Has anyone ever told you, start a journal? Journaling is an effective tool for many reasons! Let’s explore a few different reasons to journal and why it might help you on your road to health and wellness this year!
Let’s answer the question you might be asking, “why is journaling good for you?” When we journal we can write down our inner most thoughts and feelings without the fear of judgement. We give ourselves the opportunity to observe our own behaviors, thoughts, triggers, and interactions. Journaling comes in many forms. By learning about the different ways you can journal and the benefits you might just find yourself picking up the pen and paper.
Journaling for Emotional Wellness. This tends to be the “why” we most often associate with journaling. As a kid or teenager, maybe you had a diary, a place where you wrote down all your struggles, complaints, hopes and dreams. A diary was a safe space. Well, the concept of a diary is now referred to as journaling. When we focus on keeping a journal for emotional wellness we are creating that same safe space we did in adolescence. Journaling for this reason is helpful through the lifespan (kids and adults).
Some benefits of keeping a journal for emotional wellness include:
- Managing anxiety
- Reducing stress
- Coping with depression
When using a journal for mental wellness it can allow you to track thoughts, feelings, and triggers. As time passes journaling can help you identify stressors and navigate how to manage triggers. It can increase feelings of mindfulness and provide a space of positive self-talk. In some studies, journaling for emotional wellness also provides immune benefits. An emotional wellness journal can include writing about gratitude. Here you can find a great prompt from Berkley on gratitude. UCLA health reports, that practicing gratitude helps to reduce stress, anxiety, support heart health, and improve sleep. This daily practice via journaling helps us to reflect on where we find meaning. You might even find yourself beginning to look for the good in each day.
Food and exercise Journal. Is a healthier lifestyle on your list of goals for 2024? Keeping a journal to track how much you move and what you eat can be a very useful tool in improving your health and wellness. Keeping a food journal can be about more than writing down what you ate in a day. Similarly to emotional wellness, keeping a food centered journal can help us recognize our relationship with food. Journals are a powerful tool to help understand our habits. Additionally, a food journal can help pinpoint food sensitives and trigger foods. What you write in your journal will depend on your purpose or goals. Writing for weight management will include writing down meals, snacks, and even movement. If practicing mindful eating, your journal might include what you ate and how you were feeling, what you were doing, or how much. This practice is useful for identifying habits and feelings around food. A final reason worth mentioning is identifying food sensitives. Individuals who encounter joint pain, digestive related illnesses, auto immune challenges, or food intolerances can utilize a journal to help understand medical conditions and the connection to food.
There are many other reasons to consider keeping a journal such as goal setting, strengthening memory, boosting creativity and writing skills, and improving resiliency. You may even decide to track dreams, daily events, spiritual or religious readings, or fitness accomplishments. The possibilities are endless and so are the benefits.
Some easy tips to get started include:
- Create a routine (when do you want to write bedtime? morning coffee?)
- Write for your eyes only (remember not to judge your thoughts)
- Find your purpose for writing
- Search for writing prompts online
- Be creative
- Pick a fun journal you love!
Journaling can be a great practice for the whole family. Encouraging loved ones to keep a journal will help them receive many of the above benefits and provide some nice quite family time away from the screen.
Written by: Holly Bandy, Extension Educator
Reviewed by: Katie Schlagheck, Extension Educator Family and Consumer Sciences, Ottawa and Sandusky Counties
Cleveland Clinic. (2023, December 21). Food journaling 101. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-keep-a-food-journal
Gratitude Journal (greater good in action). Greater Good In Action. (n.d.). https://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/gratitude_journal#:~:text=People%20who%20wrote%20in%20a,hassles%20or%20their%20daily%20life.
UCLAhealth. (2023, March 22). Health benefits of Gratitude. UCLA Health. https://www.uclahealth.org/news/health-benefits-gratitude#:~:text=Several%20studies%20show%20that%20a,your%20heart%20exerts%20between%20beats.
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