I have always struggled to process my emotions. Thoughts and anxieties dart around in my head and I find it difficult to make sense of them. Journaling has really helped me process my thoughts and work through them to find clarity. I think it’s super important to share what methods you’ve used to help your mental health with other people, you never know how much you could improve someone else’s wellbeing with a little advice.
I try to journal every Sunday and reflect on my week. I’ve found this so helpful, as reflecting on my week allows me to recognise when I’ve overcome an obstacle or achieved something new. Usually, the minor wins go un-acknowledged and are brushed under the carpet. This is why it’s so important to recognise when you have achieved something! It’s so rewarding when you remember that the big presentation that you were really worried about, you absolutely crushed. Or, when you remember that you went on a run for the first time this year even through you weren’t really feeling like it. These little wins remind me to give myself a pat on the back. It’s difficult having to balance uni work whilst looking after yourself (cooking, washing, food shop, etc), so it’s really important to recognise when you have done well.
Sunday journaling is also useful to help you acknowledge the things you struggled with that week. Sometimes all it takes is for you to literally blurt everything that you are feeling onto the page; you usually come to some sort of conclusion or gain some sense of clarity from the situation. This is really rewarding and really improves my mental health as it helps me to work through my anxieties; “Robust evidence has shown that journaling can be an important tool for improving emotional and psychological wellbeing”. (Wurtz, 2)
My favourite part is when I read back my entries and recognise how much I have grown as a person. In real-time, it is not often that you truly recognise the extent of your growth, so it feels so rewarding, and sometimes quite emotional, to reflect on past entries over the years and actually acknowledge how much your mindset has shifted. A study on 4 students was conducted regarding their attitudes to journaling and it was found that “all 4 students enjoy rereading past journal entries and noticing change and personal growth”. (Koziol, 5)Â
I have been journaling since I was 16 and I love to reread past journal entries – it really sinks in how starkly different I was as a person then, compared to who I am now. I can still remember writing some them, but it’s interesting to apply the lessons I know now, to the emotions and thoughts I had then. I think that’s also a comforting feeling that I can relate to journaling. The fact that I’m reading entries from 3 or 4 years ago, and all of the things I was struggling with are struggles that I have overcome today. So, when I write about what I am struggling with now, I have a small amount of comfort that in a few years’ time, I will be rereading these entries and thinking about how I managed to overcome them.
Koziol, Callie. “Journaling’s Impact on Mental Health.” Koziol UWL Journal of Undergraduate Research XXIV, 2021.
Wurtz, Heather M., et al. “Introduction: Journaling and Mental Health during COVID-19: Insights from the Pandemic Journaling Project.” SSM – Mental Health, vol. 2, no. 100141, Sept. 2022.