All my life writing and journaling has been a big part of my everyday routine. When my sister and I were younger, our mom got us a “One Line a Day: Five Year Journal”. I believe these started in 2012 and were supposed to take us to the end of 2016. At my young age and honestly even now, I’m not consistent enough with this and probably can’t keep up with a line a day. Once 2017 came around we got a new five-year journal and needless to say, I didn’t keep up with that one either. Maybe this is your style though! For me, the five-year commitment is far too long and not something that I’m wanting to be a part of. If you like the idea of only having to come up with one sentence about your day, maybe this is something you’re interested in trying out.
I’d love to be able to get on here and tell you all about how I’ve found my prime solution to journaling, but unfortunately that’s just not the case. Because there are so many different outlets and types of journaling, I think it’s just important that you find what works best for you! I’ve never tried guided journaling, but I think it could be a really good start if you’re looking for something organized and simple. I find that a lot of stress that comes with the whole aspect of journals is not knowing what to write, so this really helps that!
Another thing to remember is that whichever journal you use and end up working with is yours, and only for you. It doesn’t need to be perfect or neat or organized, it should just be an outlet for your feelings and a safe space for you to find comfort in. There are no rules, even if you’re following something guided. You can write about all of your happiest moments, your saddest, angry moments or literally anything. I find that recently I’ve only been writing in my journal during my highest of highs or my lowest of lows (which is totally okay) but I’d love to work up to finding that middle ground in myself. Looking back on older entries I’ve written is honestly one of my favourite pastimes! When I look back on the person I was at 8 years old writing in my five-year journal, I feel so glad my mom pushed me to write, even the most mundane parts of my day (like what I ate for breakfast that morning) and also the highlights of my childhood (like going on vacation)! Now, it’s an opportunity for me to look at how much I’ve grown, how ridiculous some situations were, to feel a little bad for myself occasionally, but most importantly to use past experiences to help me with current ones! Do it for yourself and the benefit of your mental health. Good luck and write the stress away!