Mental Health, Podcast

How Journaling Cured my Depression

This post may contain affiliate links. This means that we may earn small commission on item sold through these links. There is NO additional cost to you from the sale but this will help us maintain the website. Please refer to our  Privacy Policy for full information.

 

 

 

 

 

A former schoolmate’s private message contains a request to a topic for my next blog post.

 

I wasn’t just touched, I was flattered.

 

I wasn’t just touched and flattered, I forgot that I am also overwhelmed by all the tasks a blogger has to do. Even if the request was in August 2018, this post comes with a sincere apology and high hopes that everything is fine today.

 

My former schoolmate was feeling a bit down because of her two close friends who were sending her messages. Both have the tendency to take their own lives.

 

She asked me for advice and without batting an eye, I recommended journaling.  

 

 

While I am no psychiatrist nor psychologist, depression is not foreign to me.

 

Related Article:How to Survive Depression and Live a Productive Life

 

I truly understand what her friends are going through not to mention that Philippines, our country, hasn’t so much effort in taking care of mental hygiene.

 

Related Post: How to Reduce the Stigma Around Mental Health Concerns

 

I suggested that she get her two friends a journal and have them try it. It doesn’t have to be something grand. She can design and personalize it. If it will not give her friends the same benefits as below, then they must seek professional help:

 

Clears the mind

 

Writing down negative emotions and disturbing thoughts clear the mind. Doing a brain dump calms the nerves and eases the heart. It removes the heavy feeling on the chest.

 

Related Post: Mind, Body, and Soul: The Divine Balance

 

The mere act of writing everyday experiences, struggles and little successes increase self- awareness because you see what makes you angry, happy and uncomfortable. This way you can start doing more of what makes you feel good and avoid anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, irritable and agitated.

 

I have a habit of writing my rage down and burning them down. It feels so good.

 

Vault of brilliant ideas

 

Journaling is not only about writing all the bad experiences. This will also lead you to have the life of your dreams.

 

Related Post: How to Find your Passion and Live the Life of your Dreams

 

Business tycoons like Richard Branson is a perfect example. He kept his notebooks as he was starting his business ventures. His books are my all time favorite read. He wrote his struggles, heartbreaks, life-defying adventures, little successes, life as a boy, a husband and a father.

 

Who’d have known that one day he will be able to compile all these experiences in a series of motivational and inspirational books. His life story that came from his journals is like a treasure box for me because they are giving me ideas that I need today.

 

Related Article: 5 Books that Changed How I Live my everyday Life

 

Source of gratefulness

 

During my darkest days, I also made sure that I also wrote down what I was still thankful for.

 

Related Article: Complete Darkness: My Journey With Postpartum Depression

 

I noticed that they still outnumbered what I was depressed about. I did it daily until it became a habit. I made sure to do more of those things that make my heart swell with happiness and feel calm.

 

Related Article: How to Create Sweet Mornings That Guarantee Sweeter Days

 

Reading my angry, sad and confused entries feels heavy so I did my best to avoid that.

 

I realized through journaling that if only I practice mindfulness and living intentionally, my mindset will change.

 

Related Article: Setting Intentions: How to Make it a Habit and Why

 

Journaling made me stay positive even during those times that I want to give up. And that time, I also didn’t know what I meant by saying I already gave up.

 

Related Post: Things to Remember When You are About to Give Up

 

I wrote them down consistently and eventually, I became more appreciative of the things and activities that can’t be bought by money.

 

Related Post: What Having Less Money Taught Me

 

Journaling made me express myself better

 

Before I started taking journaling seriously, I felt like I was just like a child who’d resort to fuzzing and crying if I didn’t get what I want.

 

The thing was, it would have been easier had I used my words to really say what I want. However, the main problem was naming emotions. Until now, this is one of the hardest things to do because first, we haven’t named all the emotions there really are and second, not all of us have strong emotional boundary.

 

It is hard to name emotion because unlike color which is something that we can describe easily, emotion is something that couldn’t just be explained in one word without having to explain and without having the fear of being misunderstood.

 

When it comes to emotions, everything is dependent. Dependent to the context. Dependent to facial expression. Dependent to the timing. Dependent to the relationship.

