Why Journaling is Life-Changing

As a child and teenager, journaling in my diary was a way for me to express the words and feelings I didn’t feel I could vulnerably share with others. I was a creative outlet, too, because my imagination needed the escape from feeling awkward and disconnected from my peers. As I’ve grown older and more busy, I find myself with less time to journal but in need of it more than ever.

Journaling is a form of expressive writing; a place to process stress, trauma, experiences, and different emotions. For a lot of people, like my younger self, it may be the only safe space to vulnerably express oneself. Others may use journaling as a way to track and record their daily thoughts and habits — creating an accountability space to measure and document their progress — whether managing a mental health condition or changing unhealthy behaviors.

So, why should you journal? And why is it “life-changing” as the title reads?

1. It’s an evidenced-based, powerful strategy and coping skill for mental conditions (i.e., anxiety and depression)

   • research shows that journaling can help one accept their negative emotions instead of resisting or avoiding them, leading to long-lasting positive impact

   • expressing gratitude can also decrease the severity of depressive symptoms, valuable with long term studies

2. Stress management

   • writing privately about stressful events and expressing your thoughts and emotions on paper can ease the distress you feel when overwhelmed

   • processing your emotions in writing can also give you clarity and increases the likelihood of reaching out for support

   • emotional healing and resilience to stress in increased, according to research

3. Reflection

   • If you had a chance to read the last blog post on self-awareness, you remember that journaling can improve healthy self-awareness levels

   • creating space and distance from negative thoughts by journaling helps to identify where we are and what is ahead

   • observing your thoughts instead of being in them - cognitive defusion - is also helpful when needing to accept our feelings and commit to making a change

4. Recovery

   • journaling can help individuals express experiences and recover from their emotional trauma associated with PTSD

   • according to research, using journaling as a form of visualization, can also aid in helpful mindfulness based stress reduction, especially that associated with war veterans

   • addiction recovery also benefits from journaling practices and interventions, as it helps individuals recognize the positives about recovery, achieve meaningful short-term goals, and increase their sense of optimism and pride in themselves

5. Emotional regulation

   • research studies that conducted brain scans showed that people who wrote about their feelings we're better able to manage and regulate them; it also found that writing about feelings in an abstract way was more calming than writing vividly

Although there are more positives to journaling, each person has to commit to it for themselves to experience the life-changing benefits. So, how do you start?

• Write on paper first

• Make it a habit by sticking to a time of day that’s good for you

• Keep it simple, like a identifying a gratitude for the day

• Do what feels right to you

• Get creative; you don’t have to write in paragraph format! Try poetry, drawing, song lyrics, or even bullet journaling

• Expressive writing about a stressful or emotional event can help you narrate

• Don’t set your expectations too high

• Try guided journals with prompts and reflections

Ready to start? Grab your journal and a pen and begin where it feels write. Want to start with prompts or reflection? Enter this Mental Health Awareness Month Giveaway I’ve collaborated on with Switch Research for a chance to with over $500 worth of journals on self-love, emotions, and boundaries!