An Operation Smile volunteer reverses an oxygen mask so a child with a cleft condition can blow a bubble for the first time in Guadalajara, Mexico. (Operation Smile Photos)
For thousands of children born with cleft conditions, Operation Smile provides simple, playful tools—like bubbles—to strengthen the skills they need to speak and thrive.
While a bottle of bubbles might seem out of place in a hospital setting, you might be surprised to learn that, for thousands of children around the world born with cleft lip and palate, they can be a helpful tool in comprehensive cleft care. Lilia, who was born with cleft lip and palate in 2020, is one of the many patients who received this care.
As a toddler, Lilia underwent two surgeries to treat cleft lip and palate with Operation Smile’s surgical program in Puebla, Mexico. Because of Operation Smile’s comprehensive care, it wasn’t long before her personality transformed: Lilia went from a quiet and withdrawn toddler to an exuberant, curious explorer, babbling, expressing herself with a variety of sounds, and engaging with others like any child her age.
Lilia is now a healthy five-year-old, with the same cheerful attitude and boundless energy. Her progress is the result of care at every level, from surgery to speech therapy to ongoing support at home—but it’s also evidence that small, sustained interventions throughout it all can make a meaningful difference.
Lilia at age 1, before surgery, and at age 5, 4 years post-surgery
Cleft Conditions: A Global Problem
Since 1982, Operation Smile has provided cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries to more than 500,000 patients worldwide with the help of generous volunteers and donors. Cleft conditions are congenital conditions, meaning they are present at birth. With cleft lip and palate, the lip or the roof of the mouth do not form fully during fetal development. Cleft conditions put children at risk for malnutrition and poor weight gain, since their facial structure can make feeding challenging. But cleft conditions can have an enormous social impact as well: Common difficulties with speech can leave kids socially isolated and unable to meet the same developmental milestones as their peers.
Surgery is a vital step in treating cleft conditions, but it’s also just one part of a much larger solution. Organizations like Operation Smile emphasize the importance of multi-disciplinary teams that provide comprehensive, long-term care to patients across many years. This approach, which includes oral care, speech therapy, nutritional support, and psychosocial care, not only aids in physical recovery from surgery but also helps children develop the skills and confidence to eat easily, speak clearly, and engage in everyday life. This ensures that each patient receives the full range of support they need to thrive.
Marie, 11 months, with her mother at Operation Smile Madagascar before her cleft surgery (Operation Smile Photos)
A Playful (and Powerful) Solution
Throughout a patient’s care, simple tools like bubbles can play a meaningful role from start to finish.
Immediately before surgery, children are often in a new and unfamiliar environment far from home, some of them experiencing a hospital setting for the first time. When care providers or loved ones blow bubbles, it’s a simple yet effective technique: Not only are the children soothed and distracted, the bubbles also help create a sense of joy and playfulness that eases their anxiety.
Milagros Rojas, a volunteer speech therapist in Peru, using bubbles in a screening with a patient. (Operation Smile Photos)
In speech therapy, bubbles can take on an even more important role. Blowing bubbles requires controlled airflow, as well as the ability to form a rounded “O” shape with the lips, which are skills that children with cleft conditions may struggle to develop. Practicing these skills with bubbles allows children to gently strengthen their facial muscles, improve breath control, and support the motor skills needed for speech development. Beyond that, blowing bubbles can help kids connect with their parents or providers in a way that’s playful, comforting, and accessible even for very young patients.
Finally, bubbles often follow patients with cleft conditions home in the “smile bags” that each patient receives when the surgical procedure is finished. Smile bags, which help continue speech therapy outside of the hospital setting, can contain language enrichment booklets, a mirror, oxygen tubing, and bubbles. While regular practice with motor skills can help with physical recovery, small acts of play help as well, giving kids space to simply enjoy themselves and join in on what peers are able to do.
