Journalling is a powerful tool for personal growth and development. Like a best friend or a pocket therapist, it can offer space to get thoughts out, and a place to gain objectivity on your immediate situation. 

When thoughts stay only in our minds, we can sometimes struggle to see them for what they are. They say we can only hold so many different pieces or chunks of information at any one time, and when thinking about complex issues, it can become a juggling act. Journalling can help to mediate this process and allow us to put some of the matters down for fuller exploration, allowing greater objectivity.

Taking our pen to paper can act as an external storage, and can give us room to gain clarity and grant us some objectivity in perspective. Journalling can give us the space we need to think, feel and grow more freely; and it also benefits us by giving us a space to reflect on the distance we have travelled and how much we have grown. This is invaluable. It can be a space for secrets, our innermost thoughts that perhaps we need to build courage to discuss with our therapists. It can even allow us time outside of the therapy room to put our thoughts in order so that we can bring them to the table more clearly, and save us money and time in this respect. 

Whether you’re an established writer, or someone who has never been comfortable with a pen, anything can be a starting point. Bullet journals can be great, and if you are someone who embraces creativity and colour, this can add another layer for personal expression.

Any notebook will do, however if you are more of a keen writer or want to embrace jounalling as a practise, take time to choose your journal. From the feel of the cover to the softness of the paper and the pens you choose to write with. Smoothness can be a goal as this might help for the words to come out more easily. And find a place where it is safe, where others will not find it. If you struggle to find a secure space, you can always choose to make your handwriting more difficult to read, or use a shorthand or code for specific terms that only you will know. 

If you are wondering where to start, we have a list of reflective questions to get you going. This could be a daily practise, or something you reach for when making a challenging decision or approaching a problem. It can be a place to capture joy, sadness, anger and any other things that happen, or any feelings. They are all important and offer lessons for further self-awareness and growth