No matter who you are, a great deal of your day likely revolves around writing. We write when we blog, compose a tweet or Facebook status update, or even text a friend. The type of writing you do on a daily basis varies depending on the person, but there’s one specific type of writing that can prove useful for anyone: journaling.
Journaling is the practice of writing for an audience of one: yourself. It can be a valuable asset during stressful, trying times. Let’s take a closer look at the many benefits of journaling and writing, and how it can help you keep your mind organized while also giving you a great outlet for your daily thoughts. Here’s why you should start journaling.
It’s great for your mental health
Before discussing the many benefits of journaling, let’s address one of the most important ways it can help you: it can have wondrous impacts on your mental health. According to the University of Rochester Medical Center, journaling can:
- Help you manage anxiety
- Reduce stress
- Assist in coping with depression
Journaling can have a therapeutic impact on those who participate in it. That’s not to say it’s a catch-all that will solve all your problems. It’s just one component of an overall healthy approach to life. It’s vital to take other measures to ensure your physical and mental health. But if you have a particular issue in your life you’re having trouble dealing with, collecting your thoughts and writing them down can go a long way in helping you figure them out.
It helps you work out your own opinions on a topic
Let’s say you’ve come to a crossroads in your life. For example, imagine you’ve been offered your dream job. However, taking that job will require moving across the country. That kind of decision isn’t easy to make and can have reverberating effects on your future.
So why not journal about it? Journaling can help you assess your decisions or opinions on a variety of topics. You can explore your own thinking, internally discuss the pros and cons, and potentially come to a decision. By giving yourself time to think and write about something, you help crystallize your thoughts and determine what’s the best choice for you.
When you fixate on a specific problem or person for too long, it can distract you from other aspects of your life. Journaling forces you to confront this issue head-on, working out your own thoughts or feelings. You can engage in some well-needed self-discovery.
By simply sitting down, giving your brain a problem to work out, and writing until you have a solution, you can confront all aspects of it and come to an informed decision. It will help you sharpen and improve your critical thinking skills and ability.
You’ll begin to understand why you think and act the way you do
As an extension of problem-solving, reviewing old journal posts can begin to expose patterns in your thoughts and activities. Having your habits documented is particularly useful if you have a habit you want to change.
Everyone has something about themselves they may want to improve. For some, it may be their eating habits. If you have a particular unhealthy food you eat a bit too much, you can write about your thoughts and feelings every time you eat said food. A pattern may begin to emerge. You’ll see what emotions or activities lead to your poor habits. Conversely, you can also record any good habits like getting a good night’s rest and exercising, and see what emotions led you to make those decisions as well.
Some people keep journals for a specific activity (such as a food journal or a sleep diary) to examine and change the way they behave. By writing down what you do, you’ll begin to understand why you think and act a certain way. A journal can be the first step on the journey to a better you.
Creatively, it can give you a boost
There’s a distinction between journaling and creative, narrative writing. Creative writing involves telling a story of some kind (that story can be fiction or non-fiction). Journaling is a specific kind of writing meant to document one’s life, experiences, or thoughts. That’s not to say journaling can’t be creative, but understand that it’s different from other kinds of writing.
However, if you do participate in creative writing either for fun or professionally, journaling can help there. You can use the ideas and thoughts you capture in your journal to inspire your other forms of writing. Journaling can also be a good way to kickstart your creative juices when you’ve hit a nasty patch of writer’s block.
You’ll be able to remember things easier
Another simple way journaling can help you is that you’ll be able to remember things much easier because you’ve written them down. Your reason for keeping a journal may vary, and while all journals involve documentation of some kind, the way you document information will differ depending on how you organize information within your brain. Some like to keep a free-flowing, stream-of-consciousness approach to journaling. Some approach it like a diary. Others can keep to-do lists or reminders within their entries. However you document, you’ll be able to look back on what you wrote and keep track of important information much easier.
You’re provided a window into your past self
All of the benefits listed above can help you grow or evolve as a person. The final benefit is that a journal can help you keep track of that evolution. Think of it as a scrapbook for your soul. Whether it’s personal development or milestones from throughout your life, your journal can provide a window into how you processed information at a particular point in time. Imagine 20-25 years from now, when you’re looking back at this time in your life. Wouldn’t it be great to have a reading companion to go with your memories? A journal can help bring your past self to life in more ways than one, exploring your identity both then and now.
In short, journaling is a wonderfully healthy habit to practice for multiple reasons. Whether it’s addressing your mental health, your decision-making ability, your habits/actions, your memory, or just giving you a convenient way to look back on your own history, journaling is worth it. No matter what you want to get out of it, journaling can be a healthy and fruitful exercise for anyone at any stage in life.
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