Bubbles at Home and Beyond
Today, because of Operation Smile’s dedication to comprehensive cleft care, Lilia is now able to make friends and speak clearly, all things that could have been difficult or impossible before. Instead of a childhood defined by limitation, Lilia—and others around the world—can look forward to a childhood filled with joy, learning, discovery, friends, and new possibilities.
CTA: Lilia’s life was changed for the better with the care she received through Operation Smile. Find out how you can make an impact in other children’s lives by visiting operationsmile.org today.
Forget the corner office. Gen Z is rewriting the rules of professional success, and their approach might save us all from burnout.
While previous generations dutifully climbed the corporate ladder rung by rung, Gen Z is choosing to do things differently. These youngsters, born between 1997 and 2012, embrace a clear philosophy: work should fund your life, not consume it. It’s a simple dogma. This emerging trend, dubbed “career minimalism,” goes beyond the corporate buzzword, representing a fundamental shift that challenges what we thought we knew about ambition, success, and the definition of “making it” in today’s economy.
The statistics are striking: 68% of Gen Z workers claim that they would not pursue management rolesunless they came with higher pay or a better title. This isn’t laziness. It’s a well-thought-out strategy. Generation Z watched Millennials sacrifice their twenties to corporate culture, only to face economic uncertainty, housing crises, and unprecedented stress levels.
Gen Z is boldly saying “No thanks” to that traditional blueprint.
Janel Abrahami, Glassdoor’s Career Pivot Strategist, puts it perfectly. “Gen Z is more willing to embrace a flex mindset than older generations,” Abrahami tells Upworthy. “While past generations often prioritized climbing the corporate ladder, Gen Z is looking for the career equivalent of a lily pad: a sustainable route where they can jump to whatever opportunity best fits their needs at the moment. That could mean taking a pay cut for more free time, accepting a lower title for a more creative role, or switching to an industry they see as more stable. Since 70% of Gen Z questions their job security as AI advances in the workplace, many are proactively moving toward sectors like skilled trades, healthcare, and education.”
This lily pad mentality represents a profound shift in how an entire generation views professional growth. Instead of linear progression within a single company, Gen Z sees their careers as a series of strategic moves that prioritize personal fulfillment, financial stability, and most of all, time for the things that actually matter to them.
Generation side hustle
Despite the moniker “career minimalism,” 57% of Gen Z employees have at least one side hustle, more than any generation before them. Is it about the money? Not exactly. For Gen Z, side hustles are where their ambition thrives.
Nearly half (49%) of Gen Z side hustlers say their primary motivation is to be their own boss, while 42% are driven by the desire to pursue their passions. These numbers tell a story about a generation that refuses to wait for opportunities. When their 9-to-5 doesn’t provide creative fulfillment or meaningful impact, they create it themselves.
A teacher in Iowa sums it up, saying, “I always joke that I don’t dream of labor… If people were truly passionate about their job, it wouldn’t pay anything. Passion is for your 5-9 after the 9-5.”
Similarly, a research analyst echoes this sentiment, saying, “While having a job that you’re passionate about is really cool, it’s important to have other interests that are not tied to your work life.”
The broader statistics are even more telling: 66% of Gen Z and Millennials have started or plan to start side hustles, with 65% intending to continue their entrepreneurial ventures long-term. Meaning, this isn’t a phase, it’s a fundamental reimagining of how work fits into a fulfilling life. The pattern is clear: younger generations are diversifying their income streams and refusing to put all their professional eggs in one corporate basket.
Work-life balance as a non-negotiable priority
While older generations might view work-life balance as a nice idea, Gen Z regards it as essential infrastructure for a sustainable life. Thirty-two percent of Gen Z rank work-life balance as the most critical aspect of a job, compared to 28% of Millennials and 25% of Gen X. More significantly, they’re willing to prioritize this balance over higher compensation, a move that would have been unthinkable to previous generations entering the workforce.
“Employers may be surprised by the changing attitudes of Gen Z in the workplace,” says Abrahami. “However, this doesn’t mean that Gen Z is abandoning work; instead, they are redefining ambition through career minimalism. If Gen Z feels unsupported in achieving the work-life balance they seek, they may become less motivated or start looking for opportunities that align better with their values and lifestyles.”
