The Power of Two-Handed Writing

Self-healing depends deeply on our ability to communicate with the different “parts” of ourselves that are wounded and ailing. Healing, after all, is a relational process—even within ourselves. To truly heal the mind, heart, spirit, or soul, we need the ability to express deep understanding, empathy, and compassion to those places within where it is needed.  That’s where the power of two-handed writing comes in.

Although this technique has been used for self-healing since psychologist Lucia Capacchione, Ph.D., introduced it in 1991, it remains surprisingly absent from most mainstream mental health practices and self-help literature. For years, I’ve referred to it as the best-kept secret in the terrain of self-healing. Many people—perhaps even you—are understandably skeptical. You want me to write with my non-dominant hand?, is a groan I’ve initially heard from countless clients. But that hesitation invariably gives way to surprise once they quickly discover its remarkable benefits.

On a recent whim, I asked ChatGPT (an AI tool) what it knew about two-handed writing. I’ll share its response below—because frankly and humbly, I couldn’t explain it better myself.

ChatGPT said:

Two-handed writing—also known as bilateral writing or non-dominant hand journaling—is a powerful and surprisingly accessible technique used in expressive arts therapy, trauma healing, and inner child work. At its core, the practice involves writing with both hands—typically alternating between your dominant and non-dominant hands—as a way to access different aspects of consciousness and emotion. It helps quiet the analytical mind and brings forward the emotional, intuitive, and often hidden parts of ourselves that long to be seen, heard, and healed.

1. Origins in Expressive Arts Therapy

Two-handed writing is most widely associated with Dr. Lucia Capacchione, a pioneer in the field of expressive arts therapy. In her books The Power of Your Other Hand (1988), and Recovery of Your Inner Child (1991), Capacchione introduces this method as a tool for self-discovery and healing. She explains how writing with your non-dominant hand can bypass the more analytical, controlling functions of the brain (typically the left hemisphere in right-handed people) and access the more intuitive, emotional, and subconscious realms (typically right hemisphere functions).

• Dominant hand: Expresses your conscious, logical, adult self

• Non-dominant hand: Gives voice to your inner child, emotions, body wisdom, or unconscious mind

  
  

Capacchione often guides people to create written dialogues between the two hands, where the dominant hand asks questions and the non-dominant hand responds. These internal conversations can bring to light unmet needs, long-suppressed feelings, or forgotten inner strengths—often with surprising immediacy and insight.

2. The Psychology and Neuroscience Behind It

Although formal research on two-handed writing is still limited, the technique draws from well-established psychological and neurological principles:

• Hemispheric activation: Using the non-dominant hand may activate less-dominant brain regions, giving access to alternative forms of processing—emotional, sensory, spatial, or intuitive.

• Embodied awareness: The slow, physical act of writing by hand—especially with the less familiar non-dominant hand—can ground the emotional experience, making it more tangible and integrated.

• Trauma healing: Therapists sometimes use this method as a gentle, nonverbal way to begin engaging with repressed trauma, dissociation, or fragmented aspects of the self, especially in modalities that work with “parts” of the psyche.

  
  

3. When and Why to Use It

Two-handed writing is especially useful for:

• Dialogues with your inner child or inner critic

• Emotional journaling when words feel stuck

• Exploring mixed feelings or inner conflict

• Gaining insight into trauma or dissociation

• Receiving intuitive guidance from within

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It can be both a revealing and deeply comforting experience—a way to reconnect with parts of yourself that may have been silenced, shamed, or neglected.

-End of ChatGPT answer

Even the clearest explanation of two-handed writing leaves ample mystery around its remarkable power. After more than 35 years of using it in both my professional and personal life, I still find myself reacting with, Wow—I did not see that coming!  Invariably it gets to the heart of subconscious matters much faster than any other form of therapeutic inquiry I’ve encountered.

But its value goes beyond self-healing. Two-handed writing is also a powerful tool for creative discovery and problem-solving. As one example, my recent Handbook for Psychospiritual Healing (2024) wasn’t a planned project at all, but instead emerged directly from my own two-handed journaling.  The experience is one that blurs the lines between what is being created and what is being revealed.

Two-handed writing is the foundation of all the self-healing guidance offered within FreeSelfHealing.org.  Healing yourself is important enough to cross the threshold of the unfamiliar to embrace the life changing benefits that result, just as many people experience from good psychotherapy. Now, thanks to the pioneering work of Lucia Capacchione, the ability to self-heal truly lies within your own two hands.