Write on! 5 reasons journaling helps with anxiety
Look, I’m not so far on the happy, healthy hype that I don’t realise that some of the techniques out there could still seem a bit, well, ‘woo woo’. But that’s just one of the reasons I love seeing people benefit when they give something like journaling a go…
For example, you wouldn’t think a big corporate boardroom full of city slickers would be your prime audience for that kind of thing. But when I introduced it to a sceptical (but open) group, it turned out to be just what those busy, business brains had been craving all along.
If you’re new to guided journaling, it went something like this…
✍️ First, I got everyone to sit in silence with their thoughts for a full five minutes. (Doesn’t sound long, does it? But if you’re not used to stillness it can feel lengthy!)
✍️ I told them to allow any thoughts to come into their mind, to let go of the need to push them away or keep their feelings under control and just let them flow.
✍️ Then, when the time was up, we simply put the experience to paper – “brain dumping” as it’s sometimes called! Recalling what came up in those five minutes with themselves in writing, drawing, scribbles… whatever!
✍️ I was amazed to see every one of them writing line after line in the journals they’d been given, and the feedback was fantastic. One person told me “I didn’t think I’d write so much! It was actually incredibly cathartic…”
So, why is it such a powerful practice?
Simply put, journaling is a means to let all that ‘stuff’ that builds up in our heads (and bodies!) come out on paper.
It can be poetic lines or incoherent scribbles, a way to set goals, express gratitude or explore your thoughts in a deeper way. It doesn’t even matter if it makes sense, cos nobody (including yourself!) ever has to read it again!
For me, I find it often helps me get to the bottom of why I may be feeling a little low, anxious or unsettled. But that’s not all…
Here’s 5 more reasons why you should give journaling a go:
#1 IT HELPS TO UNEARTH TRIGGERS 🤔
With anxiety we will often have something that triggers the feelings and journaling can be a great way of uncovering what they could be. In fact, it was getting my thoughts down on paper that helped me to piece together the triggers behind my anxiety-induced IBS, so I could address and reduce the chance of it happening.
#2 IT IMPROVES HAPPINESS 😊
A Harvard study found that expressing gratitude can increase positive feelings and overall happiness! Our busy lives don’t leave much space for expressing gratitude – but journaling does. A prompt at the end of your journaling session could simply be ‘what am I grateful for today?’ It’s a simple but effective question because no matter how small the thing, it helps us feel more content.
#3 IT’S A STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL 💆
We deal with stress every day and long term, that pressure can lead to all kinds of ailments and illnesses – but the small act of journaling could genuinely help. Emptying your thoughts at the end of a challenging day helps alleviate some of that mental strain and bring your stress levels back down.
#4 IT CAN HELP ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS 🎯
Anxiety has a nasty habit of making us feel like we’re struggling to achieve anything. By using journaling time to set small, realistic goals (even if it’s just to walk daily or practice breath-work) we can generate the motivation and headspace to overcome procrastination elsewhere in our lives.
#5 IT LESSENS MENTAL DISTRESS 🥰
Mindful gratitude journaling can be a powerful tool for encouraging a positive, healthy mindset during times when we may be struggling. Remember – what we feed our mind directly feeds our bodies – which is why journaling can have physical, as well as mental benefits.
Ready to give it a go? If you don’t know where to start and would like to try a guided experience, then check out my 7 Day Journaling course for Stress and Anxiety reduction. You can do it at your own pace and it’s been specifically designed to help you explore and move through your own anxieties and stresses! It also has a bonus meditation & breath-work practise included to help you when you’re feeling tirggered or anxious.