Canva provides a standout example: through initiatives like “Force for Good,” the company encourages employees to contribute over 10,000 hours annually to community projects. This commitment to purpose-driven work has helped Canva achieve a 92% employee satisfaction rate.
These changes aren’t just nice-to-haves, they’re competitive advantages. Companies that embrace Gen Z-friendly policies are seeing measurable improvements in engagement, retention, and overall performance.
What every generation can learn from career minimalism
Gen Z’s approach to work is not radical; it’s rational. After watching previous generations sacrifice their health, relationships, and personal fulfillment for corporate success that often proved fleeting, Gen Z chose a different path.
These lessons are valuable for everyone, regardless of age:
Boundaries create sustainability. Gen Z’s insistence on work-life balance is a nugget of wisdom. By setting clear boundaries, they dodge the burnout that has plagued older generations and create space for long-term productivity and creativity.
Diversification reduces risk. While previous generations sought security in a single employer, Gen Z believes that proper security comes from multiple income streams and transferable skills. Their side hustles are money-generating insurance policies against rapidly changing industries and A.I.
Values-driven work increases engagement. When work aligns with personal values, engagement and performance naturally increase. Gen Z’s demand for meaningful work benefits everyone by forcing companies to clarify their purpose and impact.
Flexibility enhances productivity. The data is clear: flexible work arrangements lead to higher retention, better performance, and increased job satisfaction across all generations.
For Abrahami, the way Gen Z operates in the workplace feels like a breath of fresh air, and she encourages managers to get to know their Gen Z direct reports. “Gen Z’s habits will continue to shape our workforce, so it’s important employers take the time to truly understand them,” Abrahami notes. “Their approach isn’t about laziness; rather, it’s a new representation of how they define success. They want sustainable careers that align with their goals, whether that means prioritizing a job that prevents burnout or one that provides security from layoffs. Older generations have much to learn from Gen Z, and we’re likely to start to see these values become more widely accepted.”
Gen Z’s philosophy in the workplace offers a compelling answer to the age-old question: “What if there’s a better way?” Their formula is refreshingly simple: stable jobs for security, side hustles for passion, and strict boundaries for sustainability.
As workplace dynamics continue to evolve, the rise of career minimalism, fueled by Gen Z’s values, will reshape not only how we define professional success but also how we experience fulfillment. The future of work may belong not to the climbers, but to those content to hop from lily pad to lily pad with purpose and self-awareness.
The corner office can keep its view. Gen Z has found something better: a career that actually fits their life, instead of consuming it. And honestly? The rest of us should take notes.
This article originally appeared one year ago. It has been updated.
Sure, it’s lovely to see pristine, perfectly curated homes that look like they belong in Architectural Digest. A little inspo never hurt anyone. But as we all know, the spotless life is simply not an achievable reality, especially for those with busy lives and limited budgets (read: most of us).
But you know what? Maybe even the messy homes deserve some love. The ones with constant junk piles, unfinished projects, dirty dishes, and misplaced toys. The homes that will never grace the cover of a magazine but still do a wonderful job of containing all the moments life has to offer—the big, small, extraordinary, mundane, and everywhere in between. ‘Cause at the end of the day, isn’t that a home’s true purpose anyway?
Lets normalize “average” because there is nothing wrong with it. Everywhere you look on social media you see big gorgeous houses in perfect condition and its hard not to compare yours to them. But its not the norm and half the time its staged. Our house is lived in, and its filled with love and tons of memories and at the end of the day thats all that matters.
Stephanie Murphy, a mom and TikTok creator, seems to think so. Murphy took viewers on an “average house tour,” and it was the exact opposite of aspirational. Highlighted in Murphy’s tour are the pantry door that’s remained unpainted for three years, blinds held together with binder clips, air conditioners held in place by duct tape, a full dish rack tray that’s “a permanent fixture” on their countertops, and not one but two junk drawers (honestly, that’s a little low by my count). You’ll also notice a fridge that is covered in her kid’s artwork and school pictures. Not in any cohesive way, but merely thrown on randomly, as nature intended.
