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A great way to escape the chaos of life is to open up a journal and write down your thoughts. There are countless benefits of journaling for self-care, and number one of course is to take care of yourself! Journaling can help you to de-stress, reflect on your day, and work through your thoughts and feelings. It can also help you to become more mindful and present in the moment. Taking some time for yourself each day to journal can make a big difference in your overall well-being.
Getting Started
One of the best things about expressive writing is that it’s a great way to focus on yourself. When you’re writing in a diary, you’re able to pour out your thoughts and feelings onto the page without having to worry about what other people think. This can be extremely liberating and can help you to better understand your own thoughts and feelings.
Another great thing about expressive writing is that it’s very easy to do. All you need is a blank notebook and a pen, pencil, or marker. You can write about anything you want, and there’s no right or wrong way to do it. This can make it a great activity for when you’re feeling creative, when you are feeling down or when you just want to get your thoughts down on paper.
So if you’re looking for a way to focus on yourself and better understand your own thoughts and feelings, expressive writing is definitely worth a try. Grab a notebook and a pen and give it a go!
But if you want to turn it up a notch, this Erin Condren Self-Care Journal is a great way to get started on your journaling journey. It has all the prompts to really get you in the right headspace and help you search within. Guided journals are my favorite way to get journaling.
Beware of all the bells and whistles you may find on the internet. I know that for me, when searching for self-care journaling inspiration, I came across bullet journal inspiration and many others. I wanted to try to so many things at the same time. Start with one journaling system and try it for a while before you try new things
Let’s Jump Into the Benefits of Journaling
Stress and Anxiety Relief
We all know that writing can be therapeutic. It can help us to vent our frustrations, work through our problems, and even gain clarity on our thoughts and feelings. But did you know that writing can also be a great way to reduce stress and anxiety?
When we’re feeling stressed, it’s often because we’re carrying around a lot of negative thoughts and emotions. These can feel like they’re weighing us down, and it can be tough to let them go. But when we write them down, we’re literally releasing them from our minds and putting them on paper. This can help us to feel lighter and less burdened.
Writing can also be a great way to reflect on our emotions and figure out what’s really going on. Oftentimes, we may not even realize how stressed we are until we start writing about our feelings. But once we see them on paper, it becomes easier to deal with them.
So if you’re feeling stressed, try grabbing a pen and paper, and let all your thoughts and emotions flow out. You may be surprised at how much better you feel afterwards.
Improving Memory
You know how it is. You’re in a meeting and someone says something important. You want to remember it, so you write it down. But later, when you go to look at your notes, you can’t find the important thing. It’s just not there.
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. It turns out that the physical action of writing something down on a page will help you remember it better. This goes far beyond note-taking and having your notes handy for later use.
It turns out that journaling allows your brain to offload some of your working memory so you can focus on other things. Working memory is the part of your brain that allows you to hold onto information for a short period of time so you can use it.
But it’s not just that writing things down helps you remember them better. It also helps you to process the information more deeply. When you write, you force yourself to organize your thoughts and put them into words. This process of encoding the information in a different way helps you to learn it better.
So, if you want to remember something important, write it down in a journal. You’ll be glad you did!
Per science daily.com:
“A study of Japanese university students and recent graduates has revealed that writing on physical paper can lead to more brain activity when remembering the information an hour later.” Source.
Tracking your personal growth
Personally, I have been writing in a journal for the last 22 years of my life (ever since I was a child). Coming back to my early entries, my entries from my adolescence and early 20s, I can take a look back and see what were my priorities, what was important for me then, and how I was feeling and dealing with things at the time. I can see how my writing has evolved over time and what topics I have been more drawn to writing about.
Of course, you don’t have to chronicle everything that happens in the course of your life, but having that point of reference can be really important for you in a moment. For example, if you’re feeling lost or uncertain about your next steps, going back and reading about what you were feeling or what you were doing at a similar time in your life can give you some clues or insights.
