Do You Keep a Journal?
I love this question, and even more so, I love hearing peoples answers. On a chilly autumn evening in 2014, I attended a women-only journaling workshop. And it was amazing.
We discussed the history of journaling, and the different ways people do it. Why we journal. How often. When we journal. What do we write about. What we learn from journaling.
Simply put, it was extremely touching, insightful, and shy of fascinating.
I learned, through an open discussion, that some of the things I did — that I thought was super weird — was actually pretty common among my piers.
(Example: not having access to your journal, so scribbling thoughts on a single sheet of ripped out notebook paper, later folding it up, and shoving it in between the pages of my actual journal (it happens a lot, my journal is stuffed with loose notebook paper))
My big take away — There are so many forms of journaling.
I thought it would be fun to let you in on my absolute favorite form journaling.
An old friend introduced a beautiful, and interesting way to pour your inner thoughts onto paper. It’s called Stream of Consciousness and it goes a little something like this:
Every morning (or evening) set your timer for 10 minutes. Pen to paper, and GO! Do not worry about spelling, grammar, or anything. You are to write freely and openly about everything and anything that is bothering you, worrying you, giving you anxiety or alternatively, that you’re excited / happy / thrilled about. Just pour it out. Every last thought. Allow your thoughts to go where they will. When the timer is done, close it. Do not reread until 30 at least days later. Remain consistent.
OK, so I cheat a little bit. Instead of paper and pen, I have a document saved on my computer. I started my Stream in June of 2014, and religiously did so each morning, everysingleday, for about 18 months. I learned a ridiculous amount about myself. How I process things. What my triggers are. And more importantly, what I really thought about a certain situation. How did X make me feel.
I heard this quote the other day — “I don’t know what I think, until I write it down.”
And boy does that seem perfectly accurate…
I mentioned that I actively wrote a Stream of Consciousness for 18 months straight. For whatever reason, I stopped doing it in January. I didn’t touch it for about a month. I don’t know why. Maybe I thought I didn’t need it anymore? Or I could get on with my life without it? Let me tell you, I was a mess (sort of). I had a hard time pinpointing events, or situations, or interactions with people that we’re bothering me. I felt anxiety, and during the happiest time of my life! Why? Because I didn’t have anywhere for a daily brain-dump (yes, we are really going to call it that).
So I started up again last week. And it’s like a breath of fresh air. A very deep breath of fresh air. Instead of bottling things up, I get to dump them into a document, everysingleday. And all is good in my world again.
What is your form of journaling? PS. who doesn’t LOVE Hannah Horvath?
