Writing can heal your soul.
It can give you an outlet for any thought going round in your head or you can document an activity or an event or jot down how you are feeling. It’s entirely up to you – whatever tickles your fancy!
Start small. Even 5 minutes a day can be so satisfying.
My personal challenge: Journal for 30 days in March 2025. (31 days in March with a day off 🙂
And if 30 days feels too daunting for you, then start with a week.
Journaling can offer mindfulness, stress reduction, improved memory and focus, enhanced creativity, greater self-awareness and reflection or it can just be a good old fashioned venting session. And as I discovered, the pages crafted a lovely story of my creative curiosity and what filled my days during that special 30-day period.
My journaling plan was to document each day – which included a log of my daily routine, any activities I did or events I attended, and also my thoughts and feelings as they came up. There were no specific rules – just see what showed up on the page and let it flow.
On that first day of March, I attended a retreat – A Radiant Renewal Retreat with my Mom in Madison, Wisconsin. (A special thanks to Emma Rose, Joanna Hutchins, Suzanne Larsen & Ruchita who created and hosted the retreat!) So, I was busy at the event from 9-5 and then we drove home to Chicago. My first entry that evening was rather short. It contained a list of what we did at the retreat: breathwork, yoga, journaling, lunch, nature walk, painting, additional breathwork, ice bath (I chickened out and did not do the ice bath), and finally our closing circle. It was a lovely experience and gave me some much-needed self-care time (and a great day with my Mom too.) But it was just fine that my entry was so short – that was all the time I had for writing on March 1st.
On Day 2, I really dove in and wrote nine pages about the lunch I had with a dear friend and another event I attended called Body, Mind, Spirit Celebration. I carefully recounted the tale of my day from start to finish. And I included so many details, thoughts, feelings and side stories. Taking the time to write all of this down made me feel proud. It also gave me a chance to be creative with describing the experiences and feelings of my day.
When you successfully achieve a goal, (whether big or small) your brain releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward. The positive feelings that come with completing a challenge can motivate you to tackle future challenges. Well perfect – 28 days of writing to go!!
Here are a few tips for journaling each day:
- Establish a regular practice – Try to pick a time of day/night to journal and stick with it when possible.
- Create a comfortable journaling space.
- Buy a special journal with a lock & key for privacy or use a standard college ruled spiral notebook or use your laptop/phone.
- If you miss a day, don’t worry. You can keep both entries shorter or write one longer journal passage the next day.
- Find inspiration anywhere & everywhere – write about your favorite color, best friend, a special event, your feelings (I know – those can be scary, but a notebook doesn’t talk back or judge you), gratitude, what happened at work, a beautiful landscape, your dreams, a to-do list, a review of a new show you are watching, your frustrations…the list goes on and on.
- If you get stuck, look up some journaling prompts.
- Be honest. You are writing for yourself, not an audience.
- Start small and go from there. Don’t give up. Write a little every day and see how amazing it makes you feel.
betsalina 