{"id":18558,"date":"2025-04-15T10:01:57","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T14:01:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thealfam.com\/evermore\/public\/?p=18558"},"modified":"2026-07-28T13:15:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T17:15:15","slug":"from-pain-to-expression-the-transformative-power-of-poetry-for-grieving-systems-impacted-youth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thealfam.com\/evermore\/from-pain-to-expression-the-transformative-power-of-poetry-for-grieving-systems-impacted-youth\/","title":{"rendered":"From Pain to Expression: The Transformative Power of Poetry for Grieving, Systems-Impacted Youth"},"content":{"rendered":"[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” column_margin=”default” column_direction=”default” column_direction_tablet=”default” column_direction_phone=”default” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” row_border_radius=”none” row_border_radius_applies=”bg” row_position_desktop=”default” row_position_tablet=”inherit” row_position_phone=”inherit” overflow=”visible” overlay_strength=”0.3″ gradient_direction=”left_to_right” shape_divider_position=”bottom” bg_image_animation=”none”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_tablet=”inherit” column_padding_phone=”inherit” column_padding_position=”all” flex_gap_desktop=”10px” column_element_direction_desktop=”default” column_element_spacing=”default” desktop_text_alignment=”default” tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_backdrop_filter=”none” column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” column_link_target=”_self” column_position=”default” gradient_direction=”left_to_right” overlay_strength=”0.3″ width=”1\/1″ tablet_width_inherit=”default” animation_type=”default” bg_image_animation=”none” border_type=”simple” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]\n

From Pain to Expression: The Transformative Power of Poetry for Grieving, Systems-Impacted Youth<\/strong><\/h1>\n

By Nebeu Shimeles<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cShe wore her grief, loosely like a battered, faded shawl draped around her shoulders. She had nothing to say.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2013<\/span> Arundhati Roy, <\/b>The God of Small Things<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Experiencing loss has a transformative effect, forever altering our conception of ourselves, the world around us, and the way we relate to others. As the poet Joshua Turek aptly puts it, \u201cgrief makes you into a whole new person and separates you forever from the one you were right before it.\u201d And all of us, in one form or another, will experience bereavement; we have no choice in the matter. But as a society, the response we mount to that loss is well within our control. While each person\u2019s journey through loss is unique, the systemic response to such loss has profound implications for \u2018the whole new person\u2019 that emerges in its aftermath.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meeting Grieving Youth Where They Are<\/b><\/h3>\n

\"\"Do we meet people in their moment of need? Do we demonstrate our commitment to their well-being by providing resources and support in helping them make\u00a0<\/span>sense of such trauma? At Pongo Poetry Project, these questions are at the forefront of our minds in our work supporting systems-impacted young people.<\/span><\/p>\n

When young people are ensnared in the carceral system it is in the wake of a cascading set of systemic failures. Inadequate access to healthcare, substandard educational opportunities, and housing insecurity are systemic factors that contribute to youth incarceration. And the connective tissue between so many of the young people we serve is childhood trauma, and a lack of support in coping with such experiences.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/h3>\n

The Lasting Impact of Childhood Trauma<\/b><\/h3>\n

Childhood trauma<\/span> affects people deeply<\/span><\/a>, often burdening them with confusion, a sense of personal defectiveness, and shame, rendering them unable to express themselves. And we know that youth of color, youth in poverty, and systems-impacted youth experience such trauma at disproportionately higher rates.<\/span> A 2017 study<\/span><\/a> on racial differences in trauma exposure found that Black youth are 45% more likely to have experienced trauma than white youth. Youth in poverty are<\/span> 74% more likely<\/span><\/a> to have experienced trauma than those from wealthy families.<\/span><\/p>\n

Exacerbating this disproportionate burden is the fact that vulnerable youth often lack access to the support services they need to process and cope with such pain.<\/span> A 2022 report<\/span><\/a> from the <\/span>African American Knowledge Optimized for Mindfully Healthy Adolescents (<\/span>AAKOMA) Project found that nearly 30% of youth of color who reported needing mental health treatment did not receive it. It\u2019s within that context, and in response to those factors that young people often harm themselves, others, and their futures as a way of processing their pain.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unspoken Pain: The Consequences of Suppressed Grief<\/b><\/h3>\n

\"\"When people are unable to express and process their traumatic experiences, they may act out their pain through self-destructive and risky behaviors. According to the<\/span> Centers for Disease Control<\/span><\/a>, adverse childhood experiences are directly correlated with a child developing mental illness, substance misuse issues, and health concerns that negatively impact their ability to learn. Continual exposure to trauma<\/span> creates \u201ctoxic stress,\u201d<\/span><\/a> which can lead to memory problems, difficulty learning, and behavioral challenges. Viewed through this lens, escalating rates of substance use, mental health turmoil, and acts of violence are evidence of the fact that young people are hurting, and lacking the support they need to thrive. <\/span>Pongo<\/span><\/a> exists to meet this need.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pongo\u2019s Mission: A Safe Space for Self-Expression<\/b><\/h3>\n

