“The starting point of discovering who you are, your gifts, your talents, your dreams, is being comfortable with yourself. Spend time alone. Write in a journal.” — Robin Sharma
Writing down your thoughts and emotions can create a sense of freedom and release. Journaling is an important process that can promote healing. This process allows you the freedom to express your joys, sorrows, and frustrations. There is no pressure and no judgment of what you write about.
Journaling for Addiction Recovery
It is a healthy habit to have because it helps us process our thoughts and is a way to deal with any overwhelming emotion by having a healthy outlet for expression. This makes a journal a helpful tool in managing your mental health. Studies have shown that journaling encourages the writer to disclose emotions with less fear of criticism. Journaling has been associated with reduced depression and grief reactions as well as improved health outcomes including reduced stress, improved immune function, and reduced digestive issue symptoms. It is theorized that actively repressing difficult thoughts and feelings requires effort and acknowledging by writing about these feelings reduces overall stress in the body. Translating an event into words helps one understand it and make meaning of it, which contributes to additional positive outcomes. A study published in 2001 in the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that expressive diary writing enhanced cognitive integration - the re-visiting and “updating” of ideas - and increased the capacity for working memory.
Specifically, journaling – either on paper or digitally – can help you deal with the stress and anxiety that you may feel during addiction recovery. It is an evident therapeutic way to deal with emotions or events. The events may have happened in your past or it may be current events or future events that you are concerned about. Writing down your thoughts, whether they are happy or sad, is beneficial and can greatly help in your addiction recovery process because journaling has healing powers that allow you the ability to read back through your entries to see how you have progressed in your journey. This form of self-realization and expression allows you to self-analyze your progress.
“Keeping a journal of what’s going on in your life is a good way to help you distill what’s important and what’s not.”
The Proven Benefits for Journaling in Addiction Recovery
When you have a problem and you're stressed, keeping a journal can help you identify what’s causing that stress or anxiety. Once you’ve identified your stressors, you can work on a plan to resolve the problems and reduce your stress. There is no wrong or right way to journal. Write in whatever way that feels right for you to express yourself and learn from the review of your reflections. Your journaling can be “structured” (for instance writing in a Reflective or Gratitude Journal every evening) or more loose and flexible, such as jotting down notes in a diary-type journal to capture important thoughts as they come to mind or to write about your awareness of intense feelings.
Stress relief
Lessen feelings of anxiety
Brings about a feeling of accomplishment
Provides a way to focus on goals
Promotes inner peace
Encourages emotional awareness
Allows you to see things from a different perspective
Keep in mind that journaling is just one aspect of a healthy lifestyle for better managing stress, anxiety, and mental health conditions. To get the most benefits, be sure you also:
Relax and meditate each day.
Eat a healthy, balanced diet.
Exercise regularly—get in some activity every day.
Treat yourself to plenty of sleep each night.
Stay away from alcohol and drugs.
You can use your journal to make sure you follow these guidelines daily. The use of journaling can be an important tool in your recovery toolbox. It can help you recognize when and under what conditions you might be most at risk for a slip-up; and it can help you identify situations and attitudes that empower you and assist you in remaining strong in your commitment to sobriety.
“Journal writing is a voyage to the interior.”
Types of Recovery Journals
Recovery journaling may look different for you than for others. You may choose to have one single journal or have multiple journals where each has a different intention. The nice thing about journaling is that there is no right or wrong way to do it, so just try and see what works for you!
The various forms of journals that you may choose from but are not limited to are:
The Diary Journal
This form of journaling is used to document daily events. You may decide to include your daily struggles and/or celebrations. You may find that writing down your thoughts about events that happen each day provides comfort and gives you focus. It is also a great place to include affirmations to promote higher self esteem.
The Reflection Journal
Your journal entries in a reflection journal may be brief and written at the end of each day. This is the time that you take to write down the decisions you made, the outcome of those decisions, and how you felt about them. It is the hope that this form of journaling relaxes you to allow for a peaceful night’s sleep. It’s also a lot better to use paper and pen for this type before bed since it is a lot healthier than looking at a screen before calling it a night.
The Gratitude Journal
Journaling about the things that you are grateful for each day can bring about good feelings and create a positive outlook. Many gratitude journals prompt you to write down three to five things you are grateful for. This positivity will provide a hopeful feeling, and can cause you to see that a future free of drugs and alcohol is possible. Also a great way to incorporate affirmations to promote self love.
