‘Happy’ National Stress Awareness Month. Now, I’m sure you are already well aware of what stress is and how it feels. Almost all of us have felt it before and most of us have sat with it a long time. After Covid? Forget about it. We live in stressful times. But don’t worry. In this post, I am going to give you 5 journaling hacks for reducing stress!
The advice given to reduce stress is often so vague. The journaling community is especially guilty of this. Often times the advice ends at “just journal”. Unhelpful.
A little self-disclosure, I’m an anxious person. Not only that, but I am an anxious person who likes to be prepared. That said, I’ve spent a lifetime collecting and creating very specific journaling habits that are proven to reduce stress.
In honor of National Stress Awareness Month, I’m not gatekeeping anymore.
1. Set a Timer
You’re already stressed and incredibly busy. The solution is never going to be an hour-long journaling session.
In fact, experts agree that you only really need to journal 15 minutes a day twice a week to see benefits. Of course, it’s great if you can do more for self-discovery’s sake. But when it comes to stress? Not much more happens if you run the clock past 15 minutes.
My advice is to commit to shorter journaling sessions when you are stressed. There are a lot of benefits to this. First, you’ll actually be able to stay consistent (more advice on creating a routine that lasts here). Second, that consistency will build trust and confidence in yourself.
Yes, journaling helps us by reframing our fears and envisioning the future. But the trust and confidence you build via a consistent wellness habit? That is some top tier stress-relieving stuff.
2. Value Definition
Okay, the timer is set for 15 minutes. Now what? How will you know what to write about when you already have a million things rushing through your brain? Sometimes, knowing what to write about will come naturally. Before that happens, I recommend working to define your values.
Your values are the way you want to show up in life. Some will be universal (“I always want to show up as a respectful”) and others will be situation specific (“I want to show up as emotionally vulnerable to me partner – not my boss”). Values are important because they help us set goals that align with the life we truly want to live.
If you want to show up to work as reliable but you constantly sleep through your alarm each morning, that’s going to cause guilt and tension. You know what really drives stress? Guilt and tension.
There are loads of ways you can journal about values (I plan on writing more about them soon). But when you’re stressed? Keep it simple. Just write a list of all the ways you want to show up.
3. To Don’t Lists
Another list activity I find incredibly helpful is a to-don’t list. Tell me if you’re guilty of this too. You sit down to write your to-do list and the tasks just keep coming. After about 15 minutes of just list writing, your to-do is page long or, heave forbid, longer. Talk about stress.
Don’t panic though, to-do lists like this can be a great asset! Whenever you catch yourself with a mile-long to-do list, make a to-don’t list.
It’s simple. Just go through your list and cross out everything that doesn’t need to be done today. I like to cross them out with a different line style, so my brain doesn’t accidentally confuse them with completed tasks.
This is different than procrastinating. You aren’t putting everything until the last possible minute. Instead, you are breaking large tasks up into their smallest parts and scheduling those parts out evenly.
Want to take the exercise even further? Once you finish your to-don’t list, write about how it made you feel. Did it feel like a relief to take things off your plate? Did it freak you out? All are valid responses. It is definitely something worth exploring.
*Hint* I always try to reduce my to-do list to 3 major tasks. If I get more done in the day, GREAT. The trick is not loathing yourself for not finishing 48294 tasks every day.
4. Explore a Calm Memory
If you are only using your journal to vent, you’re doing it wrong. I literally always say, you get what you give your journal. So, if you only write about stress? Guess what your journal is gonna give you?
Exploring a calm memory is a good counterbalance. Write it like a chapter in a fairytale. How can you capture what your senses were experiencing in that moment? This is a great way to relive a little bit of peace. Think of it as a meditation of sorts. Allow yourself to drift into a dreamlike state as you remember all the details of that beautiful moment.
I am 100% stealing this idea for EMDR. There is this concept of a “calm place”. When the going gets too tough in sessions, your therapist will guide you back to a familiar setting that makes you feel safe. Now, keep in mind that I am NO therapist and your journal is NOT therapy, but there is a lot we can borrow from this practice.
For instance, there is no rule that says you can’t describe the same place every time in your journal. In fact? I encourage it! Let this be your comfort prompt. Oddly enough, if you really immerse yourself in the world building of this safe place, I doubt you’ll ever get bored.
5. Write a Letter from Your Future Self
The hardest part about stress is not knowing when it is going to end. So why not hear what it’s like on the other side? If you can write a letter to your future self, they can write back.
Envision what life will look like when all your current problems have been resolved. What kind of self-growth will need to happen to get you there? What kind of changes will you need to make? By asking these questions, you’ll craft your ideal future self.
Then just pretend. Write as if you were that ideal future self-living that ideal stress-free life. What advice (and hard truths) would they want to share with you now? We often talk about stress as if it’s just a fact of life. While that’s not entirely untrue, there are always things we can do to lessen the load. I promise. Your future self wants that for you.