On a weekly basis, Pongo provides trauma-informed poetry workshops for young people across Seattle-area juvenile detention centers and residential psychiatric hospitals. While traumatic childhood experiences are all too common, as with all crises, those at the margins are impacted more intensely. According to a<\/span> 2020 Evermore report<\/span><\/a> on bereavement in the U.S., a staggering 90% of systems-impacted youth have suffered the death of a close loved one, with nearly two-thirds of those young people experiencing the violent loss of a loved one. Lacking an outlet for that pain, it often manifests itself in self-destructive behaviors among young people, with Evermore finding that one-quarter of systems-impacted youth join a gang in the aftermath of their loss.<\/span><\/p>\n

The young people we serve communicate a desire to be heard and empowered to describe their experiences on their own terms. And in Pongo workshops, our skilled, empathetic, and talented writing mentors offer youth just that. Our impact is facilitated through the connection that our poetry writing mentors cultivate with youth. Mentors who support young people in discovering, developing, and expressing their identities and their perspectives; and by bearing witness to their pain, hopes, stories, and creativity. With generous support from Evermore, Pongo has provided this transformative experience to systems-impacted youth during our 2024-2025 program year.<\/span><\/p>\n

A Poet\u2019s Journey: From Silence to Self-Expression<\/b><\/h3>\n

One of Pongo\u2019s flagship program sites in the Seattle area is the Echo Glen Children\u2019s Center; a juvenile rehabilitation facility for young people serving criminal sentences. As Arlene, a longtime Pongo mentor puts it, one of the privileges of engaging youth in Pongo poetry writing is being \u201cinvited into [their] moments of self-expression and revelation\u201d and observing their \u201ctransformation and sense of relief as [they] give voice to their feelings.\u201d Earlier this year, Pongo mentors worked with one youth writer whose poetry and personal story encapsulates the impact of poetry writing and mentorship that Arlene describes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cWhen we first sat down, this youth writer was clear with me that he did not consider himself a writer. Then he proceeded to write some of the most astonishingly beautiful poetry I’ve ever read, dedicated to his big brother. It was an honor to get to hear about many of the special memories he shared with someone he loved so much.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2013<\/span> Harley Tonelli<\/b><\/p>\n

Pongo Poetry Project Writing Mentor<\/b><\/h3>\n

\u201cA Wishing World\u201d comes from a Pongo youth writer at the Echo Glen Children\u2019s Center (their name, age and identifying details are not shared to protect their confidentiality). In the poem, reproduced below, this young person vividly recounts the heartbreaking scenes from the night of his brother\u2019s passing, and the depths of the pain he continues to feel after his loss:<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

T, when I look into your eyes, I just see myself.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Brother, I got you stuck in my head inside this cell.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When I walk inside that house<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I wish you could see me in here.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Talking to your mom, it hurts to hear her fear.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I remember the smell of that house and how we\u2019d rock them baggy jeans!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Brother life feels so much harder without you next to me.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I remember that night at the park<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When I remember that night it makes me wanna cry.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

We used to always hoop but since I lost you<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been feeling traumatized.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Brother, I remember I cried when your mama cried.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Listen, there is more to life than the eye can see.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

There is so much more than the life people live.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Life is short, not just in the life we live.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

So give it the most there is to give.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This piece, along with so many others, reminds us of the power in providing safe, judgment-free spaces for youth to articulate the suffering they too often carry silently. And while this youth writer movingly describes the debilitating impact of the loss of their brother, \u201cA Wishing Well\u201d closes on a more hopeful note that speaks to how self-expression supports young people in the wake of traumatic experiences.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Science Behind Expressive Writing<\/b><\/h3>\n

\"\"In the aftermath of childhood trauma, particularly for those lacking the support they need to recover from it, young people often feel stuck, unable to see beyond their most tragic moments. Clinical psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Ted Rynearson describes how exposure to violent death among young people is often followed by<\/span> \u201cprolonged signs of complicated and traumatic grief,\u201d<\/span><\/a> including depression, post-traumatic stress, nightmares, and flashbacks that persist for years after the loss itself. Many young people feel as though the pain and sorrow they\u2019ve experienced are definitional to who they are and their futures. Through the process of poetry writing, young people put their sorrow on the page, demonstrating to themselves that their traumatic experiences, while difficult, are just that; distinct events that they can process, draw meaning from, and most critically, move on from. Evaluation data from our programming shows that 74% of Pongo youth writers discussed a topic they had never shared before, and that 98% felt better after their Pongo experience. A study of the<\/span> \u201cRestorative Retelling\u201d intervention<\/span><\/a>, pioneered by Dr. Rynearson and designed to help survivors of violent deaths process their trauma and grief, demonstrated similarly promising results. Using a combination of Pongo-like writing activities along with other stress reduction techniques, the study found that depression and PTSD symptoms among violent death survivors \u201cdecreased significantly over the course of treatment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Creative expression is also a powerful tool for remedying the reticence and shame that many young people feel about communicating the traumas they\u2019ve endured. Harley, the talented mentor who helped facilitate \u201cA Wishing Well,\u201d noted that prior to authoring this moving piece, \u201cthis young person was clear\u201d that \u201che did not consider himself a writer.\u201d While this may seem jarring in the face of an affecting poem like \u201cA Wishing Well\u201d the sentiment is one we frequently encounter among the young people we serve.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pongo\u2019s work aligns with research-backed interventions such as <\/span>Restorative Retelling<\/span><\/i>, which has been shown to significantly reduce PTSD and depression symptoms in grieving youth. Our data reinforces this impact:<\/span><\/p>\n