Journal writing is a form of self-expression, therapy, organization and so much more! Here, I'm going to share with you several reasons to start writing in a journal, how it has helped me, the different types of journals, as well as the journals I have created myself and why! If you have ever considered journaling, love writing, or are simply looking for ways to help yourself accomplish something new, keep reading.
I have created two custom journals with unique designs hand drawn myself, available for sale on Amazon. The Joy Journal can be found here for a great beginner option and the Cactus Journal can be found here, for more writing room and more in-depth writing prompts!
How Journaling has helped me over the past 5 years.
These past few years have been a time of significant reflection, growth and healing for me. I'm been struggling with chronic pain for most of my life and it's weighed heavily on me and my mental health as a young adult. Every attempt I made to be "healthy" or "fit" backfired tremendously. I knew I needed to make changes but the traditional healthcare and mental health system was too overwhelming, too expensive or just plain out of reach! So I turned to people I often looked up to on social media and started watching what they did that might help me. One thing that stood out to me was writing. I've always enjoyed writing and I found it came quite easy to me. After many failed attempts at trying to establish a journal practice, I made it my mission to write every day for a whole year.
What a difference that made for me. One whole year of writing every single day, sometimes twice a day! I wrote about everything I could possibly think of. Gratitude, affirmations, self-love, brain dumps, to-do lists, habits, what went well and what didn't. I wrote it all! Eventually my anxiety lessened and I was able to sleep better. My mood lifted and I found that negative emotions had a much smaller impact on me. During a time where I felt completely lost and alone, writing helped me process and heal what I have experienced. As my practice grew I began diving deeper into the healing, back to childhood, teenage years, even young adulthood. I revisited topics as much as needed to heal another layer.
Now, I feel more connected to who I am and what my purpose is in life, all thanks to my journal practice. I want to share this experience with as many people as I possibly can because I truly believe the healing potential is endless!
Why I created my journals to sell.
After discovering just how much journaling has helped me, I wanted to use my creativity to inspire others to start writing too. With all the different options available, I know just how overwhelming it can be to pick one and get started. At first, I used an empty notebook and a much smaller guided journal to help me establish my practice. Just one wasn't going to be enough as I like to free-write and needed my journal for other life management things too. So I started with a simple gratitude journal that helped me identify what I was grateful for in my life, and write out affirmations for each day. This was a great option for me as a beginner. As my practice grew, I began writing my gratitude and affirmations in my notebook and even added prompts to practice self-love, goal setting, letting go, self-forgiveness, and even processing my emotions. All of these have played a significant part in my healing journey and helped me to adopt a mindset of growth, self-confidence, self-care, and so much more!
This journal design is great for beginners with a simple 30 + day layout that includes prompts to practice daily gratitude, affirmations, what brings you joy, daily goals, and thoughts, plus space to identify how you can make it a great day. I included a few extra pages to give you time for your next journal to arrive too!
This journal design includes additional writing space and guided prompts to take your practice one step deeper to facilitate growth in your journal and healing journey. Daily prompts include gratitude, top goals, and affirmations as well as space to write how you can show up for yourself each day. Each page alternates between two different quotes for inspiration and encouragement.
Reasons why you should start journaling today!
I honestly can't think of any reason not to have a journal practice so I'm going to focus on my top reasons why you should start one. First and foremost, journaling can be a sacred practice, one that can be added to any existing spiritual practice you might already have. For example; yoga or meditation can easily be a practice where you could incorporate your journal writing. Start by writing about what came up in your practice, anything you need to get out of your mind to help you be in the state of flow or to get out of your head and into your meditation. I love a good brain dump to write down everything in my mind before going to bed. As someone who struggles with sleep, this can help ease my anxiety and let my brain rest easily!
Next, I believe that journaling can help you organize your life to be more productive, stay on track for goals, and keep track of to-do lists or other important tasks to remember. If you find that your memory isn't as good as it used to be, this is very helpful, especially if you carry your journal at all times. For example; as someone with a chronic illness, I experience brain fog, fatigue, and pain- all of which can be detrimental to my memory. So, I like to write down questions for my doctors, as well as take some notes during appointments to help me remember what we discussed.
Get started today!
I hope that after reading this blog post, you are now ready to start your journal. If so and you would like to purchase one of my guided journals you can find the Joy Journal here for a great beginner option and the Cactus Journal here, for more writing room and more in-depth writing prompts! Leave me a comment below with your favorite aspect of journal writing, if you already have a designated practice, if not, let me know what you want to accomplish by starting a journal practice.
Thanks for reading <3
For additional journal options or one of my appointment logs, check out my author page on amazon here.
This is so helpful! I keep meaning to get into journalling but have never quite started but it really does sound like there are a lot of benefits to it!