Four Ways to Journal for Your Mental Health

Here's what's happening on the HealthyPlace site this week:

• Four Ways to Journal for Your Mental Health
• How to Journal for Your Mental Health
• From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs
• Video: A Bipolar Cure: Do You Think About It?
• Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans
• Mental Health Quote

Four Ways to Journal for Your Mental Health

Journaling is a powerful tool to help you take charge of your mental health and overcome problems that seem insurmountable. Many therapists recommend journaling as part of the healing journey, but you don’t have to be in therapy to benefit.

How to Journal for Your Mental Health

The idea of journaling, though, can be intimidating. What do you do with all these blank pages staring at you? Happily, you can do anything. There is no wrong way to journal. This is a sampling of ways you can journal to boost your mental health:

• Create lists. “My top five worst emotions (or thoughts) today,” for example.
• Free write. Write what pops into your mind without worrying about logical flow.
• Make a collage. Find pictures that represent who you are, what you’re dealing with, or visions and goals for your life.
• Doodle. Let yourself be lost in the act of doodling without overthinking. It’s a way to hone mindfulness.

Journal in any way that is meaningful to you. No matter how you do it, an important guideline is to avoid leaving your journal in the negative. End with a statement of what you’re learning from struggles, something you’re grateful for, or an action step you’ll take to overcome the struggle. Doing this moves your journaling experience to a new level, one of action and owning your mental health.

Related Articles Dealing with Journaling

• Journaling as Self-Care for Your Mental Health
• 23 Journal Prompts to Improve Your Self-Esteem
• Schizophrenia Coping Skills Include Journaling
• Journaling as an Outlet for Bipolar 2 Disorder Thoughts
• Journal Your Way to Mental Health Recovery
• What Is a Depression Journal and Why Should You Keep One?

Your Thoughts

Today's Question: If you journal, do you have a ritual for journaling, or do you prefer to journal without a structured routine? We invite you to participate by sharing your thoughts, experiences, and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page and on the HealthyPlace Google+ page.

From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

• Bipolar Medication Will Take Away My Creativity: True or False?
• Responding to the Mental Health Support Needs of a Friend
• Susan Traugh Says Goodbye to HealthyPlace
• Decluttering Tips for When You Are Feeling Anxious
• How to Stand Up to Stigma Concerning Mental Health
• How I'm Overcoming My Fear of Driving with Music
• Two Books That Help Me Cope with Schizoaffective Disorder
• How to Cope with Depression Relapse
• How to Create Self-Confidence Despite Anxiety
• When Anxiety Keeps You Awake, Relax Instead of Worry
• Should You Have a Partner with Mental Illness If You're Ill Too?
• The Transition to Middle School for Kids with ADHD
• The Victim-Blaming Abuse Narrative Pointed at Chloe Dykstra

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

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From HealthyPlace YouTube Channel

I'm Hannah. I Have Bipolar 2

A Bipolar Cure: Do You Think About It?

People ask me often, "If you could be cured of bipolar disorder, would you?" and my immediate answer is always "No." This is the mind I have been given and part of who I am, which is something I have accepted, but it is not easy for everyone. Research indicates that there is no known cure for bipolar disorder, however many individuals living with bipolar disorder still seek to find one. (Watch Hannah)

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Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

1. Dealing with Bipolar Disorder Takes Up Too Much Time
2. Are You Verbally Abused at Work?
3. How Are ADHD and ODD Connected?

If you're not already, I hope you'll join us/like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

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Mental Health Quote

"What's broken can be mended what hurts can be healed and no matter how dark it gets, the sun is going to rise again."

Read more mental health quotes.

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That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. You can also share the newsletter on any social network (like facebook, stumbleupon, or google+) you belong to by clicking the links below. For updates throughout the week, circle HealthyPlace on Google+, follow HealthyPlace on Twitter or become a fan of HealthyPlace on Facebook. Also, check out HealthyPlace on Pinterest and share your mental health pins on our Share Your Mental Health Experiences board.

back to: HealthyPlace.com Mental-Health Newsletter Index