Journaling, An Old Tradition With Big Benefits.
Types of journaling. And how they can improve your life.
A nest of books with different dates and aesthetics sat inside the shelf of her house. Thousands of thoughts, emotions, and memories were before me. By only dedicating a little time every day, she accomplished journaling most of her life. It's a strange experience looking at the pile of books that is someone's life. Humans often have the flaw of a changing memory. Details get lost, and new ones take their place. However, this collection of books held the closest thing to the truth that could be told. This moment was my introduction to journaling.
Journaling is nothing new to the human race. Old names recognized around the world like Marco Polo(1254–1324), Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), and Charles Darwin (1809–1881) were journaling hundreds of years before a man named Dr. Ira Progoff developed the theory that journaling can be therapeutic. So he started teaching what he called the Intensive Journal Method.
Intensive Journal Method
The method is different from traditional journaling because it utilizes a certified instructor to guide you through a 3 part course. Each part takes about twelve hours, split into two days(you can see why they chose the word intense). Every part has specific targets, and by the end of the sessions, people often have an unpredictable revelation or insight into their own lives.
It is a therapeutic option for those who would like journaling to improve themselves mentally vs. using journalling to improve their proficiency. It's also a short-term form of journaling compared to the daily journal often used.
Bullet Journaling
A solution for an individual looking for a more productive version of journaling about organization. Designed by Ryder Carroll to "track the past, organize the present, and plan for the future," says Ryder Carroll on his website Bullet Journal. Bullet journaling used in a large community with anxiety and OCD has used the method to improve their lives, and you can find a following on Instagram using the hashtag #BuJo.
One Line a Day Journaling
One line a day is a quick version of journaling that focuses less on performance. The practice only requires you to write one line every day about whatever is meaningful for that day. For example, you could write about something you're happy about or grateful for that day. It could also be used to write down a quote from a friend or a book. As long as it's meaningful to you, it's the right thing to write.
The basic idea is to have a log of cherished moments in your life you can return to at any point. Lessons, memories, and people who you may eventually need to be reminded of to continue growing.
Art Journaling
An art journal utilizes painting and drawing to display emotions and events from a day; what better way to practice your art than creating images to express how you feel. A study done with medical students showed reduced stress levels in nearly all students when using visual journaling while exposed to a medical environment.
If a medical environment is half as stressful as my friends have described, then using visual journaling for other stresses in our lives has to be beneficial.
Final Thoughts
Journaling is a tool that we can use to help our mental health, organization, artistic creativity, goals, and social relationships. It also documents and provides us with our detailed history that we can revisit and relive.
It's incredibly diverse and cost-effective, and has more benefits than almost any daily habit I have seen and used.
How do you use journaling, and how has it improved your life? Let me know in the comments section.
