Journaling is one of the cheapest, most effective self-care strategies anyone can pick up to help manage stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. When anxious thoughts overwhelm, transferring them to paper can help sort through these feelings and clear your mind. Keep reading to discover nine journaling strategies and research-backed tips to optimize the benefits of journaling.
Why you should journal
Social psychologist and Centennial Liberal Arts Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, Dr. James W. Pennebaker, tested the effects of expressive writing on physical and mental health. Over four consecutive days, an experimental group wrote for 15 minutes continuously about the most traumatic experiences of their lives. This study and hundreds of follow-up experiments indicated these benefits of expressive journaling:
- reduced anxiety, depression, stress, muscle tension, and pain
- improved memory, sleep quality, and social life
- enhanced lung, immune, and cognitive function
Why all these benefits, just from writing? Writing externalizes distressing thoughts, which helps declutter your mind and reduce the impact of stress on your body. But if the idea of keeping a daily journal stresses you out, get ready for some good news!
How often should I journal?
Daily entries aren’t necessary. Even Pennebaker is not “a big fan of journaling every day” as forced journaling sometimes feels like a chore. His research suggests even one 15-minute writing session when you need it can help relieve stress. If you’re going through a difficult time, try writing for 15 to 20 minutes for three to four days consecutively.
That’s it! No big commitments. To get you started writing, we’ve outlined nine techniques to guide your writing:
9 Journaling Techniques for Stress Relief
A blank page can be intimidating, so start with something easy: write the date. Already feeling the creative juices flowing? Great, write what’s on your mind! But for those of us who need inspiration, select one of these nine journal themes to help you get started.
For busy folks or journaling newbies,committing to writing for 15 minutes about your feelings may feel like the last thing you have time for. It’s okay to start slow! Sample journaling in under 5 minutes with one of these three simple techniques:
- One-sentence journal – Write a one-sentence reflection on the day’s events, your thoughts about a current issue, or note how you’ve been feeling lately. For more inspiration, try a diary with pre-set daily prompts like “The Happiness Project One-Sentence Journal” or Yao Cheng’s “Celestial One Line A Day”.
- Gratitude journal – To help retrain negative thinking, record three “good things” of the day. It could be a coworker who helped you, a peaceful moment, or a small feat you’re proud of. The purpose of gratitude is not to invalidate our feelings but to refocus our thoughts to build healthy self-talk and resilience.
- Daily log – Daily logs are often written in bullet points to record events or track habits, mood, and mental health changes. But don’t feel pressured to write every day. When notable life changes occur or if your mood is irregular, logging notes can help highlight patterns and build self-awareness.
Pennebaker tip: Can’t seem to find time? Write your most pressing thoughts for 5-10 minutes while waiting before your therapy appointment.
For cultivating self-awareness, long-form expressive writing is best encourages your stream of consciousness flow. Don’t censor yourself or worry about grammar. Your journal is a judgment-free canvas and no one has to read it but you!
- Morning pages – De-clutter your mind of background noise and anxious thoughts by writing three pages of stream of consciousness first thing in the morning. Three pages may seem daunting, but the trick is to write your thoughts as they come instead of pre-sorting them. It’s also fine to work your way up to three pages! This technique is great for clearing your mind for a fresh, focused start to the day.
- Deep thought journal – If a specific thought is festering, this is the journaling technique for you. Like in Pennebaker’s experiment, deep thought journals require a topic. Subjects were prompted to write about the most traumatic experience of their life or an important emotional issue. So what’s on your mind? Write in detail about what you’re feeling. Explore why you might feel that way. Brainstorm possible solutions.
Pennebaker tip: Participants in the study who reported positive changes cycled from analyzing a situation from their own perspective to imagining other’s viewpoints, then back to their own. Assess your own situation from different viewpoints to deepen self-awareness.
For creative expression,try one of these three unique forms of journaling! If you crave more writing, respond to any of these 30 creative writing prompts for people living with mental illness.
- Visual journaling – In one study, art therapy and counseling students reported visual journaling helpful in reducing stress. Visual journaling incorporates art and writing. You might create art with your journal pages, draw visuals alongside text, or create word art visualizing your emotions. Or if you have writer’s block, try painting or drawing what you’re feeling before writing.
- Intuition or spiritual journaling – When we’re stressed we tend to disconnect from our intuition. For those religious or spiritually-minded, you may equate intuition—or a gut feeling—to a higher power. Before journaling, use these tips to tap into your intuition. Then, write questions in your journal. What is your heart telling you to do? Pen a response as if your intuition or higher power is answering.
- Unsent letter journaling – Pretend you’re sending a letter to someone: yourself, a parent, an ex, or even a fictional character. Write the unspoken words you wish you could say to them. Rage or mourn. Confess your love or admit your jealousy. Forgive them or don’t—but don’t hold back.
Pennebaker tip: Spill your secrets! People who keep traumatic events a secret are more likely to experience health problems. Safely expose your secrets in visual journaling, spiritual communication, or in a letter you’ll never send.
So what’s the right way to journal?
Here’s our secret: there is no “right” way. Are you writing about something that’s on your mind? Fantastic, you’re journaling! The tips we listed can help maximize your self-discovery journey but remember the goal is to externalize your thoughts.
Journaling can help relieve symptoms, but some pain festers too deep to manage on your own. It doesn’t have to be that way. Starting your healing journey can be as easy as contacting us at Austin Anxiety & Trauma Specialists for your first therapy session. You are not alone.
