When you were a teenager, you might have kept a diary hidden beneath your mattress. It became your confidant and a place to confess your struggles and fears without judgment or punishment. It probably felt good to get all of those thoughts and emotions out of your head and down on paper. The world seemed clearer.
Although you may have ditched the diary once you
reached adulthood, the concept and its benefits still apply. Now it’s called
journaling. It's simply writing down your thoughts and feelings to understand
them more clearly. And if you struggle with stress, depression, or anxiety,
keeping a journal can help you gain control of your emotions and improve your
mental health.
Journaling benefits
One of the ways to deal with any overwhelming
emotion is to find a healthy outlet in which to express yourself, which makes a
journal a helpful tool in managing your mental health. Journaling can help:
² Manage
anxiety
² Reduce
stress
² Cope
with depression
Journaling helps control your symptoms
and improve your mood by:
l Helping
you prioritize problems, fears, and concerns
l Tracking
any symptoms day-to-day so that you can recognize triggers and learn ways to
better control them
l Providing
an opportunity for positive self-talk and identifying negative thoughts and
behaviors
When you have a problem and you're stressed, keeping
a journal can help you identify what’s causing that stress or anxiety. Then,
once you’ve identified your stressors, you can work on a plan to resolve the
problems and, in turn, reduce stress.
Keep in mind that journaling is just one aspect of a
healthy lifestyle for better managing stress, anxiety, and mental health
conditions. To get the most benefits, be sure you also:
l Relax
and meditate each day.
l Eat
a nutritious, balanced diet.
l Exercise regularly—get in some activity every day.
l Treat
yourself to plenty of sleep each night.
l Avoid
alcohol and drugs.
Use your journal to make sure you follow these
guidelines daily.
How to journal
Try these tips to help you get started with
journaling:
l Try
to write every day. To encourage yourself to write in your journal regularly,
set aside a few minutes every day.
l Make
it easy. Keep a pen and paper handy at all times so that when you want to jot
down your thoughts, you can. You can also keep a journal in a computer file.
l Write
whatever feels right. Your journal doesn't need to follow any particular
structure. It's your own private arena to discuss whatever you want. Let the
words flow freely without worrying about spelling mistakes or what other people
might think.
l Use
your journal as you see fit. You don't have to share your journal with anyone.
If you do want to share some of your thoughts with trusted friends and loved
ones but don't want to talk about them out loud, you could show them parts of
your journal.
Keeping a journal helps you establish order when
your world feels like it’s in chaos. It helps you get to know yourself by
revealing your innermost fears, thoughts, and feelings. Look at your writing
time as personal relaxation time, a time when you de-stress and wind down.
Write in a place that's relaxing and soothing—maybe with a cup of tea. Look
forward to your journaling time, and know that you're doing something good for
your mind and body.
No comments:
Post a Comment