I think writing things down helps

L

LoveTulips

Senior Member
Location
British Columbia, Canada
I have in the past wrote in journals. I think my first journal was strictly on Gratitude after reading Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach years ago. And then when I was looking for a job or being stuck in a job that I hated, I wrote about my feelings about that. I wrote about negative things and then tried to put a positive spin on them, like the job was not going to be forever as I was looking for a new job at the same time.

Also in retrospect, without meaning to hurt family members I have through ignorance done so. Or I hate, hate, confrontation, so I would run away from certain situations which I should have stayed and stood my ground.

I have something that I am worried about that may happen in the future and again I'm going to write in my journal and try to put a positive spin on it. I am not super religious but am praying for help should what I am worried about occur. I can't talk about it here. It is a legal matter, well I think it's a legal matter.

Anyways, do any of you find writing things down helps you no matter what mood you may be in?
 

My husband used to love writing in his journals. Everything that happened during the day and the places he worked in. This went on for some years and he was up to journal 23. I told him I'm sure our boys wouldn't be interested in them, and they weren't. After he passed, I read through many of them and in the end, I destroyed them. What we find interesting, many people don't. My husband had a very interesting occupation, and he was mentioned in many a magazine and newspaper. He worked in historic houses and grand homes. I have all the photos and paper clippings and I'm sure the boys will be very interested to read them when I am no longer on this earth.
 

At the height of my depression years ago I found a way to help myself.
I began writing all my thoughts down then throwing them away.
I never reread them, because that would have put the thoughts back in my head.
I wrote until there was nothing left to write, until my mind was empty.
At my first attempt, I wrote 47 A4 size pages over a couple of hours. That showed me that I was full of misery and despair.
Getting all that gloom out totally refreshed me.
A huge weight had been lifted and there was a spring in my step which was missing for many years.
This writing went on for at least a year before I was finally free.
Writing was very, very cathartic.
Most important was to not read what I had written down.
I tore my writings up and threw them in the bin.
Today I am a well adjusted, productive member of society.
 
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I had a diary when I was young. Don't know what ever happened to it. I started a gratitude journal after seeing the suggestion on an Oprah show. Didn't keep up with it. I express my gratitude to those who deserve it and to God during my prayers. Things to be thankful for are often in my mind. What is currently helpful for me to write down are to do and grocery lists. Additionally, I maintain two budget spreadsheets online. One, projections for three months, is self generated and something I used to write in a composition book before I got a computer. The other is the Family Budget Plnner, a self tallying spreadsheet by Vertex. I'd lose track of my spending and financial goals if I didn't keep track in this manner.
 
While I don't keep journals, I do write occasionally about what's going on in my life. I find that putting my true feelings down on paper (or computer) will usually help me feel better.

I'll take the liberty to say that "most of us" just don't have anyone in our lives that we can be 100 percent open and honest with. So getting those hidden thoughts down in writing can be pretty helpful to one's emotional well-being.

Yikes, that's all pretty deep - but true (for me)........
 
I have kept a daily journal/diary for decades. this photo I took a good few years ago of the completed diaries up until then... since then this has probably doubled if not more..

DSCF2122.jpg


I rarely ever re-read them.. and I know I should burn them, because my daughter will have absolutely no interest in them which is sad.... but I'd be lost if I wasn't able to write every day...
 
As a teenage girl, I did the usual thing and had a diary, wrote in it every day. Long stories of every little thing in my life and what I thought about all of it.
I have not done that for years now. What I have been doing is writing stories for my kids and grandkids, so it is kind of a ā€œyesteryearsā€ journal and talks about things that happened in the family, both when I was growing up , and when the kids were growing up.

We use a shared online journal called ā€œDay Oneā€. I call mine ā€œFootprints of our Pastā€, and all of my kids can read it , add their version of the story, or just make comments.
I liked doing that so much that I started making another journal in Day One for my gardening . I write down what I planted , either in the garden or in the aerogardens, when it sprouts and gets transplanted, and stuff like that. I can add pictures even.
It it something that I enjoy a lot, and I update it every time I work outside in the yard and garden.

