Journaling is a beautiful, and ridiculously cheap way of processing challenges and traumas and simply making sense of life.

I consider journaling like emptying out the mind-trash that drains our energy, keeps us in an anxious state and stops us from being able to sleep at night. Because that’s essentially what it is. You get a pen and blank journal and you write. And then write some more.

In today’s episode on I Love Me The Podcast, I share why journaling has been such a big part of my life, why you might like to invite it into your life… and tips and tools to get the most out of your journalling practice.

 

We all take on stuff from our environment; stress, emotions, overwhelm, anxiety…

It’s very easy to become effected by our feelings, and dragged down in fear and overwhelm when life doesn’t resemble a romantic Hollywood movie.

Which, is most of the time.

Because that’s life, right!

So as you can imagine, it helps to have a way of ‘processing’ this stuff that we take on during our day.

For some people they have friends or family or a therapist they can talk things out with.

But this isn’t always available to us, and in some cases it can be unhealthy.

So what do we do with all this stuff that’s sitting within us, unresolved?

We journal.

We quite literally empty our ‘stuff’ out onto the page.

Journaling really is one of the BEST ways to unload, sort through and make sense of our experiences in life.

It’s good when we just feel a little off kilter to help bring us back to centre, and it’s super important when life is throwing us curveballs from all directions.

Because journaling helps clear away some of the debris keeping us from seeing the solutions, lessons and insights we most need during these difficult times.

That’s why many studies have linked journaling to a whole raft of benefits:

Journaling helps reduce stress.

It can help us sleep better.

It boosts our mood, through helping us process our emotions.

Hence, it leads to greater wellbeing.

It can improve our memory.

It helps activate our creativity.

It gives us clarity.

It helps us get to know ourself better, which is all part of entering into a healthy, loving relationship with ourself.

Research out of New Zealand even found that journaling can help physical wounds heal faster!

So what’s not to love about journaling?

So… how do we journal?

Let me step you through the process now.

There are only three things you need to journal…

A quiet place where you won’t be disturbed, a pen and a notebook or journal.

See, cheapest therapy ever!

So you find your place to journal.

Outside is always great, because as you’ll find, connecting with nature helps us feel more connected to ourself, so the words flow onto the page more easily.

If outside isn’t available due to the weather or living in an apartment for example, find a nice, snug little place you can curl into with your pen and paper.

Then honestly, just start writing and see what arrives onto the page.

Don’t think ahead of what you want to write.

Don’t try and control the process.

Just put pen to paper and begin writing, allowing your heart to speak through the pen, so you can unload whatever needs to be unloaded…

This creates the space to receive the insights and guidance you most need in that moment.

Now like anything, the more you do this, the more you practise, the more trust you’ll have in journaling, and the more you’ll find the words just flow-on out of you.

The important thing is, if you’re just starting out, to let the words fall out onto the page, without needing them to make sense or give you anything in particular.

Just write, and write some more, and if you do, you’ll start to notice how little nuggets of gold start coming out onto your page.

How answers to your puzzle come into your awareness through writing.

What I will say, is that I do recommend doing this with a pen and paper, as opposed to on a computer, as computer’s can be distracting and stifle the word flow.

They also activate a part of the brain, that can stop us from being able to access the inner voice of love and awareness.

So if possible, buy yourself a notebook or journal that you save just for your journaling, as this will help send a trigger to the brain, that when you pull out your journal or notebook, that it’s time to let your heart speak through you.

Now like I said, you can just free-write, without any need to control what comes through, OR you can guide the process, by asking questions.

Questions about something specific that you’re struggling with right now…

Is it time to change jobs?

If so, what do I need to look for in a new job?

You might want to ask questions like:

How can I be more productive at work?

What do I need to do to have less conflict with my partner?

Why don’t I feel good right now?

What’s really going on under the surface?

Or you can ask questions that will help you dive deeper into self-love.

Questions like:

• What does self-love look like for me?
• How can I invite more love into my life?
• What is not serving me right now?
• How can I let this thing go?
• If life was 100 times more delicious, what would I be doing differently? How would I be thinking, acting and doing life?

The questions you can ask, really are endless, and only limited to your imagination.

There is so much stuff you can explore with your paper and pen, when you carve out a little time to do so.

Now you may be wondering:

How often should I journal?

Firstly, there are no ‘shoulds’.

Only what feels right for you.

I do a more tuned in version of journalling – a process I teach in my Remarkable Relationships course – every day.

And I do it everyday, because it helps clear through any gunky emotions that may be at play, helps me get the insights I need to have a more purposeful, productive and inspiring day, and because of this, it helps me feel more centred, more grounded and more connected to my True Self.

So I have a daily practice, some days it goes for just 5 minutes, other days I’ll journal for an hour or so.

It just depends on what I need, and what’s going on in my life that needs my attention.

What I will say, is that it’s on the days that I’m feeling more stressed, or there are more challenges going on in my life, that I will journal MORE.

Because I know that in journaling more, that I’ll be able to resolve those issues far more quickly and in the easiest way, because I have a clearer view of what’s going on.

I’m not so caught up in the emotion, because I’ve emptied that out onto the page, and can now see more clearly what I need to do.

How often you journal is entirely up to you.

What I do recommend however, is to journal at least once a week.

Start there, because once a week will feel more doable, and it’ll feel like it’s easier to turn into a habit.

Then once that becomes a steady practice, you may wish to do it more often.

Or simply add in extra journaling practice on the days that feel particularly difficult emotionally.

I believe gradual increase in a new practice is always better, as opposed to setting the bar really high, because it’ll be easier to make time for.

And you’ll be more likely to stick with it.

If you feel drawn to journal regularly, even daily, I know you’ll experience the huge benefits of this.

But start where feels comfortable and super achievable for you.

If you continue to journal, if you dig and dig and dig – if you allow yourself to riff on things as you journal – you’ll eventually become aware of the truth you’ve not been telling yourself.

You’ll start to shine light on everything that has been hidden from you.

So you can finally release the blocks and beliefs that are creating the struggle for you.

And in doing so, you’ll arrive at a new perspective.

When we journal, we get to dump our mind-trash onto the paper, and in doing so, clear some of the emotional junk, so we can start to become more connected to our inner wisdom.

So we can reach clarity and awareness.

And that is how we cultivate a relationship with ourself.

One where we can learn to love ourself that little bit more each time we put pen to paper, and allow the words to flow.

Next week we’ll dive deeper into how to make yourself a priority.

So if you have trouble saying Yes to yourself, especially if it means saying No to someone else, this episode will help you in all areas of life.

If you’re needing to say Yes to more journaling, to say Yes to taking time out to rest when you bleed – as we discussed a couple of episodes ago – or say Yes to caring for yourself in a more nurturing way so you can really start to embody this self-love thing, let next week’s episode be your welcome home.

Enjoy getting to know yourself this week, through journaling, and if you want to be the first to know when each episode lands, make sure you’re subscribed to the podcast.

Thanks for listening, and if you’re loving what I’m sharing on I Love Me The Podcast, and want to dive deeper into self-love, take a peek at my online school gettingnaked.com.au where I teach you how to strip off the layers of childhood conditioning, so you can fall in love with YOU.

Sign up for your free Self-Love Starter’s Kit there, and if you do enrol in any of my programs, know that a percentage of profits go to planting trees, so together we can re-robe Mother Earth.