Journal Writing: The Best Way to Relieve Stress

By Kevin Nelson

We consume so much information these days, but we rarely produce any. Things like handwritten letters (as well as long emails) and journal entries are long forgotten by many. However, if you try to change that and spend at least half an hour a day on journal writing, you’ll be amazed by how it will affect your life. No matter whether you are a student or a professional writer, there is something to gain from it for everyone.

How to start writing a journal?
I recommend doing it the old-fashioned way. Buy a notebook that seems nice, a pen that is convenient to use, find a time of the day when the writing seems easier, and start doing it. Some people like writing in the morning, after they get out of bed: this way the writing seems more like a creative flow, where unexpected ideas might pop up on a paper. Some people prefer writing in the evening when they have something to write about: this way their writing becomes a real personal journaling.

There’s a reason to write with a pen: this way you won’t be able to write everything as quickly as you would on the laptop, and so, you’ll have more time to think about the things you want to write about, as well as concentrate on the process without being distracted by various notifications. Moreover, handwriting also keeps your brain sharp – an unexpected benefit.

However, if you feel like you’ll be more comfortable with writing a journal on your laptop, do so. There are different tools for that: some allow keeping the journal online, while some come in the form of an app available both for PC and for mobile devices.

I also recommend keeping your journal private. If it’s an app, you can protect it with a password; if it’s a notebook, you can keep it in a place where others won’t find it or simply carry it with you. When you are 100 percent sure that no one will read your writing, you are able to write more freely, therefore receiving more benefits from the whole writing process.

How can journal writing improve your life?
Journal writing is recommended not only for creative people. Of course, creative people can benefit from it twice as journal writing can help them overcome creative block and change their approach to the whole writing and creative process. However, everyone else can benefit from writing too.

First, writing allows you to understand yourself better. These days we don’t have much time to stop and think what we feel and what we want from this life. However, if you dedicate some time every day to write about your feelings and thoughts, you’ll be able to understand them better. You’ll have to either think what you’re going to write about or write everything that comes to your mind. Many people who’ve been practicing journaling for a while, say that this did help them understand themselves more.

Second, you’ll be able to relieve stress. Most of us are very stressed these days: we have too much pressure on us and not many opportunities to relieve this pressure. Things like therapy and workouts do help, but not all of us are able to do this every day. Journaling is a tool that can help you write about all your worries and stresses on a paper, therefore relieving it a bit. Moreover, it’s a completely free tool.

Third, daily journal writing makes everyone more creative and full of ideas. When you commit to daily writing and know that you have to write a certain number of pages per day (or write for a certain period of time), you simply don’t have any choice other than to sit and to write. At some point, you’ll probably realize that you’ve run out of ideas and thoughts to write about but still haven’t reached the limit you’d set. And that’s where the ideas will start appearing.

I know many people who struggled with their journal writing at first, but then came to love it and actually managed not only to turn it into a nice habit, but also to create amazing stories in the process.

Moreover, as you develop a journaling habit, the whole writing process becomes easier for you. It doesn’t matter if you are a professional writer, a person, whose work is related to creative writing in some way or a student struggling to write a paper or their own without using the custom writing service – either way, journal writing can help you. Soon you’ll notice that you struggle with different kinds of writing less.

Summing this up, journal writing is a habit worthy of developing. All it will cost you is a bit of time and persistence while giving so many benefits in return. That’s why you should definitely check it out!

Author's Bio:
Kevin Nelson started his career as a research analyst and has changed his sphere of activity to writing services and content marketing. Currently, Kevin works as a part-time writer at BreezeWriting. Apart from writing, he spends a lot of time reading psychology and management literature searching for the keystones of motivation ideas.