Meanwhile, in the master bedroom, Murphy and her husband have two separate blankets on their bed because neither of them like to share. A genius idea, and just another example of how we really, really don’t need to continue with marital sleeping norms that don’t actually feel comfortable.
Her reason for sharing it is everything
As for why Murphy decided to showcase her “average, middle-class house,” it’s all in the caption of her video: “Let’s normalize ‘average’ because there is nothing wrong with it. Everywhere you look on social media, you see big gorgeous houses in perfect condition and it’s hard not to compare yours to them. But it’s not the norm and half the time it’s staged. Our house is lived in, and it’s filled with love and tons of memories and at the end of the day that’s all that matters.”
She further explained her reasoning to Good Morning America. “I feel like social media is full of one perfectly curated video after another, and there is just so much pressure from social media to be perfect in all aspects — to have perfect skin, perfect makeup, perfect outfit, perfect house. And the reality is no one’s perfect,” Murphy said.
“Honestly, I feel like there’s a very good chance that all those videos that we see were staged and they probably like, moved a pile of toys behind the camera to film and then moved it back when they were done. But that’s the part that people on social media just aren’t sharing. They don’t show you the behind-the-scenes and that is what I was looking to change,” she continued.
Judging from the comments sections of this viral post, it seems like other people are ready for more average content.
“This is awesome! I’m constantly feeling inadequate when people have a perfect house that looks like nobody lives there!” one person wrote. “I feel seen,” added another.
Hear, hear. No need to feel inadequate about having a home that’s lived in. Imperfection has its own kind of beauty.
This article originally appeared three years ago. It has been updated.
In 1971, a year after the break-up of the Beatles, John Lennon released his most important piece of music, his single “Imagine.” The song is an appeal to humanity’s goodness and urges the listener to “join us” in visualizing a world without war, hunger, or greed.
The song provides a glimmer of hope in that if we can visualize a perfect world, then maybe one day it will be achievable. Over the past 50 years, the song has become a secular hymn that can conjure hope in the aftermath of the most tragic events. The song was played by Queen at Wembley Arena the night after Lennon was murdered in December 1980. Stevie Wonder sang it at the closing ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics to honor the lives of those lost at the Centennial Olympic Park bombing. Neil Young played it at the 9/11 Tribute to Heroes concert. And who could forget the infamous celebrity singalong to “Imagine” in 2020 barely a week into the initial COVID pandemic shutdown?
Why Julian Lennon vowed never to sing it
“Imagine” is widely seen as Lennon’s signature song that encapsulates his artistic persona, which is no small feat given the earth-shattering effect the songs he wrote with the Beatles have had on the world.
Given the song’s incredible power, Lennon’s son Julian vowed never to perform it in public. Julian has had success as a musician over the years, most notably with his 1984 hit, “Too Late for Goodbyes.” He’s also a philanthropist who has produced numerous documentaries.
The war in Ukraine pushed Julian to break his vow and he performed a beautiful rendition of “Imagine” as part of Global Citizen’s social media rally, “Stand Up For Ukraine” on April 8, 2022. The campaign worked to raise money for the war-torn country, a cause Julian still adamantly supports.
During the 2022 performance, Julian was accompanied by guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, who is best known as the lead guitarist of the Boston rock band Extreme and a longtime guitarist for Rihanna’s world tours.
“The War on Ukraine is an unimaginable tragedy… As a human, and as an artist, I felt compelled to respond in the most significant way I could,” Lennon wrote in the video’s description in 2022. “So today, for the first time ever, I publicly performed my Dad’s song, IMAGINE. Why now, after all these years? — I had always said, that the only time I would ever consider singing ‘IMAGINE’ would be if it was the ‘End of the World’…But also because his lyrics reflect our collective desire for peace worldwide.”
