Neo-Victorian Poetry
  • Steampunk Poems
  • Romantic Poems
  • Christian Poems
  • Other Poems
  • Blog
  • Home

Oh heavens!  Is it ... Stage Fright?

5/6/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
Renée Fleming, an acclaimed American opera singer once said, "I have had a very difficult time with stage fright; it undermines your well-being and peace of mind, and it can also threaten your livelihood."  I wonder: can this poet have a fear of ... writing?

Actually, yes.  According to phobiasource.com, it is called Graphophobia which is, in part, an overwhelming and irrational fear of writing, wherein "sufferers may doubt their ability to write well." ...  especially when writing to the public.  Wikipedia.

For the past several months, I have tensed up each time I've tried to compose a new post for this blog, and the longer I put it off, the more anxious I become.  It truly feels a great deal like stage fright. 

Now, writer's block I understand, having experienced that many times, but this is something quite different from merely not knowing what to write about or how to proceed with a piece I'm working on.  

No, this is more of an impedance to even beginning the writing process.  I have many ideas to write about, and I keep notes on possible topics to peruse against the dry times.  That is not this.  


The symptoms of a Graphophobic vary, "but when confronted with fear, 'sufferers' tend to perspire, become anxious, become nauseated, and may display other symptoms of anxiety."  Wikipedia

My symptoms aren't quite so intense; I simply freeze up, and soon abandon the whole idea of writing in favor of almost any other activity ... hence these occasional gaps in my blog postings.  


So far, I've found no data on the number of sufferers, but the causes also vary, being specific to the affected individual.  However, I did stumble upon some avenues of treatment that may show promise.

Among these are:

Psychotherapy, or "talk therapy," with a licensed Psychotherapist.  

Finding and interacting with a support group.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy, to solve current problems and change unhealthy behavior.

Relaxation techniques, to help with stress management.

Fortunately for me, my husband proposed that I try to write about my troubles with this blog and see if anything helpful surfaces.  Well,  writing for myself is not at all like writing a blog for others to read.
 
His suggested therapy worked!  I had forgotten what a wonderful therapy writing truly is.  And, now I have yet another blog entry to post.  Hopefully there'll be no more Writer's Stage Fright here!





Image: www.theguardian.com
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    About the author:

    I've written many poems over the years.  This blog is a preview of my books: Echoes, Neo-Victorian Poetry (April 2013), Echoes ll, More Neo-Victorian Poetry (May 2014), Echoes lll, Even More Neo-Victorian Poetry, (August 2016), A Compilation of Echoes. (September 2016), and When None Command (April 13, 2019)

    Archives

    December 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    May 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    July 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly