The fact that the phenomenon of personal blogging is successful is one of the things that point to the popularity of expressing oneself by writing. Though journaling may now be a whole different story today in terms of the way that we express ourselves and our innermost feelings, the end results and the benefits that we derive from journaling remain the same.
It is known as journaling or in psychotherapy parlance it is called Writing Therapy, and in either case uses the written word for therapy. There is evidence to suggest that writing about your feelings can help to not only ease mental and physical pain but that it may also help to strengthen the immune system.
You can do journaling on an individual level, in a group setting or in a therapeutic setting, personally or through the internet; today the possibilities are many.
What can journaling help with?
The importance of self disclosure; or expression of personal trauma is something that is brought to light by journaling.
Research on the subject has found that the average woman (and man) as a surprising amount of undisclosed trauma in their life and that those who did practice this self disclosure experienced improvement of mental health and wellbeing and fewer doctor visits.
One woman found that for her journaling was a means of resolving the feelings of angst that she had towards her alcoholic father; another found that she was empowered to pursue higher studies with the help of journaling and that it helped changed the course of her life.
Another way that journaling can help practically is overcoming grief such as the loss of a dear one and coming to terms with other forms of loss. And when this form of therapy heals and makes one feel better, they are able to then look back on the bad times, and read their past writings to remind themselves of how much better things now are.
Journaling can be both a journey of self discovery and an effective stress buster. Quite simply putting your thoughts down on paper (or screen) can help clarify a lot of what is muddled up inside of you. It can help clarify your thoughts, your real feelings about a person or situation, and help you get in touch with your inner self.
It is an effective means of stress management and is seen to be actually useful in managing conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Not only that, this can be an effective problem solving tool: when you find yourself confronting a problem, journaling can so clarify the thought process that it can also present solutions to the problem that you have.
