Treating Adoption Trauma with Writing Interventions

Adoptees have a higher likelihood of experiencing mental health symptoms and developing mental disorders due to adoption-related trauma. Writing interventions, specifically expressive and creative writing, both show some promise in alleviating the symptoms of mental disorders. However, little research has explored whether these writing interventions can be effective in helping adoptees heal and recover from adoption trauma and related mental issues. Guided by inductive and ethnographic research methods, this study investigated how writing can help adoptees recover from adoption-related trauma. By analysing three writing workbooks, this study animates the idea that writing can help adoptees connect deeply with themselves and reconstruct their life stories. A parallel autoethnographic investigation in the form of a novel written from the perspective of the researcher as an adoptee illustrates the firsthand experiences of adoption trauma. Ultimately, this study and the book substantiate a process of healing and recovery through narrative expression and creative writing.