Tips to help with your mental health #2 - Journaling

You may have heard people talking about journaling before but not really understood how or why it’s so helpful. First of all, it’s important to recognise that there’s a big difference between journaling and keeping a diary. A diary is usually just a record of day to day activities whereas journaling is about reflecting around thoughts, feelings, behaviours and experiences. Think of it like a diary is about the content of your day and a journal is about the process that goes on for you during that day.

With journaling, there are no hard and fast rules. You choose the focus of your entry; it may be something that happened to you today, feelings or thoughts that are on your mind, a trauma from the past, an unhealthy behaviour or decision on your part, trying to understand your emotional reaction to people or situations, etc.

But how does it help? In therapy, I always tell people that the first step to change is understanding and awareness. The more understanding and self-awareness you have, the more power, control and ability you then have to make changes to your life. Journaling is a way of doing the same thing in the privacy of your own home. The more practiced you become at it and the more regularly you do it the more self-aware you become and the more ability you have to understand what comes up for you and control your reactions to challenging situations.

So how do you begin? Well for those of you who have experience of therapy, imagine its like sitting down and talking to your therapist, except you take the role of both therapist and client. So begin your entry with the question or experience you want to reflect around. For example “Why do I reach for unhealthy food when I’m feeling low?”. This allows you to have a focus for your reflection.

You can then just begin writing. Don’t overthink it, just relax into it and let the words flow. You’re not there to “find an answer” but more to reflect and gain greater understanding. Don’t make it too cognitive, journaling is all about just reflecting and following your train of thought or your feelings. So in the question above, you may reflect around the past when it comes to food and mood - how did my parents respond to me when I was feeling low? What was the role of food in my childhood? Was it a reward, a substitute for love, etc. And wherever those thoughts take you, follow those lines of reflecting further. Or you may choose somewhere else to start, for example reflecting around the role of food and how it makes you feel, or for some people not feel. Or the role of food in attracting help or pushing people away.

This journal entry may then lead to further entries on future days as you go deeper and deeper and discover more and more about yourself or you may choose to reflect around a completely different topic.

Whatever your question or reflection, just allow yourself to be curious about yourself as you write. Imagine what your therapist may be asking you or encouraging you to think about if you were discussing this in a session rather than writing down. There is no right or wrong way to journal, as long as you are keeping an open mind and allowing yourself to reflect, be curious and feel. Be mindful though about slipping into shaming yourself or self-criticism.

If you’re experiencing something which you need a little extra help with, feel free to contact one of our highly skilled and experienced therapists who can help you further!