Monica, I'd like to join your group on writing about trauma. I'm new to SheWrites. I thought I had completed my memoir about a cancer journey, until I received my third diagnosis last year. I'll be updating the story before I submit it somewhere. I'm interested in meeting another writer who might be willing to read the book and give feedback on whether I should publish.

Hello everyone. I'm Lakeisha and I'm new to SheWrites. I've only written about my personal trauma through journaling. But, I'm ready to share my story with others. I'm here to learn how to express myself without fear.

Hi Monica! I just found SheWrites, and I'm excited to meet other writers. I write about trauma through poetry. It's strange how that came about for me. I was going through counseling and really reliving old trauma that I had filed away and didn't ever want to take out again. And the poems just started coming. My heart is to help others who are going through trauma express their difficult feelings or at least not feel completely alone in what they are going through. Healing happens when we know we are not alone, imo. For me, writing about the various trauma's I've gone through (spiritual abuse, physical abuse, and more recently, my son having cancer) is an outlet and a release for what's inside.

Hi Monica, I'm new to SheWrites so forgive me for leaping straight in here but this group caught my eye because of my background working in emergency medicine. I've been a Paramedic for close to 20 years and it's fair to say I've witnessed and experienced a fair amount of trauma, much of which fuels my writing currently. I've actually recently decided I want to write something quite meaty on the subject of mental health in emergency service workers. It is a massively taboo subject and yet awareness of it has become more prevalent in the last few years, particularly with the number of suicides in emergency service workers that now seem to be occurring. I myself have also had problems with depression, anxiety and PTSD as a result of "the job", which is probably why I find my interest in this subject piqued. Writing about this stuff is a new experience for me though and I find myself holding back a lot. I've also read plenty of great books which have inspired me (the recent 'This is Going to Hurt' by Adam Kay is an excellent example) but I find myself wanting to write something a little different. I just haven't figured out what yet. Anyway, I wanted to say hi because this subject definitely spoke to me so I figured it was a good place to start. Hi everyone!

Monica, I am very new to writing about my trauma and one thing I've experienced right off the bat is dealing with triggering. How do you put the writing down and step away from your laptop and then go on to have a normal day?

Monica, thanks for starting this group. Your writing focus sounds as if it could be draining. I'm writing only about my own trauma, so I haven't the experience of putting words around others' emotions. As for writing trauma, are you looking for ways to avoid triggering by the reader? triggering yourself? It would be nice to have clarity around what you're seeking in discussion. I look forward to hearing more. Warmest, Anne