The Spiritual Journal
This form of journaling allows you to focus on your future and what you would like to become. It provides a way for you to document your spiritual journey through the recovery process. This type of journaling can happen throughout the day.
The Health Journal
This journal allows you to write down how you are physically and mentally feeling throughout the day. You can track to ensure you are eating enough and having a nutritious well rounded diet for your body, and you can also track physical activities or exercises and how you felt after. It provides an opportunity to look back at past entries and follow how the state of your health progresses both physically and mentally.
The Goal Journal
Journal entries focus on short-term as well as long-term goals. This type of journaling provides a place for you to track your progress. You can look back at your entries and see what did and did not work. It is through these journal entries that you can find ways to achieve your goals.
“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” — William Wordsworth
You can do all of these in one, mix it up throughout your week, or stick to one you like. The beauty of journaling, it is totally whatever you want to do! Even a little bit can go a long way. All you have to do is start somewhere.
Getting Started
Deciding what to write about may not always come easy for you. This may change as you become accustomed to writing down your feelings and emotions. The more you do it, the easier it will flow.
It is important to know that everyone has their unique style of journaling. Some prefer to write with ink and some prefer a pencil. Others prefer to type their feelings out on a keyboard or even on their phone. As we’ve emphasized, there is no right or wrong way to journal. The important thing is to find what works for you and do it.
When the words to start a journal entry just won’t come to mind there are many prompts to encourage you. Here are some examples:
Dear past me …
Dear present me …
Dear future me …
What makes you smile? Write down 10 things that make you smile.
What I wish others knew about me is …
My short-term goals are …
My long-term goals are …
Write a goodbye letter to someone who you want to remove from your life during your recovery process.
What are three things you do better than most people?
Write down one of your favorite memories.
Also, reading other people’s stories in books such as autobiography, memoirs, novels, and watching movies and documentaries can help the writing process. When reading or watching, jot down some quotes or lines you like and use those as prompts for journaling by starting with discussing what you like about what was said or why you might have chosen to jot it down. Then let the thoughts run wild from there.
A Coping Mechanism
Relapse is a very real and scary part of the recovery process. It is important to find outlets that can remove triggers and temptations that could cause you to relapse. Journaling can become one of those outlets.
The addiction recovery process requires you to look at yourself in a different light. Writing in a recovery journal can help you or your loved one with that process. Expressing yourself on paper or digitally inspires you to take a deeper look into what triggers may cause you to relapse.
Finding ways to prevent relapse in addiction recovery is key. Journaling allows your mind to relax and focus on events or emotions that may be bottled up. It is a form of self-care that is recommended because you are in control of what you decide to put down on paper.
Journaling can help in relieving the pressures of everyday life. These pressures create the potential for relapse. Writing down your feelings allows you to evaluate situations and handle things at your own pace which all together can ultimately aid in the prevention of relapse.
“I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say."
Journaling for a Sober Life
Something as simple as finding exactly the right journal can be enough inspiration to make you want to write. It may be the cover or the color or the material that the journal is made of – whatever it takes to motivate you is fine.
It is important to remember these suggestions when journaling:
Entries always need to be honest. This is necessary to grow and learn. You will find that honest entries will help you be honest as a person. Your journal is a place where you can face the events and emotions in your life without the worry of being judged or reprimanded.
Always celebrate every victory – whether small or large – through your writing. Your accomplishments will provide the self-esteem needed to move forward on your journey to addiction recovery.
Find a quiet place to write down your thoughts. A calm, serene environment will allow you to dedicate your focus and energy to your entries.
Keep your recovery journal close at hand. You never know when the urge may strike to write something down. If your journal is available you may find that it becomes a way to process the thought, emotion, or situation that overcomes you.
Remember to take the time to look back at past entries. You may find a lot of therapeutic benefits in reading past thoughts. You may also be surprised at the amount of progress you have made as to the days and weeks pass. This progress will be motivation for you to maintain your life of sobriety.
“Documenting little details of your everyday life becomes a celebration of who you are.”
Mountain View Health is a JCAHO accredited mental health and addiction recovery organization that aims to provide clients with tools, resources, and a community that cares in order to create a foundation for recovery that lasts. No one tip or coping mechanism is one size fits all or is a miracle quick fix. The road of sobriety and a healthy mental state is an ongoing process that takes work. We encourage anyone who may need guidance, direction, a helping hand or just someone to listen on their journey, to contact us at 253.670.5993. We exist to help. You are not alone.
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