Blog — bibliotherapy with bijal shah

When we speak about transformation through reading, what exactly do we mean? The use of the word suggests a dramatic turning point, a before-and-after moment in which a life is visibly redirected. It could be a quiet, subtle internal shift, a new way of naming an experience, a change in how one understands the self or relates to others.

It may not always present as a visible change. It could simply be an alteration of the inner structures through which a person makes meaning.

My work explores reading as both a personal and structured practice, where reading serves as a tool for reflection and safe exploration of our emotions, particularly in moments of uncertainty, grief, transition, or self-doubt. I aim to create a space in which books become prompts for dialogue, self-inquiry, and emotional recognition.

There is a particular kind of time that opens up when we enter a gallery, sit in a theatre, sing with others, or lose ourselves in a novel. It is not productivity time. It is not screen-scrolling time. It is not the adrenalised time of errands, inboxes and appointments. It is slower time. And according to a growing body of research, that slowing may not only be psychological. It may also be biological. A new study published in Innovation in Aging by Daisy Fancourt (you can listen to my podcast interview with here here) and colleagues asks a quietly radical question: does engagement with the arts...

As a bibliotherapist, I often come across readers and clients who say to me that reading is a luxury, or that reading is simply one choice among the many leisurely activities available to us. We live in a time that constantly pulls us away from reading: speed, distraction, overstimulation. So I would like to begin with a very direct question: is reading still a choice… or is it becoming a necessity? That’s a really interesting question, and it cuts deeper than it looks. The honest answer is: it's always been both, and the tension between them is getting sharper, and...

What Do Fairy Tales Really Tell Us?  Freud, the Unconscious, and the Hidden Language of Story For most of us, fairy tales bring to mind enchanted forests, wicked stepmothers, magical creatures, and faraway castles. These are the stories we first heard as children, nestled in bed or sitting in a circle at school—simple, fantastical tales meant to entertain, teach lessons, or lull us to sleep. But what if these stories were doing much more than that? What if, beneath their charming surfaces, fairy tales were speaking the language of the unconscious—giving shape to our deepest fears, desires, and internal conflicts?...

Bijal Shah is celebrating one year of sharing bibliotherapy reflections, resources, and book recommendations on her Substack, Bibliotherapy with Bijal Shah. She's inviting readers to explore a wide range of posts on topics like anxiety, loneliness, heartbreak, family dynamics, neurodiversity, and more—including interviews and thematic literary insights.

Readers can access the full archive, and are encouraged to become paid subscribers ($5/month or $50/year, with a 20% lifetime discount via this link: https://bibliotherapywithbijal.substack.com/e99b53a8 ).