Bibliotherapy: Characteristics And Benefits

The most relevant characteristic of bibliotherapy is the use of books, reading materials and teaching tools as therapeutic resources to help patients from the emotional and psychological sphere to better understand their disease, which helps their improvement.

In a world dominated by audiovisuals, in which children, young people and not so young are constantly bombarded by these means, it is not surprising that disorders of the mental and emotional sphere are more and more frequent.

The audiovisual does not require our understanding. They give us the complete scene from the beginning to the end and the intervention of our conscience is minimal, and in many cases null. On the contrary, reading requires understanding and reflection, and its messages have a much greater depth and depth.

The implementation of bibliotherapy as a therapeutic resource involves mental health and primary care professionals, librarians, associations and the patients themselves. Its great challenge is the selection of texts by age ranges and pathologies.

History of bibliotherapy

Although it sounds very current and new to us, bibliotherapy was already known in ancient Greece, where libraries were defined as “places of healing for the soul. ” Likewise, soldiers wounded in World War II were recommended to read while they recovered.

Bibliotherapy was established in the United States in the 1930s with titles as suggestive as “The Prescription of Literature.” During the following decades, more and more books related to this specialty appeared.

At first, it was used as teaching material so that the patient could have a more complete knowledge of his disease. Starting in the 90s, with the emergence of evidence-based medicine and psychology, it began to be used for therapeutic purposes.

The United Kingdom is the world leader in prescribing books through the health and library system, which is currently developing new initiatives.

In Spain, although they are still few, initiatives are appearing in various autonomous communities. We highlight «Literapia» of the Hospital de Santiago de Compostela, a project in which reading groups and volunteering are integrated.

It is worth highlighting a very popular book by Lou Marinoff “More Plato and Less Prozac”, which in 2000 recommended the use of philosophy for the understanding of our inner world.

Characteristics of book therapy

• It has proven its usefulness in the treatment of diseases of the emotional or psychological sphere.

• It can be used in mild cases as the only treatment, with the corresponding supervision, or as a complement to medications and psychotherapy in other processes.
• Its realization can be carried out in hospitals, day centers and other health spaces, or it can seek the support of public libraries and educational centers.
• The texts and materials must be carefully selected and related to the different pathologies and ages.

• Many of the existing materials are aimed at reducing the rate of stress and its responsibility in anxiety and depression.
• It uses emotional factors with positive messages to help the patient resolve their conflicts and regain well-being.
• It aims to contribute positive thinking to the day-to-day life of the patient affected by disorders of the mental or emotional sphere, in what has been called self-help literature.

• It seeks that reading becomes a means to modify the patient’s way of thinking and contribute to their improvement.

Benefits of bibliotherapy

• Reading activates various areas of the brain, such as Broca’s and Werniche’s areas and the Cingulum. Brain areas are activated according to the activity that takes place in reading. For this reason, some athletes use their imagination to train their muscles.
• Reading promotes empathy and resilience.
• Increase vocabulary and improve communication.
• It stimulates learning and curiosity, increases cognitive reserve and delays the symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases such as dementias and Alzheimer’s.
• Reduce stress levels. This is thought to be for the effect of keeping the mind attentive to reading, somewhat like meditating while reading.
• Promotes rest and sleep: activates the mechanisms of night sleep in the brain. It is a good remedy for insomnia for many people.

• It lessens the feeling of loneliness by “hooking” the reader into the plot and interacting with it.
• It brings the reader knowledge, wisdom and freedom of choice, which influences their self-esteem and security in life.

As that slogan used to say, “it’s all in the books. ” In them is knowledge, adventure, travel, intrigue, history, love and, in addition, the possibility of curing diseases of the mental and emotional sphere. Good reading!