Terms like “Self-love” and “self care” make my skin crawl. And yet, prioritising my mental health is a must. In truth, they are one of the same. Call it what you want, looking after our mental health is not optional. One of the simplest ways to do that is to write down your thoughts.
I’ve always been compelled to write down my thoughts and feelings as a way to process them. Even as a child, I enjoyed writing stories, ideas and plans. Back then I didn’t think about why I wanted to write or what I was writing about. I just did it. Now, in my thirties, I still believe in the power of writing. For everyone. Here I share 3 reasons you need to write down your thoughts.
“Journaling” is one of the buzz words we hear within the self love conversation. I am not a fan of all of the BS that comes along with trending topics like #selflove. However if we strip away all of the nonsense, journaling is quite simply writing down your thoughts and feelings to help you to process them. That’s it. It doesn’t matter what you write or how much you write. The most important thing is to write with a pen and paper (it doesn’t seem to work as well if I type it) and to do it consistently (not just in a crisis). But why bother?
Quiet Your Mind
The greatest benefit I find from writing is to quiet my mind. As I get older, I find my mind is busy. I am always thinking about something and very often, I struggle to quiet that inner dialogue. And being an ‘over-thinker’ only makes my issue worse. This can be quite draining and distracting. Simply writing down what is on my mind allows me to empty my brain, free my mind of those thoughts and allows me to feel peace, quiet and calm.
Process The Feeling
I need to understand things in order to process them and accept them. Writing down my thoughts and feelings enables me to process and understand my feelings better. Our minds tend to go round in circles when we are trying to process something which can result in the sense that the wheels are spinning but we aren’t getting anywhere. By writing, I am able to process and move forward. And this can be for something really small and insignificant to something really serious or important.
Create Space
We are emotional beings. And that brings with it a lot of benefits but also some challenges. Emotions can sometimes cloud our judgement and our ability to see things clearly. I am guilty of this. Writing down my thoughts and feelings on something that has made me feel emotional; sad, angry, even happy or excited helps me to create space between myself and the emotion. It allows me to take a step back and look at the situation for what it is. Although emotions are really important, sometimes being able to separate from them gives us more clarity on what we need to do to move forward.
Give It A Try
Maybe writing isn’t for everyone but before you decide that for yourself, give it a try. You don’t have to be good at writing, you don’t have to write anything interesting and you don’t even have to keep or read what you have written. It is the very act of writing that provides all the benefits. Our mental health is too important to neglect. And if writing a couple of sentences each week can preserve it then why not give it a try?
Are you an over thinker like me? Writing down your thoughts aka Journaling is just one of the things that can help with overthinking. If you want some more ideas check out 12 Ways To Cope When You Can’t Stop Overthinking.
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