 

Journaling didn’t just improve my memory, it also make me feel like I have a different kind of appreciation towards things. Since I am always on the lookout for new words, it has made my vocabulary better. Journaling has made me a better communicator.

 

Journaling sparked my creativity and made me embrace the artist of life in me.

 

Related Article: 10 Benefits of Having a Creative Hobby

 

I will credit a huge part of launching my website to my love for journaling. Journaling lead me to mindfulness which lead me to minimalism which lead me to finding myself. I found my passion and soon, my full time career.

 

Related Post: 11 Things that Changed Since I Found Myself

 

Since blogging is not just about writing, I have been continuously on the look out for new skills to learn that will make my website better. I am also looking for more ways to make it my sole source of my income. Journaling made me want to improve my writing which will soon not just a hobby.

 

Journaling as goal tracker

 

As my journaling skills improved, I developed a different kind of focus. I was able to write down how I really want my life to look like.

 

Related Article: 31 Self-Discovery Journal Prompts

 

Little by little, I tracked the progress.

 

Suddenly, I found myself. I started to look for meaning. For a different kind of fulfillment.

 

I didn’t just become clearer on what I want, I also now have a tangible proof and basis of my actions. I can now see whether I am gearing towards my goal or not. I don’t just journal to vent out. I use it to do a life audit every single day especially those days when I feel like I am losing sight of my vision and purpose in life.

 

Including journaling to my daily habit and writing not just about my frustrations, goals, hopes and dreams is one of the best things I have done to bounce back from rock bottom.

 

Related Post: 8 Life Lessons Hitting Rock Bottom has Taught Me

 

Writing honestly, wholeheartedly and without the fear of being judged lead me to fully experience rebirth.

 

Related Post: The Exact 10 Steps I Took to Kill the Old Me: A Self-Reinvention

 

Journaling is cheaper than therapy.

 

Related Article: What Having Less Money Taught Me

 

Journaling is the cheapest anti-depressant.

 

 

Read Next:

How to be Intimate When you Live with Chronic Pain

Why you Shouldn’t be Ashamed to Ask for Help

17 thoughts on “How Journaling Cured my Depression

  1. I have been journaling for some time and it really is therapeutic. It provides a way for me to express myself without being judged for how I feel. I’m glad to hear journaling has helped you in experiencing better mental health.

  2. I absolutely love this! It’s a way of taking something negative and turning it into a positive. You list and explain some really great reasons and benefits for journaling. Thank you for sharing this.

  3. Wow! This post is intriguing to me because, as a Registered Nurse, I take care of people who suffer from depression. It is a condition that affects so many people and I am always looking for tools to add to my patient care repertoire of helpful tools. I think journaling increases mindfulness and may help identify triggers that worsen depressive feelings. I also think getting things down on paper helps bring people back into touch with the reality going on in their lives. One of my favorite pen-to-paper tools is the brain dump and I think if you combine this with journaling, you can really get a good handle on all the thoughts going around inside your head.

  4. Very inspiring article. A diary can also be a very useful tool for people with somatic disease, to monitor pains, development, effects of treatment etc. I used my diary when I had a slipped disc. Observations over time are valuable, not only for myself as a patient, but also for my doctor and physiotherapist 🙂

  5. Hello,

    I have been experiencing depression for quite a while and even though my subjective mindset wasn’t there I’ve always known to be a writer. So, as a teenager I wrote every so often mostly negative experiences and thoughts. Once I wrote those feelings and thoughts on paper I read them back to myself. At the time of my teenage self, there was so much hopelessness in my life. Reflecting back, I now write with conviction and intention. Striving in excellence. The more journaling I did gave me truth and understanding. But most of all I still see myself as part time student and part time in childcare with a creative outlet. On top of that, I have a condition incurable.

    I still am depressed but my spirit wounded in pride and lonesome is trying to heal. I guess journaling helps. I’m also working on a series of books.

  6. True honest insight. Thank you for sharing. It sums up how i feel about journaling too. It helps you to reach a ki nd of deep peace, balance and perhaps a little bit of every day magic

  7. Its really helpful and im working on this!i guess its better than look for professional therapies,and journaling probably will solve all tht.
    Despite being in depression,i am motivating myself to be a better person,thanks a lot for sharing this post!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *