TRIGGER WARNING!
This website contains poetry and true stories about trauma, personality disorders, suicidal thoughts, self-harming, depression and other significant mental health issues, as well as personal stories of emotional neglect and physical and sexual abuse, which some people might find disturbing.
Poetry for Mental Health
Supporting people with mental health challenges by motivating and inspiring them to write poetry.
Reminder: we rely on the support of our readers to keep going, so please donate to help us continue publishing and promoting poetry for mental health.
"Poetry for Mental Health has supported thousands of people around the world through words and poetry!"
"Formed at the outbreak of COVID by helping people cope mentally by inspiring them to write poetry; five years, seven books, hundreds of poets, and thousands of pieces of poetry later, we are still inspiring people to write poetry for positive mental health! With around 1400 visitors each and every month,
Poetry for Mental Health
is now probably the largest and most visited website for poetry and mental health on the net!"
~
"No matter what your age, background and experience, culture or identity; whether an established writer with many published titles to your credit, or an aspiring poet who has never written a word of poetry in your life, our philosophy here is to embrace, welcome and support everyone, everywhere suffering from mental health challenges, and help you cope through words and poetry ...
Get writing!"
ROBIN BARRATT
Founder POETRY FOR MENTAL HEALTH
This Weekend's Featured Poetry
13/14th Sept, 2025
REAL
By Emme
I look at the photo, it feels fake
Fake because my smile doesn't reach my eyes
It looks real and I say I’m fine but inside the silence screams
Fake because making it feel real would mean having to show the scars
The scars that only ache with pain
Not the pain of the cut
But the suffering
The pain that makes me feel real.
ABOUT THE POEM:
"I'm a young adult who has faced a lot of health issues in recent years, and poetry has helped me express my emotions. While my struggles were physical, they took a toll on my mental health.."
More Featured Poetry ...
On the themes of mental health, from hundreds of poets around the world.
COMING SOON ...
Our new online Poetry for Mental Health Writing Course will be available again soon!
We are established internationally as one of the leading resources for poetry and mental health and, over the past five years, have supported hundreds people across the world and showcased thousands of pieces of poetry! If you already write poetry, but would like to further develop your skills and style, or have not written a word of poetry in your life, but would like to start, then this course will be perfect for you. Aimed specifically at writing poetry for mental health, the course will be set over 10 modules, with questions and exercises at the end of each course, and at the end of the course you will get a certificate of completion. Also, a selection of your work from the course will be published in
an anthology of poetry just
featuring students of our course (you will, of course, receive a copy too*). Further details will be online shortly, in the meantime,
contact us to register your interest.
"Why is poetry so very good for people with mental health challenges? Because it helps them see the world in their own way, and in a way that makes sense to them ..."
Robin Barratt
Our Books
Click on the covers for further details of all our titles. With thousands of contributions from hundreds of writers and poets around the world, our anthologies are probably some of the largest collections on mental health ever published. Please buy a copy -
ALL
profits from the sales of our titles go towards promoting and publishing poetry for positive mental health.
"People can benefit from writing poetry because it can take the images and the talk in your head and transfer it to paper. It’s like getting the words out
of your head so that they don’t linger there."
Nadine Dunseith
Personal Journeys
In their own words, SIXTEEN incredible writers and poets write about their own personal journey with mental health.
Interviews
Poetry for Mental Health chats to eight amazing writers and poets about their journey with mental health.
Featured Poets
Featuring over SEVENTY poets around the world, with up to six pieces of their work, and a little about the author and the stories behind their work.
NEW - Featured Books
A NEW service promoting books and publications on the themes of mental health by poets and writers around the world.
MORE ONLINE SHORTLY ...
Articles
Articles about poetry and positive mental health.
Other ...
Directory of Support Services
Charities, groups and organisations worldwide offering mental health help and support to people in crisis.
Mental Health First Aid
Identifying warning signs of common mental health crisis, and how to guide a person towards safety and appropriate help. More info ...
Self-Publishing Services
We publish books for other people too! Poetry for Mental Health also helps writers and poets self-publish their own titles via Amazon's global publishing platforms.
Mental Health Awareness
Safer Minds believes everyone, everywhere should have some awareness of basic mental health.
Merchandise ...
Mental Health Support Stickers
AVAILABLE SHORTLY ... 15 cm x 7.5 cm front adhesive stickers for your shop front, office window, entrance way, business/private vehicle window etc., demonstrating that mental health / crisis support is available for your employees/general public. Con post internationally. Contact us for further details and prices.
Newletter
Be kept updated with our news and calls for submissions. We'll never send you more than one email a month!
“No matter how bad something may seem at that moment in time when you feel all is lost, it can get better if you can only give it more time."
Lynda Tavakoli
NOTE ON CONTRIBUTIONS: We publish mental health poetry from around the world, and for a number contributors to this website, English is not their first language. Unlike some other platforms, we don't heavily edit a poet's own work (if we did, it would then not be their own work!), so please focus on a poet's messages and meanings, and not necessarily on any grammatical mistakes or translated imperfections that may arise within their contribution.