Dear John: Letter Writing as a Narrative Therapy Intervention

Abstract Letter writing has been shown to be an effective intervention for individuals when navigating complex emotions, such as grief, guilt, or loss or shame. In navigating a romantic relationship, letter writing can be an effective tool to express one’s feelings in a healthy and productive manner. It is important that the individual understands the outline of writing and sending a letter, in order to clearly articulate their thoughts to the individual that they are in a romantic relationship with. An underlying humanistic counseling approach lays the framework for considering the whole person with an emphasis on strengths. Through narrative therapy, one is able to rewrite their own story and conceptualize alternative endings. Applying letter writing to couples as well as rules, procedures, and an example of a letter is included to demonstrate the potential efficacy of this intervention. Covid implications and future research directions are provided.