I am not a fan of being stressed but it happens on occasion and the reality is that stress affects almost everyone at some point. Stress can be really insightful because that means something needs changing your life. As someone who started off writing diaries, journaling has been a part of my life.
One of the biggest challenge can be getting started and getting into the the habit of doing it not just when you’re stressed but on a daily basis. Here are a few tips on hJournaling to Help with Stresss.
Write Daily for 5 to 15 Minutes
If you are serious about facing some of the things you’re stressing about than journaling can become the most important thing in your life with a daily practice. It takes a lot of writing and insight to figure out why you’re dealing with stress and how to overcome it.
Write about Your Worries
Go straight to the problem and write about your worries. Describe them from every single angle you can come up with. The more descriptive, the better. Go back to the first time you felt this feeling regarding this topic so that you can get to the bottom of it. It’s relevant
Describe What’s Happening Now
Put out of your mind what you did, what someone else did, or what can be done – right now write about precisely what is happening right now and where you stand with the issue causing your stress. If it’s generalized stress, try to make a list of things that might be contributing.
Document the Worst That Can Happen
As you look at the situation, one thing that often causes stress is the unknown, or the “worst thing” that you think can happen. Describe this worst thing but make it realistic. For example, don’t create stories like an airplane falling on your wedding party. That isn’t realistic. However, bad weather, rude in-laws, and other issues may be.
Document the Best That Can Happen
Let’s get serious by thinking and writing about the very best outcome of the situation you’re stressing about. Include potential steps and tactics to achieve this best-case scenario so that you can see it to fruition if you so choose. All too often, your mind will create problems that don’t actually exist leading to worry and stress.
Document What Is Really Happening
As you are writing, be very careful to be realistic and honest above all else. Other than when you imagine the best and worst, ensure that you are also documenting the reality of what is happening to you right now. That way, you can narrow down identifying the stress-inducing situation.
Write a Counter-Argument to Yourself
A really good way to overcome some stress about a situation is to argue with yourself. First, tell your story as a letter to yourself about what is happening. Then write a letter back to yourself in answer, arguing all the negativity and turning it into positivity. If your best friend wrote that, what would you say back?
It’s surprising that writing can accomplish so much, but if you go into journaling to help with stress under the right attitude and with a goal in mind, you can achieve a lot. The important thing is that you need to be honest with yourself so that you can find out the true causes of your stress. In this way, the actions you take to overcome it really are effective.
And adding gratitude to your daily journaling will create subtle changes in your perspective about your life.
