Poetry and story therapy : the healing power of creative expression / Geri Giebel Chavis.

Poetry and short stories can act as powerful springboards to growth, self-enhancement and healing. With the guidance of a facilitator, participants can engage with their own creative expression, and with that of others, and in doing so find opportunities to voice their truth, affirm their strengths and find new ways of coping with challenges.

Combining theory with a multitude of case examples and innovative ideas for practical, experiential activities, this book is a valuable introduction for creative arts therapy students and practitioners, mental health and medical professionals, and anyone else interested in the healing possibilities of creative expression. --Book Jacket.

London ; Philadelphia : Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2011.

256 pages ; 23 cm.

Introduction.; One. Poems: springboards to growth and healing -- 1. Poetry's special healing and inspirational role -- 2. Therapeutic features of poetry -- 3. Choosing therapeutic poems for your files -- 4. Selecting poems for specific participants and settings -- 5. Facilitating the poetry growth and healing experience; Two. Stories: stimuli for personal development and relationship building -- 6. The role and personal magic of stories -- 7. Therapeutic features of stories -- 8. Choosing therapeutic stories for your files -- 9. Selecting stories for specific participants and settings -- 10. Facilitating the story therapy experience; Three. Creative writing for life enhancement -- 11. The power of self-expression -- 12. Setting the atmosphere for writing -- 13. The therapeutic process of telling our stories -- 14. Developing personal waking and dream metaphors and symbols -- 15. Word play and creating with linguistic structures -- 16. Creatively working with objects -- 17. Nature writing and healing -- 18. Writing in response to visual stimuli -- 19. Writing in response to film -- 20. Melding art, music and movement with creative expression -- 21. The power of the group poem -- 22. Concluding remarks.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.