Findings from Year One of the Caregiver Project- 
Illuminating and Easing the Human Dimensions of Caregiving Through Facilitated Writing Workshops

 
 

The Caregiver Project: Illuminating and Easing the Human Dimensions of Caregiving Through Facilitated Writing Workshops

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How to Cite This

Simmerling, M., Wingert, S., Bayer, D., Cunningham, G., Diodati, F., Hanson, C., Reynolds, S., & Jones, M. (2023, October 27-28). The Caregiver Project: Illuminating and easing the human dimensions of caregiving through facilitated writing workshops [Poster presentation]. 35th Annual MacLean Center Conference, Chicago, IL, USA.

Abstract

Approximately 25% of Canadians and Americans provide care to a family member or friend.[1, 2] There are over 1.5 million healthcare workers in Canada[4] and 14.7 million in the US.[5] Feeling tired, depressed, worried or anxious, overwhelmed, isolated, burnt out, and/or being sleep deprived are widely reported. [1-3,6,8] The Caregiver Project was led by a committee of nine Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA)-certified writing workshop facilitators. Between March and June 2023, 13 Zoom workshops (2 hours in duration) were held using the AWA method of writing to a prompt, then reading the just written piece and receiving positive feedback in a small group. Data come from voluntary pre-and post-workshop evaluations (N = 66 and 68), respectively. The results show self-care and stress release, an outlet for creativity and self-expression, sharing the experience of being a caregiver, and social support to be the most common reasons for attending. Participants describe caregiving as both challenging and meaningful with tiring or exhausting, stressful, and overwhelming being frequently used. Participants rated all aspects of the workshop highly and no negative outcomes were disclosed. Analysis of qualitative responses identified themes related to feelings of belonging and community, validation of experiences, the opportunity to process difficult emotions, and stress release. While preliminary, our findings contrast other studies of expressive writing with caregivers, which have found both positive and negative outcomes. [10-15] Differences between the method pioneered by Pennebaker and the AWA method offer potential explanations related to the latter’s emphasis on the writer choosing the direction of their writing, sharing writing in a supportive group, and trauma-informed facilitation. Future research directly comparing the methods is needed.

References

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Caregiving for family and friends—A public health issue. 2019; Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/aging/caregiving/caregiver-brief.html
  2. Statistics Canada, Providing care in Canada, 2022. 2023. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/11-627-M2023004
  3. Canadian Psychological Association, “Psychology Works” fact sheet: Caregiver stress. 2022. Available from: https://cpa.ca/psychology-works-fact-sheet-caregiver-stress/#:~:text=Ask%20for%20and%20accept%20help,people%20are%20involved%20in%20caregiving
  4. Canadian Institute for Health Information, Health workforce in Canada, 2017 to 2021: Overview—Data tables. 2022; Available from: https://www.cihi.ca/sites/default/files/document/health-workforce-canada-2017-2021-overview-data-tables-en.xlsx
  5. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Healthcare occupations: Characteristics of the employed. 2023. Available from: https://www.bls.gov/spotlight/2023/healthcare-occupations-in-2022/home.htm
  6. Murthy, V.H., Confronting health worker burnout and well-being. The New England Journal of Medicine, 2022. 387: p. 577-579. doi: 10.1056/NEJMp2207252
  7. Statistics Canada, More than half of women in Canada are caregivers. 2023.
  8. Hajek, A., B. Kretzler, and H.H. König, Informal caregiving, loneliness and social isolation: A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Researc and Public Health, 2021. 18(22). DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182212101
  9. Pennebaker, J.W., Writing about emotional experiences as a therapeutic process. Psychological Science, 1997. 8(3): p. 162-166. Available from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40063169?origin=JSTOR-pdf
  10. Mackenzie, C.S., et al., Does expressive writing reduce stress and improve health for family caregivers of older adults? The Gerontologist, 2007. 47(3): p. 296-306. doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/47.3.296
  11. Leung, Y.W., et al., Cocreating meaning through expressive writing and reading for cancer caregivers. Journal of Palliative Care, 2019. 38(3): p. 307-315 0825859719871538. doi: 10.1177/0825859719871538
  12. Mackenzie, C.S., et al., Seeing the glass half full: Optimistic expressive writing improves mental health among chronically stressed caregivers. British Journal of Health Psychology, 2008. 13(1): p. 73-76. doi: 10.1348/135910707X251153
  13. Cash, T.V. and S.K. Lageman, Randomized controlled expressive writing pilot in individuals with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers. BMC Psychology, 2015. 3(1): p. 44. doi: 10.1186/s40359-015-0101-4
  14. Harvey, J.A., V. Manusov, and E.A. Sanders, Improving cancer caregivers’ emotion regulation and supportive message characteristics: Results of a randomized controlled expressive writing intervention. Communication Monographs, 2019. 86(1): p. 1-22. 10.1080/03637751.2018.1521983
  15. Sexton, J.D., et al., Care for the caregiver: Benefits of expressive writing for nurses in the United States. Progress in Palliative Care, 2009. 17(6): p. 307-312.
  16. DeMarco, R.F., S.J. Roberts, and G.E. Chandler, The use of a writing group to enhance voice and connection among staff nurses. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development, 2005. 21(3): p. 85-90. 10.1179/096992609X12455871937620
  17. Chandler, G., S.J. Roberts, and R.F. DeMarco, Chapter 21: Developing nursing voice through writing in a group. Annual Review of Nursing Education, 2005. 3: p. 359-374.

 

 

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