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There are incredible benefits to journaling that simply cannot be replaced with anything else, at least in my opinion. Here are a few of the reasons you should make journaling a priority in life and a regular practice!

Journaling is Therapeutic

Your journal is a stand-in psychologist, therapist, and best friend. If you have had a bad day or week, if you’re feeling anxiety and stress, or if you simply need to work through some feelings or negativity, journaling can feel very therapeutic. There is something so relieving about getting things off your chest and into a shape other than the messy thoughts in your head, and if you are not ready to share with another person, a journal is an excellent substitute.

Journalling is a form of release. Pent-up stress and thoughts that are swarming around your busy brain may have no escape route until they flow down your fingertips, through a pen tip, and into the shape of scribbled ink on a blank page of paper. Or type it out! I find myself sighing with relief after a good journaling session; I feel cleansed; I feel lighter. It’s like my brain just threw up on a piece of paper and now I can move on with life with a fresh mentality.

Journaling encourages creativity & engages your right brain

Get those creative juices flowing! Anyone with creative tendencies craves an outlet, or they feel suppressed and on edge. Of course, the best creative outlet differs for every person, but since I consider myself a writer, journaling is natural to me, and writing is the best way for me to express myself and engage my creativity. 

If you find journaling doesn’t fit the bill, try watercolor, pick up guitar, learn French or Spanish (brush up on those rusty high school “Bonjour...Croissant?” skills), buy a sketchbook, or take a photography class (before just buying an expensive DSLR camera). Lots of options that could greatly add to your quality of life!

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Classic Notebook

Amazon Basics

And don’t think you need to be a “good” writer to journal. Even those who don’t consider themselves creative, consider themselves left-brained, think they suck at writing—journaling is way different than academic essays, reports, and emails. It is you talking to yourself! No one else will be reading this. You don’t even need to read your writing ever again if you don’t want to. Burn the dang journal after, for all anyone cares! Writing is just a great, simple creative and mental exercise.

Journaling provides mental organization and clarity

If your mind is doing somersaults after a long week or bad day, just brain-dump in your journal. Reading back your words on paper, written down in front of your eyeballs, provides a fresh perspective and clarity. Mental organization is key to healthy living!

Life can be crazy busy and working through things on paper can be incredibly helpful. Journals are entirely your personal space, so use them to organize your thoughts, schedule, and daily tasks! You can make lists and charts, scribble ideas and questions, and record goals and your progress towards them.

It is a memory-keeper

Journals record memories—good and bad—that are important, special, and humorous to remember and look back on. There is something really special about flipping through a journal from ten years ago and seeing for yourself the personal changes over time, skimming through the years and seeing a visible transformation in age, maturity, and mental process. It is crazy to think about how far you have come, what you have gone through over the years, good and bad, and there it is recorded in front of you! 

It is super weird to read and see the differences in my journals from high school, college, and post-college and literally read how my thought process and approach to life transformed over the years. Sometimes I am even impressed with how wise I sound at 16 years old. Other times, I close my eyes and shake my head at how dumb I acted at 18. You change without even realizing it over time!

Your journal is your confidante

A pen and paper will be some of the most reliable friends you can have, ever. They are always there for you when you reach for them, and they will never let you down! 

Personal time is important. Taking time to relax, reflect, tune in with yourself, and invest in getting to know yourself a little better is life-changing. Talking through issues and daily events with others is important, but I firmly believe not enough people take the time for self-reflection ALONE. Life is crazy, there are tons of things and people demanding your attention and care, and it is important to set aside time to just be with you. 

Self-reflection is an important personal practice

Conversations with yourself are super important. You have to be honest with yourself, and journaling is essentially you conversing with yourself. It is you working through your thoughts and feelings and your day, drawing conclusions and coming to understand why certain things made you feel a certain way.  It is you checking in with yourself and incorporating self-care into your daily routine.

I will get out my journal whenever my anxiety spikes and I feel overwhelmed without even being able to put a finger on exactly why. Often as I scribble down all the things swimming and circling my mind, I uncover real sources of unhappiness I might not have recognized earlier. I definitely feel that I have my journals to thank for building a better self-understanding and self-awareness.

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Lined Journals

Paperage

Give journaling a try!

Why not just try it out? If you find out it is not for you, no harm done! On the flip side, you may discover a habit that you want to incorporate into your regular routine, one that gives you a truly satisfying feeling of emotional relief, release, and mental clarity.