When you were younger, you probably had one of those little journals or scrapbooks where you wrote random things like how your day went, who you had a crush on, who you didn’t like. You know, all the childish stuff that dominates an adolescent’s mind.
Then, later as an adult, responsibilities kicked in and you couldn’t find the time to keep your little journals again. That’s understandable, but don’t you think you should pick it up again?
In this fast-paced world, keeping a journal can help you maintain some clarity of thought. Writing down the details of the entire day or some notable events will help you clear your mind and make it easier for you to remember important details of your life.
Aside from that, journaling has tremendous benefits on your psychological and physical health. Here are 7 ways journaling benefits your health:
- Reduces anxiety
- Curtails stress
- Relieves depression
- Works as an anger-coping tool
- Enhances memory
- Improves immune system
- Coping with trauma
1. Journaling reduces anxiety:
Navigating the modern world and “adulting” is difficult. There are many situations and environments that might trigger anxiety. Fortunately, there are proven ways to manage anxiety, like journaling.
In fact, there’s a high chance that if you booked a consultation at a community wellness center, the therapist would suggest recording your thoughts and expressing your emotions through writing. Journaling helps you to keep track of your emotions, moods, negative thoughts, and habits. It helps you find patterns and triggers for anxiety. And from there, it’s easy to avoid them.
2. Journaling helps to curtail stress:
Journaling is an effective stress management tool. When you focus on penning down your emotions, you’d be able to calm down and objectively examine the stress factors you’re experiencing. Besides, the first step to finding ways of dealing with stress is to be able to emotionally detach yourself from stress factors and triggers.
3. It also helps to relieve depression:
Writing down your thoughts and feelings can help to relieve depression. When you document whatever you’re feeling, you unburden your mind of negative emotions. Also, you’d be able to understand your feelings better.
4. Journaling can also be an anger-coping tool:
A quick temper and several bouts of anger can have serious consequences for you and the people around you. However, journaling is a great tool to help you regain control of your emotions. Rather than letting your anger loose and saying or doing things you might regret, journaling would help you calm down and handle the situation better.
5. It enhances the memory:
People who have trouble remembering things can also benefit from journaling. The human brain can remember things and events it focuses on and is conscious of. When you write things down, your brain focuses fully on the idea written about. Then, it becomes easy to commit it to memory.
6. Journaling also improves the immune system:
Journaling reduces stress by suppressing the release of stress-inducing hormones like cortisol and adrenaline which can hinder your immune system from functioning properly. Hence, documenting your thoughts in writing is a great way to get your immune system in good shape.
7. Journaling can help you cope with trauma:
Various studies have shown that people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders who started expressing themselves in writing had reduced stress hormone responses when recalling their traumatic experiences. It’s an effective method of coping with loss, grief, or trauma.
In essence, journaling has tremendous benefits for everyone regardless of age or rank. However, you shouldn’t neglect other activities important for your overall health like maintaining a proper diet, exercising, and regular medical checkups. Never hesitate to reach out to us or visit our Charlotte community clinic for consultations and checkups.