Watch:
Lennon went on to say he was influenced to sing the iconic song “because within this song, we’re transported to a space, where love and togetherness become our reality, if but for a moment in time… The song reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, that we are all hoping for…
“As a result of the ongoing murderous violence, millions of innocent families, have been forced to leave the comfort of their homes, to seek asylum elsewhere,” Lennon concluded his message. “I’m calling on world leaders and everyone who believes in the sentiment of IMAGINE, to stand up for refugees everywhere! Please advocate and donate from the heart. #StandUpForUkraine.”
Lennon’s decision to never play “Imagine” was a wonderful way to honor his father’s legacy by respecting the power of his song, but John would probably be proud if he knew that he sang it at a time when we all need to imagine “all the people living life in peace.”
Julian Lennon keeps his father’s legacy alive
Julian Lennon continues to advocate for those suffering in the world by raising awareness and offering help through his charity, The White Feather Foundation, which was established in 2007 and exists “for the Conservation of Life” and provides aid for the environment, the preservation of Indigenous cultures, and access to clean water, education, and health.
In 2023, The White Feather Foundation launched an emergency campaign alongside World Central Kitchen to feed those in need in response to the Israel-Hamas conflict. And in early 2025, Lennon and The White Feather Foundation donated a split $10,000 to MusiCares and FireAid in response to the Los Angeles wildfires.
Clearly in all that Lennon does to help the world and others, whether through his philanthropy or his music, he’s supporting the vision of “Imagine” and making his father proud.
This article originally appeared four years ago. It has been updated.
Kindergarten is one of the most formative experiences in a child’s life. Not only do they learn there how to navigate the tricky world of friendships and the seeds of independence, they also start their education journey. All of that is made extra special if they have a teacher who really loves them. When you’re a kindergarten teacher, you know that you have the power to make a serious impact, and that shouldn’t be taken lightly. A retired kindergarten teacher warmed hearts on TikTok as people learn just how great that impact is.
Then, one by one, they filed through the gate
In the video shared by user Kim Hamilton (the daughter of said teacher) in 2022, a woman, who is identified in the comments as Mrs. Pearson, is sitting on her porch when a girl in a cap and gown shows up at the gate. “Congratulations!” Mrs. Pearson calls out, waving. Soon, she realizes that the young girl isn’t alone.
“What’s happening?” she asks her daughter, who can be heard chuckling behind the camera.
“They’re your kindergarteners,” Hamilton replies, as kids in caps and gowns start filing through the gate.
“Did you know this was happening?!” Pearson asks, the shock and joy clearly evident on her face.
“Oh my gosh, I love you all! Look at you!” she exclaims as she runs over to the kids.
Hamilton explains to her that these kids, clearly high school graduates, are the last group of kindergarten students Pearson taught before retiring. As each one of them comes into the gate, the joy on Pearson’s face grows exponentially. It’s clear that these kids were her babies, and even though now they’re all grown up and going off to college, they’ll always have that special place in her heart.
“Oh my god, you’re all just gorgeous!” she says, giving each one a hug.
The kids are just as happy to see their beloved Mrs. Pearson as she is to see them. They eagerly shuffle together to pose for a picture as she just stops and looks at them, taking it all in. Presumably, she hasn’t seen them much in the many years since she retired. Maybe they’ve seen each other around. As a kid, I loved running into my teachers outside of school. I still do. But the fact that these kids showed up to see her, to allow her to celebrate her integral role in their lives, that’s really special. And I’m not the only one who thinks so.
People in the comments lost it completely
Here are just a handful of the comments people left on Hamilton’s video:
“Proof they never stop being our kids after they leave us.”
“The love she showed and was shown, she must have been one heck of a teacher”
“I started crying when your mom did.”
“Love this! ❤ I teach kindergarten and only hope my students will remember me like this! She must have been extraordinary!”
“Literally teachers like HER are the reasons I still talk to my teachers from middle school, HS & college good teachers are so special.”
