From Dr. Jane's Notebook

The therapeutic power of reading

I’ve never been a fast reader. I’ve never had great reading comprehension. Sometimes I read and re-read pages just to follow a story line. I’ve never thought of myself as a person who loved to read. So imagine my surprise that over the years, reading has become a great passion of mine.

Its not hard to remember learning to read in school. Most of us kids squirmed in the chairs of our little reading circle, dreading the moment of our turn to stumble over words out loud. The closer it came to my turn, the faster my heart would beat. Naturally, the sounds from my chest usually got so loud that I’d lose my place just as the teacher called my name. For me, the reading circle became the equivalent of getting up on stage for a major performance, complete with weak knees and a voice that was never loud enough.

In spite of my initial trauma, I eventually found a lot of pleasure in reading. Needless-to-say, I consider this to be a major victory after a hard-fought battle. As a result, I feel compelled to encourage children and adults who remain stuck in their fear to learn about reading all over again. Please join me for a few more thoughts on the matter.

Learning to read is like learning to drive. At first, reading is mechanical. It can be intimidating, difficult, and painful. In school, we may feel pressured by deadlines and bored with the subject matter. Reading in school is a bit like driver’s education. While its important to learn how to do it right, the element of punishment hangs over your head. However, once you develop the necessary mechanical skills, they are yours for life!

There’s a difference between reading for work and reading for play. When reading is an assignment, it is often accompanied by anxiety about "the test". We are usually not free to just read, but are expected to fully memorize the material. This is not what I would call reading for enjoyment. But reading a good story without the threat of interrogation is a gift you can give to yourself. Like watching a movie, it is possible to sit back and just enjoy the entertainment.

Each of us has different tastes in reading. Some of us like comic books and some of us thrive on 500 page novels. Poetry has the wonderful quality of being short and meaningful. I recommend that you go for books that have large enough print so your eyes are comfortable; read shorter, rather than long books; and if you aren’t enjoying a book, put it down and look for another. As with music, you will like certain styles and dislike others. Just because a book is recommended to you, don’t feel you have to like it or finish it!
Reading aloud is a bonding experience. While reading may seem like an arduous task, almost everyone likes to be read to! If your child is struggling through a school book, reading it out loud together helps them to overcome the mechanical difficulties enough to appreciate the story. Once the story is known, reading the book can become more user-friendly and less frustrating.

Likewise, I highly recommend giving the following gifts to people you care about: Read books out loud to your family on car trips; read to those who are sick and bedridden; and offer to read to those who are visually impaired. Reading together can provide wonderful shared adventures, discussions, and bonding experiences.

Reading is an anti-depressant as you feed your brain healthy thoughts. Our brains are perhaps the most active parts of our bodies and personalities. Brains are active consumers which rarely take a rest. As such, they are usually moving in a positive direction learning new things, or in a negative direction retracing previous thoughts and experiences. One way or another, brains are either getting their exercise through learning and imagination, or by thinking negative, critical, and depressing thoughts. In my experience, reading almost anything provides a creative outlet for my thoughts, and allows my mind to stretch in positive ways. This almost always makes me feel smarter and better about myself.

In recent years, Oprah Winfrey has encouraged thousands of TV hounds to take time for themselves and read a good book. To her credit, she has shown many adults that it is never too late to learn to read and that the rewards which come from reading are plentiful. Just think, when we read we get to travel, grow from new experiences, and explore the entire world without leaving our homes. Can anyone deny how good it feels to put a book up on the shelf when we’ve finished it? Even better is the feeling when you recommend it to a friend!

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