Charles Elin, LCSW

Poetry and Psychotherapy

It's not an odd relation.  A poem begins with a quiet mind, a place often descriptive of the treatment setting.  A writer waits for the words to come, without pulling from a a vast network of information.  The poet is not an expert in creating, but rather a recorder of rhythm, sounds, associations.  It's more of a passive act, respecting what comes his way.

In psychotherapy, each session is another beginning, and so it is with a piece of writing.   Growth comes when settled, when an urge takes form and moves on its own accord.     

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