“The best gift a teacher can receive is seeing her former students bloom.”
Teachers can truly make a lifelong impression on us, for better or for worse. When you get a good teacher at any age, it’s never too late to offer them your gratitude and appreciation.
This article originally appeared four years ago. It has been updated.
It’s a common kindness among pet owners to leave their fur babies some kind of background noise whenever they’re gone for extended periods of time. It’s such a popular practice that YouTube and Spotify have dedicated playlists for soothing and stimulating pets while we’re away doing human things. And hey, if it eases our guilt in the process, that’s a win-win.
But do our pets actually appreciate this gesture in the way we hope? The only accurate answer is, of course, that it depends—not only on which species we’re dealing with, such as cats vs. dogs, but also on the genre of music.
Dogs might really dig soft tunes
One United Kingdom-based behavioral study found that, for dogs at least, classical music produced a calming effect. Of the two other genres tested, heavy metal had, perhaps unsurprisingly, an agitating effect, while pop had no observable effect. Sorry, Britney Spears.
Interestingly, a CD playing a human conversation also seemed to have no effect. Of course.
However, another study that used heart monitors to measure the effect different styles of music had on dogs’ heart rates suggested that, like humans, dogs have individual music preferences. In this study, reggae and soft rock “showed the highest positive changes.” One thing to consider, though, is that different breeds of dogs have different resting heart rates, which might influence how they respond to certain styles of music.
Moving on to cats. While there are far fewer feline-centric studies, the data at first glance might suggest that they aren’t quite as musically inclined as their canine counterparts.
Of course, this could be because cats are more attuned to certain frequencies, making what they “hear” very different from what is experienced by dog or human ears. Researchers who relied heavily on music that fell within a cat’s preferred frequency range found that cats reacted significantly more positively to it than to classical music. Some even rubbed up against the speaker—the ultimate sign of cat approval.
Fun fact: that special cat music, composed by David Teie, was turned into an album that can be purchased here.
What about TV?
As for television shows, the general consensus is that rather than providing entertainment, they serve as a source of comforting familiarity for pets. However, there aren’t enough studies to confirm this either way. And considering what we’ve already mentioned about responses to certain frequencies, it stands to reason that most human shows don’t necessarily register in the same way. Of course, we’ve all seen how dogs react to episodes of Bluey, so…
And if these things mask unpleasant outside noises—like fireworks, horns, planes, etc.—that might otherwise cause anxiety, then perhaps that’s all the benefit pet owners need.
At the end of the day, leaving on music or TV might be less about creating the perfect enrichment experience and more about offering a little comfort—to both our pets and ourselves—while we’re away. Some animals may completely ignore it. Others may perk up at a familiar voice or settle down when soft music starts playing. A lot of figuring that out comes from attentively and lovingly observing how your fur babies respond as individuals. Luckily, that’s a task most pet owners will gladly take on.
As they do every year around Mother’s Day, the Social Security Administration released its list of the top 1,000 most popular baby names. The SSA is uniquely positioned to track the rise and fall of baby names because it collects information on every baby born in the United States.
The 2025 list found no major changes among the top 10 names for girls and boys. Olivia and Liam again held the number one spots in the rankings, as they have for the past seven years. The biggest changes were among girls’ names, where Charlotte rose to second place, ending Emma’s six-year run in the spot. Ava dropped out of the top 10 and was replaced by Eliana.
When it comes to the names rising fastest in popularity, there were some decidedly unconventional choices rocketing up the charts. There also appears to be a clear trend toward names with a strong “K” sound.
Kasai made the greatest leap among boys’ names, moving up 1,108 spots on the list to land at 639. Kasai means “fire” in both Japanese and Swahili. Although the name is a fast mover in the boys’ category, it has also been used as a girls’ name. It’s believed that the name is rising in popularity due to actress Skai Jackson naming her baby Kasai and the popularity of entrepreneur and rapper Kasai Guthrie.
