Do you wake up in the morning, start your daily routine, only to realize that by the time you get out of the shower you’re feeling overwhelmed?  Your head is swimming with things to do, people to call, what’s for dinner, and where did you leave that important folder that goes to the office.  Or maybe you end the day with pain grabbing the base of your neck, reminding you that all of your stress has been stored up there for you?

Keeping a journal has become my go-to stress reducer, and it can probably help you too.

If you’re like me, our “new normal” is probably adding stress to your life.  Not many of us respond well to change, especially when we’re approaching or fully in retirement mode.  We’ve established our routines, and we don’t want to change them.

What is a journal?

Webster’s Dictionary defines a journal as a “daily record, as of occurrences, experiences, or observations.”

I’ll bet we all had an English teacher along the way in our academic lives that required journaling as part of the class.  I know I did.

Studies show that journaling can decrease the symptoms of some health conditions, improve cognitive functioning, strengthen immune system response, and counteract many of the negative effects of stress.  How can you not want that?

You can use journaling as a creative outlet to help reduce your anxiety and stress levels.  It can be started at any time, and it’s a great way to track day-to-day activities as well as long-term goals.  Keeping a journal encourages you to get things done.  If you write it by hand (instead of on your computer), it stimulates and engages your brain better, making it easier to retain information.  It’s a great practice for overall stress reduction as well as self-knowledge and emotional healing.

Are there drawbacks to journaling?

As great as journaling is, it probably won’t release tension from your body like progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, and other physical and meditative techniques may do.  And perfectionists sometimes have problems with journaling because they are so concerned with editing as they go, their penmanship, or other factors. As a result, they can’t focus on the thoughts and emotions they’re trying to get out of their heads and onto the page.

Some people get hand cramps. And some are reluctant to relive negative experiences.  Often if the writing is about only negative things, it can add to the stress level instead of relieving it.

Types of journals and how do to use them

• Gratitude journal  List 3 (or whatever number you’d like) things that happened today (or yesterday, if you prefer to write in the mornings) for which you are grateful.  Include a short explanation as to why you chose them.  This will do more than help you to shift your focus when necessary.  These are great to read through on those days when you’re feeling down in the dumps and need a little pick-me-up!
• Emotional release journal  Write about your emotional response to the events of the day.  This is a great way to expand on the positive and not always dwell on the negative, which can increase your positivity ratio.
• Bullet Journal or Personal Planning journal: Keep a journal to track what you need to do each day, goals you have, the memories you create, and other things you don’t want to forget. Physically writing things down can help keep your mind focused and help you to remember what’s important to you.  Being more organized and balanced is a great way to feel less stressed.
• Special interest journal  Gather your thoughts, dreams (like the ones you have at night), prayers, artwork, writing, travel plans, etc. all in one place.  Whatever excites you and lifts your spirits.  Write it down, or paste it in there.

I’m sure there are many more specific types of journals.  And if you don’t like any of them, make up your own!  Your journal is a safe place where you can dump stuff, both positive and negative, without walking on eggshells for anyone or any reason.  Sometimes it helps to just get trivial stuff out of your head so you can focus.  Journaling helps you let go of it, at least for a little while.

Do I need a special book to keep a journal?

This depends on your own creativity.  You can buy pre-made journals or planners.  They may have writing prompts, dots, dates, or a myriad of other things in them.  Or you can just use a spiral or loose-leaf notebook to keep your journal.  It doesn’t have to be all fancy-schmancy.

I’ve found that I’m too much of a perfectionist to use a bullet journal successfully.  I’d be so worried about getting everything spaced just right and using beautiful calligraphy.  I need more structure like lines and boxes to fill in or check off.  But you do you — if you’re artistic, a bullet journal suits you perfectly.  If you don’t like writing at all, choose a steno notebook instead of a full-sized one.  That way the pages fill up faster!  Or draw pictures if that’s more your thing.

The idea is to have a place that keeps you organized, uncluttered, and relaxed.  If you’re sweatin’ the details, you’ve picked the wrong type of journal!

What’s the bottom line?

Journaling can help decrease your stress, regardless of where that stress comes from or the type of journaling you do.  It doesn’t matter whether you hand-write your thoughts in a simple notebook, create a computer file for your thoughts, jot notes into your phone, or use some other creative method.  The idea is to create order and to be able to let your thoughts flow freely, without judgment from you or anyone else.

If journaling doesn’t help you, however, don’t be afraid to seek professional help. A therapist can assist you in making sure your journaling is effective.  There are also alternative stress reduction strategies that might work better for you.

Drop a comment below about how you use journaling to reduce stress.