What is journaling?
“Writing is medicine. It is an appropriate antidote to injury. It is an appropriate companion for any difficult change.” – Julia Cameron
Journaling is simply a record of our thoughs and feelings. There is no rule or particular way to do it. but different way to journal will bring different benefits.
Overall it is a powerful tool to connect with ourselves on a deeper level.
Benefits of journaling
Researchers Smith et al showed that journaling can improve significantly wellbeing and mental health.
The main benefits are:
- Managing anxiety
- Reducing stress
- Coping with depression
- Connecting with ourselves
- Prioritize your problems & fears
- Tracking to find the triggers – awareness and finding solutions
- Identify negative thoughts and behaviors
- Clarify your thoughts and feelings
- Get to know yourself better.
- Find a new perspective on things
How to use a journal?
How to get started
Take a first step
Make it as simple as possible ot make sure you find it s positive experience.
Start journaling with what you have
I have worked with women who have used very different tools to get started.
- writing in a blank doc on your laptop
- using a note-taking or voice app on your phone
- putting pen to paper
Which kind of journaling?
I explain all the different kind of journaling you can use in my FREE guide, you can download it at the bottom of this page.
But the most important thing is to connect to WHY do you want to journal? What emotions or state are you trying to solve or connect with?
This will in turn help you to choose:
Morning pages
The best way to start to find a connection with who you are, what is happening in your life and where you want to go.
One important thing about Morning pages is to just let your pen flow…and if you don’t know what to write about, write: I don’t know what to write.
You might have to write this 10/20/30 times before your mind bring something up.
This is the whole point of the excercise. To disconnect your reasoning and allow a deep connection to your mind and what your subconcious and spiritual connections are trying to show you.
I remember one week when I wrote every single day: I am tired. I am so tired…. it took a whole week for me to realise it wasn’t normal to wake up and feel like this every single day. So I took steps towards changing my routine in the evening, taling magnesium supplements and slowly improved my sleep.
There have been times when I couldn’t do it in the morning or when 3 pages felt too much…I adapted. I wrote one page or I did it later int he day.
There is no strong set of rules here. Just a tool.
Let it all out
Write whatever thoughts and feelings arise, without censoring yourself. It’s your journal, so you can write whatever you want.
To resist the temptation to edit, try writing as fast as possible.
As I explain in my guide, you can then stop there and move on or if you feel overwhelmed by a huge list of things on your to do list, then follow the steps I describe on the page “the big brain dump”
Make journaling a habit
If you like structure, journal at the same time every day.
You can also anchor your journaling to a well-established habit to make it more likely you’ll stick with it. For example, journal:
- before or after a nightly prayer
- first thing inn the morning
- during a lunch break
Avoid re-reading your entries too early
Let it sit. Whatever your wrote needs to settle. A few weeks later then you can look through and bring out positives or lessons.
But it is worth staying away from the raw details of difficult situations. If you feel there are still emotions about this, journal some more or use a prompt to focus on a positive aspect or a gratitude journaling task.
Creative journaling for calm and mindfulness
It can be good to also just allow your creative mind to take over to simply be present without any goal.
Read my guide for ideas.
Avoid re-reading too early
Let it sit. Whatever your wrote needs to settle. A few weeks later then you can look through and bring out positives or lessons.
But it is worth staying away from the raw details of difficult situations. If you feel there are still emotions about this, journal some more or use a prompt to focus on a positive aspect or a gratitude journaling task.
Explore a prompt
Prompts are a powerful way to get to know yourself better. They’re also great when you aren’t sure what to journal about.
You can buy a journal which will give you prompts every day or use the prompts in the guide below.
So finally...how to journal?
It is not school, you can’t be wrong. Just start and if it doesn’t work anymore, try another, there is no right way to.
So go on, download the guide now and start.
To receive your FREE guide to journaling, sign up below.
