How To Begin A Journaling Practice

Have you ever had a rough day only to find someone to talk to about it and you receive a response that triggers you even more than it helped? Having supportive people in our life is vital to our health and well-being, but sometimes it can cause more damage than good when we need to use them as a venting source. 

At times, we can underestimate the power within ourselves to process through something individually and one great way to reclaim that power is through journaling. Do you ever find yourself in the shower having a whole conversation in your head? Like you’ve been so angry, had a whole conversation with that person about it and decided how things will go all before you even dry off? We like to think of journaling like this, but in writing form. Just like your mind, the pages are a safe and appropriate place to write out whatever is going on. Overtime, the more you practice it, the more this can become a therapeutic tool for you to process, release and come back to time and time again whenever you need.

Journaling is a non-judgmental free zone that is only for your eyes. Whether you’re going through something, trying to make a decision, or simply want to release all the mental and physical chatter happening inside of you, journaling is an amazing tool you can use right now for free.   

A couple of my journaling tips to get you started:

• Ensure your journal is in a safe place/or trusted area where it can be kept only for you. In order to heal we need to allow ourselves a judgement free zone where we can say whatever we need without the fear of someone else reading it. If judging yourself is a worry, then perhaps consider shredding the pages after you’re done writing.  
• We love moleskin journals, but regular paper will do. This 52 week Cleo Wade journal is also a great place to start if you’re new to journaling and want some guidance! Don’t over complicate it though. You can grab some paper and use one of the techniques below. (Please note this is an affiliate link and we will be paid commission on it.)
• Have music ready to go when you journal. The mood is key. Be free from distractions and wear some headphones to drown everything else out. We personally love listening to music without words while journaling, but figure out what you like! A few great playlists: Sol Rising, Melt playlist, lo-fi beats & our Nurses Inspire Nurses playlist for journaling.  
• Be prepared for it to feel weird at first. If you’ve never journaled before it’s probably going to feel strange. Just go with it. Commit to doing it for a length of time because like anything else, trying something new will feel weird at first and may not provide the benefits right away. It’s like going to one workout class and expecting to have a 6 pack. It takes time. Just keep at it.

There’s all different types of journaling you can do, so pick one below as a great place to start!

• Free writing is a type of journaling where you just sit and write anything and everything that you see, whatever is on your mind, etc. What all is in you that needs to come out? Even if it feels silly, just write. Try doing this first thing in the morning or right before you go to bed. If you’re having trouble starting, pick an object in the room and start writing about it.
• Write a letter to yourself. If you have a past experience you want to work through or are currently going through something a great technique is to write a letter to your younger self or current self about the situation. You can also write the letter as if you’re having a conversation with your best friend. Release yourself of whatever was/is happening and help guide them through writing. This could even include writing about forgiving yourself.
• Write about an experience or moment within your day. What is coming up for you around a situation? Listing out what happened to you or what your feeling about a certain experience. Just write as if you were processing it verbally with another person.
• Journal prompts are a great place to start if you feel stuck. Journal prompts usually come in the form of questions to help you start writing. We also have several of them in our resources for you here and here.

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