“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” – William Wordsworth
Journaling as Therapy
Many of us have tried journaling at one point or another. Maybe you had a “Dear Diary” phase as a bright-eyed 8-year-old clutching your journal and fuzzy pink pen in hand with the key hanging around your neck. Or maybe it was in high school with your compact notebook covered in band stickers and filled with bad (I mean beautiful and totally genius) poetry. Or perhaps, it was as a young adult, diligently recording your days in that smooth moleskin journal sipping a latte.
All of those experiences are wonderful and valid and probably beneficial in so many ways. But journaling as therapy is a bit different than the process of writing poetry or even recording daily events. Therapeutic Journaling is a deeper dive into your internal experiences- exploring your thoughts, emotions, and experiences as a way to gain perspective, work through challenges, and heal your heart.
How does Journaling help?
More and more research is emerging in recent years that writing heals. Expressing your emotions and thoughts through the written word has been shown to have measurable positive effects both physically and mentally. Writing therapy has helped people:
- Improve the severity of IBS symptoms
- Reduce blood pressure
- Lower effective rheumatoid arthritis pain
- Reduce anxiety and depression
- Lower depression, thoughts about trauma, and behavioral issues in kids with trauma
- Improve immune system functioning
- Reduce the time it takes to fall asleep
- Improve body image
- Process grief and loss
The Basics
This particular form of writing therapy is a 4-day process where you write about the same thing for 15-20 minutes a day. Try thinking of an emotionally upsetting event that has impacted you recently or in the past. This should be something personal and important to your life but not so deeply traumatic that working on the memory alone would be unwise (you know this if thinking about the experience causes severe depression, flashbacks, panic attacks, nightmares, or intense, prolonged anxiety).
Once you have a topic, do the following:
- Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed
- Get a notebook, journal, or even your laptop
- Write continuously for 15-20 minutes (it can help to set a timer)
- Keep your breathing slow and even
- As you write, scan your body for any tension and release it again and again
- If you don’t know what else to write, re-write what you’ve already written until the time is up
Things to Keep in Mind:
- This is for your eyes only (unless you’d like to share with a trusted loved one or therapist), so don’t worry about grammar, spelling, or even style.
- It is normal to feel a bit sad or down after writing, especially after the first time. Plan ahead of time to take some time alone afterward to support yourself through any difficult emotions with compassion and kindness.
- If you become panicked, depressed, or dysregulated, stop the exercise and check in with your mental health support team.
Here’s Where It Gets Interesting
The practice may actually work best when you don’t want to do it. Turns out, as I share with my clients all of the time, you don’t need motivation, confidence, or even desire.
And, you don’t need to see yourself as “a writer,” think you are any good (not the point), or even buy a pink diary with a lock (don’t worry- you totally can if you want to).
All you need is willingness.
Try it out for 4 days, and then come back here to tell us what you noticed!
Still not satisfied? Attend my free phone consultation at AUM Integral Wellness to see which of my therapy or counseling would be the best fit for you.
Resources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3505408/
https://www.va.gov/WHOLEHEALTHLIBRARY/tools/therapeutic-journaling.asp
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