The act of putting pen to paper and letting your thoughts flow… Well, the benefits of this practice have been mentioned by neuroscience experts and psychologists the world over. With more and more people taking time to prioritise their emotional wellbeing, penning your thoughts has become a much-needed exercise in building self-esteem and resolving deeper mental issues.
Journaling is an important mindfulness practice and when combined with your me-time routine, it gives you ample scope to explore deeper feelings that are buried under the surface. Be it about coming to terms with situations, coping with grief, feeling content about your journey or gaining clarity and perspective about who you are, your value system, your goals and where you are headed.
What is Me-Time Journaling?
Your ‘me-time’ is not a luxury — it’s a necessity that helps you unwind and de-stress. While there are several activities that you could pursue when you have some alone time, starting a me-time journal is certainly something that you should consider. Me-time journals are simply your alone time combined with the mindful practice of writing down your thoughts. While this might seem quite simple, the act of sitting down to pen your thoughts is never easy, (at least in the beginning). But with the right tools and setting you could get down to creating a designated time, place and intention to start your me-time journaling.
The Benefits of Me-Time Journaling
Relieves Stress
The act of writing down your thoughts is therapeutic and what can be a better way to relieve stress than that?! A me-time spent doing something that helps you reflect, face your fears and anxiety and deal with underlying issues is proven to help clear out your mind space and help you focus better on things that are important.
Time for Reflection
With consistent me-time journaling you can learn to focus on experiences, reactions, situations and circumstances that affect you and find possible solutions. Penning down your thoughts can help you take a step back and gain an objective view of circumstances, which helps you find solutions and chart your way forward.
Builds Self-Esteem
Me time journaling helps you establish positive habits and routines. Journaling helps you to identify negative thoughts and behaviours, so that you can work on areas that need improvement and make positive self-talk a part of your routine to make lasting and meaningful changes in your life.
How Journaling Improves Your Overall Well-Being
Boosts Emotional Intelligence
One of the most life-changing benefits of journaling is the way it sets you on the path for self-discovery. The no-judgment, honest process of writing down your feelings helps you develop a deeper understanding of yourself, your reactions to triggers, your expectations, goals, strengths and weaknesses. This in turn helps you learn to thrive and adapt.
Boosts Physical and Mental Wellbeing
Me time journaling is proven to enhance your mood and happiness, which translates to lesser anxiety and apparently lower blood pressure. By reducing distress and negative emotions, it helps you look at the world around you with a greater sense of contentment. This is especially true when you start a gratitude journal. Gratitude journals help you feel grateful, content and satisfied with your life.
Boosts Self-Awareness
Processing your emotions and your feelings helps you gain a greater sense of who you are and what you want from a situation, circumstance or your life in general. Being in control helps you overcome your fight, flight and freeze triggers. With me time journaling you become more self-aware and in-control to understand and plan your next step.
Creating a Me-Time Journaling Routine
Pick a format: From a phone app to writing on your computer to the traditional pen and paper journal, you could choose any format that works for you. But studies state that putting your thoughts down on paper helps you gain more clarity.
Choose a type: From bullet journal, reflective journal, goal journal, travel journal, dream journal to the ever-popular gratitude journal, choose a type that will match your situation and your expectation.
Decide a time: Whether you plan to make it a part of your morning routine, or your daily bedtime ritual, choose a specific time and make sure you stick to it. This will make it a natural part of your everyday schedule.
Select your prompts: Gratitude journals are the easiest since you can start writing about things you are grateful for. For everything else, find a prompt and let your feelings flow.
Stay committed: For anything to become a part of your daily routine you need to commit to doing it. To start with, set a goal to write a journal for 30 days and you’ll see it becoming an integral part of your life.
Journaling Prompts to Get You Started
Me-time journaling prompts are great for beginners who are exploring the art of journaling. To start with there are so many sentence starters that you could try to begin your journaling.
Here are some simple cues and prompts to get you started.
- What did I learn today?
- What was the best and worst thing that happened today/this week/this month?
- I am grateful for…
- I am proud of…
- How can I solve this problem or challenge?
- What are my goals?
- What’s my happy place?
- The kindest thing someone did for me recently…
- What makes me feel strong?
- The thing that makes me happy is…
- What do I love about myself?
- Something new I learnt recently…
- Why am I sad?
- What can I do to make something better?
- What could be the best thing that could happen to me tomorrow?
Me-time journaling has lasting benefits. The challenge lies in getting started but when you see the positive impact it can have in your life, it wouldn’t be long before you get down to penning your thoughts.
Need some extra motivation and inspiration to start your me-time journal? Shop our collection here.