IMG_6612.jpeg
 
I am not a person who likes journaling but I do see the benefits of it. I did journal off and on when I lost Mr Birdy and I still do journal now and then. I rarely reread what I have written. I am thinking of journaling now to get some clarity about my concerns and see if my thoughts and feelings can guide me toward less stressful days. I am the type that will journal when I feel like it, not every day.
 
I keep a journal on what's going on in my life,don't write in it every day but whenever the mood strikes me
This past week I wrote in it about my move to my new apt how I'm adjusting
I've kept a yearly journal for yrs,I write down the top 10 stories of the year, what well known celebrities had died,sports, how many books I read, how the stock market did, updates on my family
 
hollydolly said:
I have kept a daily journal/diary for decades. this photo I took a good few years ago of the completed diaries up until then... since then this has probably doubled if not more..

DSCF2122.jpg


I rarely ever re-read them.. and I know I should burn them, because my daughter will have absolutely no interest in them which is sad.... but I'd be lost if I wasn't able to write every day...
Click to expand...
The saying "we write so we know we are not alone" is so true.
 
I love simple abundance by Sarah.
Iā€™ve been journaling for years and still do it but donā€™t write as much as I used to. Most of my writing is about the things that I need to do that day. I find that if I write stuff down that Iā€™ll usually get it done. I also wrote down the things Iā€™m grateful for as well as what I ate and what exercise I did that day.

When I journal I find my days usually go better than if I donā€™t.
 
We have two pilots in the cockpit. One pilot is the pilot flying the aircraft and the other pilot monitors the gauges and takes care of the communications with the Controllers.

If I was the non flying pilot, I wrote down all of the instructions for which taxiways to use to get to the runway and then after landing, I would write down the taxiways to get us to our gate and the Gate Number. There is no such thing as stopping on the runway or taxiway and asking the Controller to please repeat those instructions again. If I did that, I may end up with a 747 up my you-know-what.
 
Bretrick said:
At the height of my depression years ago I found a way to help myself.
I began writing all my thoughts down then throwing them away.
I never reread them, because that would have put the thoughts back in my head.
I wrote until there was nothing left to write, until my mind was empty.
At my first attempt, I wrote 47 A4 size pages over a couple of hours. That showed me that I was full of misery and despair.
Getting all that gloom out totally refreshed me.
A huge weight had been lifted and there was a spring in my step which was missing for many years.
This writing went on for at least a year before I was finally free.
Writing was very, very cathartic.
Most important was to not read what I had written down.
I tore my writings up and threw them in the bin.
Today I am a well adjusted, productive member of society.
Click to expand...
I've never heard of this technique before, but it seems to make so much sense. Is this something you thought of or was it from someone/someplace else? If that's too personal, you need not answer.

Also...
Today I am a well adjusted, productive member of society.
Click to expand...
Ummm... Productive, yes, but I've read a lot of your previous threads. ;)
 
VisualBrian said:
I've never heard of this technique before, but it seems to make so much sense. Is this something you thought of or was it from someone/someplace else? If that's too personal, you need not answer.

Also...

Ummm... Productive, yes, but I've read a lot of your previous threads. ;)
Click to expand...
My posts you refer to are all about my past. A past I have dealt with and accepted.
If I was still in a bad place I most certainly would not be on social media.
I would be shut away in my bedroom saying, "woe is me"
Those bad times were extreme. I've dealt with it and here I am.

I had years of psychological treatment and one of them suggested when I was really down to pick up a pen and write.
Do not think about what to write, start writing down what ever comes out until there is nothing left.
That is why I wrote 47 pages that first time. There was so much grief that needed to be expelled.
It was my decision to not read what I had written. I new that doing that would put it all back in my head and make me extremely depressed again.
 
Bretrick said:
My posts you refer to are all about my past. A past I have dealt with and accepted.
If I was still in a bad place I most certainly would not be on social media.
I would be shut away in my bedroom saying, "woe is me"
Those bad times were extreme. I've dealt with it and here I am.

I had years of psychological treatment and one of them suggested when I was really down to pick up a pen and write.
Do not think about what to write, start writing down what ever comes out until there is nothing left.
That is why I wrote 47 pages that first time. There was so much grief that needed to be expelled.
It was my decision to not read what I had written. I new that doing that would put it all back in my head and make me extremely depressed again.
Click to expand...
I'm very happy that you found that way to help yourself, and I hope you noticed the wink at the end of my post.
 

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