Expressing yourself 

We can express our emotions in many different ways: painting, listening to music, or making crafts.

Some people find that writing a daily diary helps reduce their anxiety. Expressive writing can put some structure to your anxious feelings.¹ What you choose to write should be important to you.

Writing about stressful experiences has been shown to help people with rheumatoid arthritis or asthma to manage their symptoms.¹ So writing about your own stressful situations with scleroderma might also help you feel better.

The biggest benefits seem to be in people who focus on the cause and meaning of stressful events when writing in their diary.²

Try including these phrases:

"I feel like this because.../This happened because..."

"I realise now that.../This has made me understand that..."

You might feel a bit emotional at first after turning your thoughts into written text, but this feeling should fade shortly afterwards. If writing down your thoughts triggers an extremely emotional response and you find yourself getting very upset, don’t push yourself to complete a diary entry. Do consider mentioning this to your doctor in your next appointment, so that they can provide alternative solutions to managing your emotional health and wellbeing.