Klarity’s origins are a bit more obvious: it’s “Clarity” with a twist, spelled with a K instead of a C. “A rediscovered virtue name with a modern makeover, Klarity has the zippy sounds of Felicity along with the familiar feel of Kate, Katie, Kitty, and Klara,” Nameberry writes.
Akari is another name with Japanese origins, meaning “star” or, depending on how it’s written, “moon,” “bright,” “light,” or “red jewel.” It’s a rapidly rising boys’ name, but it’s also used for girls.
Rynlee is a modern construction that follows the current trend of using popular names, such as Ryan, and adding a -lee or -leigh suffix. Alternative spellings include Rynleigh and Rinlee.
Another unique name is Jasai. It’s a modern take on the traditional name “Jason” and may have ancient Hindi or Sanskrit origins, meaning “victory” or “achievement.” On the girls’ side, Ailanny appears to be a recent creation centered on the opening sound “Ai,” which is often associated with love and affection.
It’s not breaking news that journaling has been proven, again and again, to be good for you—mind, body, and soul.
But not all journaling is created equal. Writing about what you did that day and your future plans has a profoundly different effect than writing about your deepest emotions, especially the upsetting ones. A growing body of research now shows that confronting your deepest traumas and experiences in order to put them on the page not only makes you feel better, but can even help heal you. One remarkable scientific study demonstrates how.
Landmark study indicates that “expressive writing” has healing powers
The body of research around expressive writing had been growing for years. American social psychologist James Pennebaker is considered one of the leading voices in pioneering this area of research.
In an interview with the American Psychological Association, Pennebaker recalled wondering, “If secrets are so bad, what if we brought people in the laboratory and had them talk about them… [but] that turned out to be way too complex. How about we just had them write about it? And that was kind of the birth of expressive writing.”
Pennebaker’s remarkable research revealed that expressive writing could improve mental health, boost the immune system, and reduce doctor visits. In 2013, a group of researchers wanted to see whether these benefits could carry over even further into the physical world.
In the study, two groups of adults ages 64 and older underwent a simple biopsy procedure. It left a small wound on the upper arm that was uniform in size across all participants and could easily be monitored for changes in healing.
A Band-Aid covers a wound. Photo credit: Canva
One group was assigned to perform expressive writing for 20 minutes per day, writing about its deepest thoughts and most upsetting life experiences.
The other group, rather than not writing at all, journaled daily about its activities but did so in an emotionally neutral register.
Just 11 days after the biopsy, 76% of the expressive writing group had fully healed. That’s almost double the rate of the control group, of whom only 42% had healed.
A thorough review found almost no other differences in the adults’ cognitive or physical health, which makes a powerful case that the expressive writing exercises were responsible for the improved healing.
Why emotional writing can have a physical impact
Pennebaker, for his part, recognized that deeply emotional journaling is not just about the physical act of writing.
In order to write about upsetting experiences in your life, you have to turn them over and over in your mind and confront them head-on.
“Getting people to actually sit down and confront it and to write it, you don’t have to write a lot, but you have to first of all just acknowledge it and put it into words,” Pennebaker said. “And that was really for me, the breakthrough.”
Emotional writing eases psychological stress. Feelings like anxiety and stress can have severe negative health consequences, so it stands to reason that relieving some of that stress should have a positive payoff. Less stress on the immune system, for example, means it’s better able to do its job of warding off sickness and healing wounds.
According to Harvard Health Publishing, “The process of writing may enable [people] to learn to better regulate their emotions. It’s also possible that writing about something fosters an intellectual process — the act of constructing a story about a traumatic event — that helps someone break free of the endless mental cycling more typical of brooding or rumination.”
The power of “letting it out”
A majority of scientific research agrees that learning to understand and express what’s happening inside us is a key component of mental health.
“Labeling and expressing what’s going on inside can calm our nervous system. It also gets us in touch with our internal senses and what’s going on beneath the skin, in the heart, and in the brain,” said Alli Spotts-De Lazzer, a licensed therapist. “The connection of thoughts flowing through and out may be similar to ‘name it to tame it,’ a concept related to calming emotional distress and increasing emotional regulation.”
