Journaling doesn’t have to just be “Dear diary, today was a great day … blah, blah, blah”, it can be so much more!
A journal is something that is personal to you. Yes you can write about your day and how it made you feel, but make it fun, creative and meaningful to you.
There are so many benefits to journaling:
- It can help to ease stress and anxiety by letting out both good and bad thoughts.
- It can help your mental health and well-being.
- It can give you a focus and a plan of what you want.
- It can take as long or as quick as you want it to, from a few minutes to an hour, daily, weekly, monthly. The choice is yours
Here are a few hints and tips to help you get your journaling journey started.
- Make lists
– a gratitude list, all the things that you have been grateful for that day, week or even month.
– a to do list, what you want to get done by the end of the day, week, month or year.
– a bucket list, all the things youreally want to do before your journey ends. Go BIG!
- Manifest
– focus on what you really want to have. Write it as though it is already yours, what it looks like, smells like, feels like. Keep it positive and show gratitude for it.
- Affirmations
– writing a positive affirmation helps to keep you positive, if this is something that you find difficult then start small such as “I’ve got this!” or “I am strong”.
– affirmations can help to retrain your brain. If you struggle with your self-esteem, regularly repeating a positive affirmation to yourself can help to break the pattern of jumping to negative thoughts and will also boost your confidence, its even better if you can do it infront of the mirror.
- Write a letter
- this could be to someone who has upset you, you keep going over and over what happened but don’t feel like you can talk to them about it. This can be a helpful way to get closure from it and move forward, especially if you've been struggling with forgiveness.
– a letter to yourself. This could be your future self writing to you now. Like manifesting, write a letter to yourself about what your ‘new’ life looks like, feels like, tastes like, smells like, sounds like.
- Or maybe you want to write a letter to your childhood self, telling yourself how things are going to turn out, maybe all of the lessons you’ve learned, this can also be a nice reminder to yourself of the fun things you used to do as a child.
- Be creative
– include doodles
– include stickers
– try some stamping
– add photographs
- add colour
The most important thing to remember when journaling is to have fun and enjoy it.
