Why Everyone Should Keep a Journal
Do you remember your first diary? The one you kept hidden away under your pillow, so your parents couldn’t find it and discover your deepest, darkest secrets, like revealing the boy you thought was totally drool worthy in your class and when you ranted about that time your sister wore your shirt without asking (how dare she).
Inside those pink pages with gel pen scribbles all over, you wrote down your life. All the heartache and good times with your besties and everything in between. That was the start of your journey. Those memories that seemed so important are now just that: memories. That diary was probably one of your first attempts at finding yourself and channeling your energy into an emotional outlet. At this huge point in our lives, being in college and discovering ourselves, it is important now more than ever to bring back the diaries and journal our hearts out. Here’s why:
- Your journal is a great listener
Talking to people about your problems is one of the best ways to get things off your chest. For some people, this is no problem. However, for others, it is hard to tell people things and share your emotions. Luckily, the journal can’t talk back or judge, so it is the perfect way to get all your stresses and emotions out in the open without hurting feelings or fearing someone’s reaction
2. You feel so much better
After a long day of classes, work and dealing with people, it is the best stress reliever to sit down with a journal and just record everything that happened in the day, everything that frustrated you and let. it. go. Bottling things up is so unhealthy so being able to channel your bad energy into a healthy outlet makes all the things that happened that day feel less tragic.
3. You can read it years later!
One of my favorite things is going back into old journals and reading what my day was like and where my head was at during that point of my life. It is interesting to read about my problems and realize how they are not important anymore. It helps to understand that what seems so awful now will get better and you’ll be able to read about and laugh.
5. It helps you self-reflect and grow
One of my personal favorite things to do is reflect. I believe people must learn self-awareness in this life to be the best version of themselves they can be, which should be all our goals. Journaling helps give me mental clarity and has helped me work through so many problems. It helps me sort through my mental clutter and forces me to think about how I am acting, how that is affecting myself and others, and how I can improve. It has also helped me draw out insights that I may have never discovered if I didn’t take the time to write it out.
If you are feeling overwhelmed, like things keep going wrong for you, like your life is out of control, or if you just want to become more self-aware to grow, I strongly suggest journaling. My favorite way to journal is through gratitude journaling, in which I write down something I am thankful for, something good that happened that day, and something I can improve on. It helps keep me grounded and grateful for what I have. My pro tip is get a fancy new journal, get the best pens money can buy, and just write without thinking. Once you get started, its hard to stop! Happy writing!
HCXO,
Sarah