I am a firm believer in getting emotions out. I think bottling up emotions only leads to bad things. But, I also think that sometimes emotions can be toxic to a relationship. Sometimes voicing emotions to people in your life only leads to more issues than you had to begin with!
My solution to this is journaling. Whenever I feel like I have a million thoughts bouncing around or when I feel like I want to rip by best friend’s head off for some silly reason, I write in my journal. I honestly think this is the best solution. It is a safe place for you to just get things out of your head. It does wonders. Having these thoughts in your head lets them fester and develop into a HUGE deal, when it isn’t a huge deal. Taking the time to get those thoughts out of your head and onto some paper can do wonders for your sanity. Sometimes writing it out helps you figure out what you want to say to the person that is bugging you and really figure out what the issue is and the most effective and sensitive way to go about discussing it is. Or sometimes writing it down makes you realize you are overreacting and that the real reason you are upset is because you had a rough day! (This is my conclusion more often than not.)
I also think there is a lot to be said from being away from a screen. We are constantly being bombarded with information and these screens shove this information down our throats. I can honestly say that I get tired of screens. sometimes I want to be away for a minute and just enjoy my thoughts or enjoy getting rid of them.
Allowing myself to think away from the temptation of social media really helps me to remind me that I am worth it. I am worth taking care of myself, physically and mentally. Being mentally healthy is just as important, if not more important than being physically healthy. You have to allow yourself to be aware of your feelings and understand them. The best way I have found to do this is by using a journal.
Journaling can also be great for when you are feeling awesome and have wonderful thoughts in your head. Writing down the thoughts you have that are positive can be great to read back on when you aren’t having a good day. For example, when I went abroad I took a journal with me. I wrote in it almost every day to document what I was doing and how I was feeling. Reading it back reminds me of those happy days and reminds me to remember things aren’t as bad as they seem. It is so easy to fall into a pit of unhappiness but having these memories to read back reminds me what I have to look forward to. Life happens in cycles; reading about the good times reminds me to not let the bad times get to me.
I challenge you to try writing in a journal every once in a while. It only takes 40 days to make a habit, so try it out!
I know starting to journal can be intimidating, because we don’t want to let emotions out, we’re used to keeping a good face for the benefit of others. So start with simple things: what you did that day and how you felt about it. Write about how the weather made you feel, or what you ate and how good it was. Something that annoyed you or something awesome that happened. Write about when you got an A on a test or when you got a D.
The best part about a journal is that it is literally only for your eyes. You can write as much or as little as you want!
Those are just a few ideas to get you to start writing. Happy writing!
