Expressive Writing Intervention Study on the Post-traumatic Growth in Breast Cancer Patients

To explore the mechanism of the effect of expressive writing on the post-traumatic growth of breast cancer patients, and to provide evidence for the rehabilitation of cancer patients. A qualitative interview study was done among 15 young convalescent breast cancer patients who participated in expressive writing intervention in a tertiary A hospital in Guangdong Province, The interview focused on the psychological experience of post-traumatic growth in the process of expressive writing, while content analysis focuses on the content of expressive writing. The interview materials were sorted and analyzed using the Colaizzi 7-step analysis method, and the themes were organized. Results showed that Five themes were extracted from the psychological experience of the post-traumatic growth, including the personality change, the relationship change, the life change, the meaning of illness, the gratitude and dedication. The text content of breast cancer patients' expressive writing includes five dimensions: fact description, emotional expression, self affirmation, cognitive reappraisal, and meaning discovery. There were obvious post-traumatic growth in convalescent young breast cancer patients, while experiencing the negative events and negative psychology of illness. The potential therapeutic mechanism of expressive writing in breast cancer survivors includes five factors: fact description, emotional expression, self affirmation, cognitive reappraisal, and meaning discovery.