I’m just a girl. I too had multiple diaries growing up. Hard-plastic covered, fur covered, glitter covered, poorly secured by a just-for-show lock notebooks gifted to me by my mom, aunts, and older sisters. In a way, they encouraged me to treasure my feelings. In an another way, they said, “put your emotions away.”
Have a crush? Don’t tell them — write it down. Mad at Mom or Dad? Cry into the pages. Do you have hopes? Likes and dislikes? Capture them quietly.
Then there was the pressure of documentation — pages are precious and permanent so entries should be real and thoughtful. In light of the incredibly popular Wreck this Journal, these concerns have substantially shrunk for up-and-coming diarists. But, I, a member of the Royal Diaries book series and aesthetic Bullet Journal generation, had monumental concerns.
Now, not only did I have to funnel my thoughts, dreams and experiences into lined sheets of paper, but I had to do it in a way that mattered. The never-ending struggles of girlhood, I guess.
I don’t want to be too quick to condemn. I have enjoyed journalling over the years. I have a Moleskin with my initials engraved into it after all (you guessed it, a gift). I chronicled my past summer with a fresh, mint green notebook and took delight in reliving sunny days and warm memories during this icy winter.
But, then I look back on painful entries. Entries that, despite their now embarrassing levels of melodrama, beg to be taken off the page. Or notes that, in retrospect, could have been openly and honestly shared with the people they were written about. Maybe these emotional moments could have benefited from an audible voice or a different outlet. I can’t help but wonder, should journaling be so widely recommended and praised?
Benefits of Journalling
A study published in the National Library of Medicine found that positive affect journaling (like gratitude journaling or journaling of affirmations) can promote mental health. The study says that positive affect journalling can work by “mitigating mental distress, increasing well being, and enhancing physical functioning.” These are all great things.
I have personally benefited from gratitude journaling. I found that refocussing on all the wonderful, light parts of my life have brightened my perspective overall.
An article by Healthline claims journaling can reduce stress, increase health, help process emotions, and boost self-awareness. Intuitively, I think we all realize this. At one point or another, you’ve sat down and poured your heart out on a page, whether it was a journal, diary, letter, blog, or sticky note and walked away feeling better for it.
Simply Google “journaling” and you will be flooded by articles and testimonies singing the practice’s praises.
So, if journaling is for you, do so freely. Don’t worry about the aesthetics. Just write! Focus on the good.
Where Journalling Fails
Journaling is not the only tool available to us to reduce stress, process emotions, increase self-awareness etc. In fact, if it starts to feel like the pages just perpetuate the thoughts you’re trying to shed, stop. At a point, journaling may become rumination.
Psychology Today looks at some of these possible negative effects; journaling, when it focuses on the bad, can become a self-fueling pity party. So, journaling can be a potent cure for what ails you, but it can also reinforce negativity. Overall, it seems that journalling, done beneficially, means grateful reflection and hopeful exploration of serious subjects.
Realize that journaling, even with all its benefits, is not a cure-all. So put down that gel pen and ask yourself, what do I need in this moment? Share your hopes with a good friend. Text your crush if that’s what you want. Find ways to address the things that bounce around your mind. Live life on and off the page.