Journaling is a great way to track your personal development and growth. It allows you to look back on your life and see how far you’ve come. You create a snapshot of what you were like in the past and who you want to be in the future. Journaling is not only about the moment, it is about that collection of entries it is about all the feelings behind what you wrote. It also allows you to process your feelings and figure out what you want for your future.
Personal development is an important part of a happy and fulfilling life. Journaling is a great way to help you figure out who you are, what you want, and where you want to go. If you’re not sure where to start, try writing about your day-to-day life. What are your thoughts and feelings? What are your goals and aspirations? What makes you happy?
No matter what you journal about, journaling is a great way to learn more about yourself and figure out what you want in life. So, don’t be afraid to start writing!
Keeping a Record of your memories
When you take pictures of special moments in your life, it can be a great way to recall those moments and bring you back to what happened that day. Keeping a journal can also help you remember what you were thinking and feeling at that moment.
Capturing lovely moments with your camera or phone can be a great way to keep those memories alive. But if you want to really freeze that moment in time, keeping a journal can be a powerful tool. Not only will you be able to remember what happened, but you’ll also be able to recall your thoughts and feelings at that time.
Whether it’s a special event like a birthday or holiday, or just a moment that was particularly meaningful to you, taking the time to journal about it can help you keep those memories alive for years to come.
If you have a partner, it can be a great exercise for both of you to journal together and read your entries later on. My favorite way to loop in my partner into my journaling routine is using this 2-Person Journal. Your memory-keeping journaling routine doesn’t just have to be for yourself. Don’t be afraid to include a loved one.
Self Discovery and Self Healing
Your journal is a powerful tool for mental health. It can be a safe space to explore your thoughts and feelings, and to work through anything that is troubling you. Writing down your innermost thoughts can help you to understand yourself better, and can be a way to forgive those who have hurt you. Forgiving others is not about them – it’s about you, and about giving yourself the opportunity to move on and heal.
It is also a tool to help you connect with yourself, discover who you are, and what your purpose in life is as well as forgive those who have hurt you. You don’t have to tell them you forgive them. This is for you because forgiveness is for yourself, for you to grow and heal.
If you are someone who seeks to be productive and reach your goals, you can’t always achieve those things without first healing deep wounds within yourself. Of course, journaling is not the only way to do it, seeing a counselor may be an important part of your self-healing process as well but keeping up with a diary can certainly help.
Not sure where to start? Check out these prompts:
- What are the qualities that make you unique and special?
- What are your passions in life?
- What are your biggest fears and how do you deal with them?
- What are your biggest accomplishments?
- What do you want your life to look like in 10 years?
- If you could have one wish, what would it be?
- What is your biggest regret and how do you move on from it?
- What defines you as a person?
- Who are the most important people in your life?
- What do you love most about yourself?
DOWNLOAD THESE PRINTABLE JOURNALING PROMPTS BELOW!
Erin Condren Guided Journals
You can start journaling with a plain old notebook and a pen but why not try some high-quality, lovely journals for the best writing experience? Erin Condren Journals and Notebooks are my absolute favorite! Here are some that I am sure you will enjoy.
- This Dot Grid Notebook provides more space to be creative. I love using a dot-grid notebook to be able to doodle and add pictures. This particular one also includes stickers that you can use to make lists!
- This Guided Gratitude Journal can really help you get in the positive mindset and reflect on things that you are thankful for. Gratitude is an important step in your daily routine and this journal can help you get started!
- If you are working towards your dream, this Vision Journal can help put all of your thoughts in one place and help you work towards that dream.
- This is the ultimate Self-Care Journal that helps you track your wellness progress. Track your moods, your sleep, and take some time to just reflect on yourself. This is a journal that ensures that you really take time and track your own wellness progress. We all need that accountability don’t we?
- This Wellness Journal is mainly focused on your physical health. If wellness is your focus, this is an excellent way to start.
Writing in your journal is such an important tool to your personal growth and success. If your mind is not in the right place, oftentimes you are not able to perform other tasks that you want to accomplish. So get out there and put your pen to paper!
Start journaling today, download free self-care and Self-Discovery journaling prompts:
