cards with a stick figure or cartoon person that can be customized to your choice of hair and skin colors. Choose a design showing your character in action — taming a lion, climbing a mountain, or smoothly sailing on the French Riviera. 
• Bold and Fearless
  Bold is big theme for the new millennium generation. Paper choices range from very plain where you let a dark, bold color border speak for itself to ornate, large wallpaper-type patterns printed in rich dark navy, deep purple, espresso brown, hot pink, chartreuse green, and even a classic true red. These patterns tend to work best in a neutral- and one-color combination but you do not have to limit yourself to one color. Some personalized stationery sets come in a combination of one design repeated in a palette of four or five colors, or alternatively some designs are now using two or even three colors combined on the same card for a fearless look sure to make statement. (see Hand Bordered Stationery) 
• Classic Cool
  If you’re the type who speaks few words but each word is important, you may choose a classic design where the paper takes backstage to the words printed on it. Classic designs often feature subtle borders and initials embossed on thick, textured paper in cool tones such as pastel blue or soft ecru. Looking for classic but modern sophistication? Why not try a bright white paper stock with just your name printed in an ink of your choice — you cannot get any more classic than basic black, but if you want a bit more personalization olive green or pumpkin orange are some of the popular accent colors for today’s classic designs.
• Designer Diva
  Fashion encompasses more than just clothing and shoes. Think of your personalized stationery as an extension of your own wardrobe accessories. Channel your inner diva with a Hollywood-themed design, or select a pattern with stars and confetti. Another big trend in designer stationery is hand-drawn or painted hats, shoes or shopping bags expressing what you are all about. Alternatively, draw from the new trends in the real fashion and accessories world with throw-back preppy Delightful Dots Cards.