Have you ever journaled regularly? Has it not happened since middle school? Maybe it’s only during difficult times in your life. Let me show you all the ways journaling can be your support, your cheerleader, and the way to manifest the life you want to have.
Journaling when sad
When I am feeling sad, it’s my most favorite time to journal. There are times that I have a friend or a partner to share my sadness with. But sometimes, I don’t want anyone else to know about the depths of my sorrow, and I just wish for my journal to comfort me. I can cry and whine with wild abandon, and my journal(s) will never judge or shame me. I can wallow in my misery as long as I need to. I have filled notebooks daily after painful breakups to soften the heartache. Each day of journaling leaves me feeling lighter and more able to cope while giving myself grace.
Manifesting after sadness
Adding in a manifesting component after journaling your sadness can be as simple as listing statement as true facts:
- I am capable of handling this pain.
- I know good will come from this misery.
- I am learning more about myself.
- I am feeling happy and powerful.
- I am in love with someone who loves me.
- I share my feelings and show vulnerability with people I am close with.
Journaling when angry
I have used journaling in this way more times than I can count over the years. If you scream at people when you are mad, perhaps you can try this instead. You have nothing to lose and so much to gain by journaling about anger.
Technique #1: I like to just dump all of my feelings out on the page. Do not sensor yourself when journaling. Write and write and write until it is out of your system. Write about everything you are angry about. Tell your journal about all of the people who have wronged you. List what happened to bring on your anger, step by step.
Technique #2: Write to the person as if you are talking to them. This is the time when screaming at someone is appropriate and safe. Keeping our anger inside is not healthy. Yelling at people is not particularly beneficial either as it can have significant consequences. Even if it doesn’t cost you your job or friendship, it can be devastating for the person on the receiving end of your verbal outburst. Write everything you wanted to say to them in the moment of your anger flare-up. Use all-caps when desired. Use a red sharpie for full effect. Just write it all!
Technique #3: Write about the feelings of your anger. Where do you feel it in your body? Why do you think you are so angry about this.
Technique #4: Investigate the anger. Is it truly their fault? What role did you play in this situation? Next, list the ways you could have tried to diffuse the situation in the moment.
Manifesting after angry journaling
Adding in a manifesting component after journaling your anger can be as simple as:
- I forgive Billy/Sue.
- Sue and I have talked and made up.
- My boss is praising me at work today.
- I got the promotion I wanted because I deserve it.
- My mother is proud of me.
- My daughter cleaned the kitchen without me asking.
- My wife had dinner ready when I came home.
Journaling with exciting news
- You got the raise you wanted!
- You are planning a huge trip!
- Your new girlfriend is the best thing that has ever happened to you.
Take it to the journal. Capture all of those raw and beautiful emotions in print. These stories may make it into your books, your articles, and be the stories you tell your grandkids one day. These proclamations of pure and blissful happiness will cheer you up when you are down. They could be shared at the company celebration or be infused within a wedding toast.
Brené Brown says in Rising Strong, our first writings (shi##y first draft: SFD) should be a word dump, without censorship. Just get the events and the feelings onto the page. Do not ever assume anyone will read it. The same holds for writing books, in my opinion. The editing can come later if you ever choose to use these first writings.
Therapy
Writing can be our therapy. It can also be a companion during treatment, as a way to process what you are learning about yourself along the way. Journaling is therapeutic, and there is a ton of research to prove it. These writings can help you understand your emotions, which can help you regulate how you communicate with people you are angry with, disappointed with, or jealous of. When you can understand the feelings behind your jealousy and rage, you are better able to express your kindness and compassion to others.
Guided journals
There are guided journals that can help lead you on a journey of self-discovery for those who do not find it easy to journal about their life or their emotions. Choose a themed journal that relates to the place you are in in your life. They have them specifically for pregnancy, for manifesting, for health goals, and feminism.
If you don’t know where to start, but you know you need to make some significant changes in your life, order a copy of Feminism: A Journey to Equality. This workbook will lead you through a series of exercises that can help you discover who you are. Written by Jennifer Vollbrecht and Danaelle Rodriquez, this workbook permits us to tune in. It will be a source of inspiration to guide you as you figure out WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU. No path fits everyone. We all have gifts to share, struggles to overcome, and unresolved feelings to process.
The Feminism workbook, Feminism: A Journey to Equality celebrates equality in a refreshing and fun way. The pages draw you in with their unique artistic style. The carefully chosen words, combined with beautiful artwork, will delight you with a perfect balance of calm and excitement. Each page guides you through an inspiring journey to discover more of yourself. You will be advised to write a letter, share your dark side and what makes you feel alive. In the end, you will have your own story, written in your own words as a celebration of YOU!
The end of the book contains twelve pages for you to explore your deepest thoughts and emotions. This is when you can soar by sharing your own unique story. During these lessons, the views and ideas you present could be the seedlings of a big passion project that has started to grow. Taking the time to tune in will unlock hidden creativity that may otherwise lay dormant in you.
Consider this book when going through significant changes in your life, such as the first year of motherhood, after a painful breakup, or after moving to a new city and taking a different job. Therapy and good friends are valuable tools during massive changes, yet you may crave more than they can give. Sometimes you need time alone for reflection and processing, and this is what journaling was designed for.
Anastacia Elizabeth Walden is a writer, editor, and owner of Walden Writes For Women.