It can be dance, it can be art, or it can be talking it out with a therapist or friend. The important thing is that expression, or disclosure, is necessary. The unique power of expressive writing, however, is that it forces us to address our biggest sources of pain and anxiety head-on.
Expressive writing has its limitations, of course.
It’s not necessarily a cure-all for people suffering from serious mental health conditions like chronic anxiety or major depression. And it can’t cure cancer or miraculously heal a broken leg.
Some research also shows that expressive writing can temporarily make people feel worse before the mental health benefits kick in. And for people who have recently undergone trauma, it may simply be too soon to write about it. Pennebaker himself advises therapists not to assign expressive writing to patients until at least a few months after an incident.
However, the study is fairly undeniable evidence of the mind-body connection. Science shows us that placebos can work wonders, even when people know they’re taking a placebo. And expressive writing research is beginning to show just how incredible the physical benefits of relieving psychological stress can be.
Those daily habits can be extremely specific, as evidenced by one cat owner’s “Q-tip jail” TikTok video. “Note for pet sitter,” the overlay text from @nothoughtsjustsushi reads, “bedtime routine includes putting him in jail, and the prisoner gets one Q-tip nightly.”
The “putting him in jail” part means pinning the cat between two open doors. The human then slips a Q-tip through the crack between the doors as the kitty “prisoner” eagerly grabs it. Seriously quirky:
As weird as this is, it’s not much weirder than the many other examples cat owners and pet sitters shared in the comments:
“As a pet sitter I once had a client tell me I needed to pretend to water her cat or else she’ll yowl and scream at me😭 the cat even had her own plant pot she’d be in when I started to do my rounds of watering.”
“Explaining to the pet sitter my cat needs her alone tub time but DO NOT turn on the water. She just likes to sit in there, unbothered.”
“My cat will scream at me when I go in my room until I lay on the bathroom floor and let her loaf ✨next to me✨. That’s it, that’s her favorite thing.”
“Mine likes to sing in the bathtub for the resonance. And it has to be a bath tub! She doesn’t do it if it’s just a shower stall. It’s something we look for in an apartment now, very important.”
“Mine has to sing the song of her people before we lay down at night. It basically consists of her walking a lap around the house howling to oblivion. Only then will she hop in bed and go to sleep.”
“My cat will only sit on the couch with me if I put a blanket over her. She does not want to be seen, but she wants to hang out.”
“When I had my cat, every morning before work I would put on eyeliner. One morning I pretend put eyeliner on her and told her “all done so pretty” and it BECAME routine. She would promptly sit by the mirror and Scream if I forgot to do it, or until it was done.”
“My cat loves raw asparagus. He will stand in front of the fridge and yell at me until I figured out what he wanted. He plays with it like prey, then he eats it.”
“My sister’s cat gets on top of the fridge and screams until he gets a teaspoon of shredded cheese to eat while he looks down on everyone.”
“My cat demands I cradle her like an infant while I am on the toilet. She will scream and jump on the sink and knock things over until I get her.”
“My cat has to have bathtub time.. every night when my mom goes to shower, she runs into the bathroom, and you have to flip hairbands in the bathtub so she can play with them while mom showers (the shower and bath are separate).”
“Orange cat here! He patiently puts his hand on mine and looks at me until I pick both his hands up ‘to hold hands.’ He never misses a day. He only does this with me. If im going to be busy all day I go ahead and say let’s hold hands. He absolutely trained me to do this. I have to idea how it started.”
People ask how cat owners figure these things out, and most cat owners don’t have a clear answer. With cats, you just do random things to see what happens, and suddenly something sticks. You can’t predict what it will be, so you do have to be careful. That fun little entertainment and enrichment experiment might just turn into a routine you can’t escape.
Not that most would change a thing. These oddities are what make life with cats so delightful.
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