Journal Therapy: Exploring different types of journaling
When you hear the word journaling, what does it mean to you? Does it mean keeping a diary of each day? Does it mean reflecting on your feelings? Or is it simply a brain dump to clear your mind?
Below are five different types of journaling that you can try:
Unsent Letters
Writing a letter to someone is a great way to process grief, trauma and a variety of emotions. The idea is that you write as truthfully as possible, without shame or fear of judgment or being misunderstood. The idea is to work through what you are feeling. The reason for writing may be because you have felt silenced in the past or because you have recurring emotions about something that can no longer be resolved. The letter doesn’t have to be to a person, it could be to a job or a building, perhaps it’s a place that has held difficult feelings for you.
The letter will never be sent. Journaling in this way can help you to let go and find emotional capacity to welcome in a new phase in your life. Once you have written your letter, you may find it cathartic to rip it up and then reward yourself with something you enjoy.
Captured moments
This technique involves writing down as much detail as possible about a moment you would like to remember. It could be something really positive that has evoked strong feelings of happiness for you. Describe in detail what happened, what you felt and all of the intricate details that you can remember. This is a great way to reflect and remember good things that have happened to you.
Lists
Writing lists about situations that are causing you difficult emotions is a great way to dislodge feelings – by this I mean you can start to explore why you are feeling a certain way. Examine your list and jot down how you feel about each item on the list. Apply logic to the emotion and write down what is within your influence and what you can do to move yourself forward with each situation.
Now prioritize what is most important to you from the list and write down a plan of action. This is a great way to take control of your feelings and tackle that feeling of being stuck and not knowing how to move forwards.
Morning free writing
As soon as you wake up, spend five minutes writing, without stopping, whatever is on your mind. Set a timer so you’re not watching the clock. This one takes some practice so make sure you have no distractions and write as fast as you can. It doesn’t have to be pretty and it doesn’t have to make sense, just write whatever comes into your head. This can be really meditative and can help clear your brain of clutter before starting your day – it creates space for more creative thoughts. Over time you will see a huge shift in what you write and you will gain insight into how you order your thoughts.
If the morning isn’t a great time for you, try it at the end of your working day before you move into your free time.
Gratitude journaling
It is likely that you have heard of gratitude journaling with the rise in the popularity of journaling over the past few years. When you write down the good stuff; the things you are grateful for, your brain is more likely to remember these experiences and as a result rewire your brain to look out for positive things. However, it can feel boring to sit down at the end of each day to write things you’re grateful for, maybe even repetitive, so let’s get creative.
Mix up your gratitude journaling with the following ideas:
Write notecards to people that you are grateful for, one a day for week or build in a weekly card as part of your gratitude journaling practice.
Draw the things that you are grateful for instead of writing them.
Write down what it is about yourself that you are grateful for
If you are faced with a situation that makes you feel frustrated, dig deep, pause and take a moment to find something in this that you are grateful for – for example, will this situation make you a stronger person? Have you learned something new? Can you see the good?
Change the time of day that you are journaling.
Reflect on experiences from the last year and why you are grateful for the events that happened.
What are your favourite journaling techniques?
