“Caring feels like towels.”
“Smells like sweat.”
“Sounds like silence.”
These are not lines from a published anthology, but heartfelt expressions from unpaid carers who meet every month in a quiet online space to write, reflect, and reconnect—through poetry.

Welcome to the Ealing Carers Poetry Workshop, an online community gathering for carers, hosted on the last Friday of each month at 6 PM. It’s free, friendly, and, for many, deeply healing.

Why Poetry? Why Now?

For unpaid carers, life is often consumed by routines, responsibilities, and quiet sacrifices. There’s little time to stop and process the emotional weight of the role, let alone articulate it. That’s where poetry comes in.

Poetry doesn’t demand polished grammar or clever rhymes. It simply asks:
What do you feel?
And from that question, remarkable truths begin to emerge.

In a recent session, one carer described how “caring tastes like sweet and sour”—a vivid metaphor for the moments of tenderness mixed with exhaustion, patience, and the daily challenge of giving so much of oneself.

Another shared, “Caring feels like a balloon… slowly inflating until it might burst.”
The group nodded. They understood. No further explanation needed.

More Than Words

Each workshop is a gentle hour of guided prompts, group sharing (if you feel like it), and poetic reflection. Some come to listen. Some come to write. All leave feeling a little more grounded, and a little less alone.

Here’s what you can expect:

• Creative prompts to help spark inspiration
• No pressure to share if you’re not ready
• A safe, confidential space led with empathy
• A supportive community that “gets” the highs and lows of caring
• Gentle encouragement to save and revisit your poetry as a personal record

One participant put it perfectly:

“You don’t have to be a poet. You just need to be willing to put words to what you feel.”

Healing Through Expression

We often talk about self-care for carers, poetry is one powerful, practical form. It’s a creative release that helps untangle emotions that don’t have easy answers. It can reflect joy, grief, humour, fatigue, hope. It can be messy. It can be raw. But above all, it’s yours.

As the facilitator beautifully says,

“Poetry holds up a mirror. What you see in it is up to you.”

For many carers, this monthly workshop has become a lifeline. A moment of peace. A reminder that their experiences matter.

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If you are an unpaid carer, then Join Us – You Are Welcome

Whether you’re new to writing or simply curious, we invite you to take an hour for yourself.

🗓️ When: Last Friday of every month
🕕 Time: 6:00 PM (UK time)
🌐 Where: Online – attend from the comfort of your own home
🎟️ Reserve your free place here:
👉 Ealing Carers Poetry Workshop – Eventbrite

Grab a notebook. Pour a cup of tea. Come write with us.