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I left home to travel full time one year ago, motivating myself by rereading the journals I've written over the years about how "one day I'm going to travel the world." Now, every single evening before I turn off for the night, I lay in my bed — which is usually from a different hostel or Airbnb in a new city every few days to every few weeks — and I journal about my journey.
I like to write down every single thing I've done for the day, because I know I often forget the little details — and, sometimes, it's the little things that make a travel experience worth remembering. And I answer the same three questions every night:
Answering the first question every night pushes me to actually do things that scare me every day (whether it's swimming with sharks or just trying to make a few new local friends using my impressively poor Spanish skills). I go into every day wanting to challenge myself so I have an experience to write about. Meanwhile, answering the second question helps me to see and remember the good in every day — even in the bad days (and there are bad days when you're traveling the world, too!). And answering the third question helps me to keep an open mind every day and strive to meet new people from different backgrounds who, as such, might have different opinions.
I then go back and reread all my scribbled-up notebooks from time to time and reflect on who I was and who I've become — the things that used to scare me that I laugh about now, like eating seafood and snorkeling in open waters, and the things that still and always will make me smile, like sunny skies and unexpected mariachi bands.
These aren't the only ways that journaling helps me, however. A wealth of research suggests that journaling, in general, is a healthy habit.
Journaling is good for you for a number of reasons. Here are just a few.
Studies show that journaling relieves stress. One study suggests that expressive writing, such as journaling for only 15 to 20 minutes a day three to five times over the course of a four-month period can lower your blood pressure and even improve your liver functionality. And writing about stressful experiences can even help you process those experiences and manage your emotions surrounding them in a healthy way.
Research also suggests that journaling can actually help you from getting sick as often — and it can help you heal faster when you do. Expressive writing can strengthen your immunity.
Journaling is scientifically proven to help you jog your memory and even increase memory capacity. It also boosts comprehension because, when you're journaling about an experience, you're essentially unpacking it.
Research suggests that journaling leads to a healthier and happier overall well-being. This may be because people who journal naturally become more in tune with their health by connecting with their inner needs and desires. And those who journal are inevitably more mindful of their behaviors, goals, identity and more because they're constantly reflecting on it, which often makes them more confident in who they are, too.
In fact, studies even show that expressive writing like journaling can help people develop more structured and adaptive notions about themselves and those around them, which certainly helps them to comprehend their surroundings, unpack their experiences and learn and grow from those experiences. Plus, journaling unlocks and engages the creativity happening on the right side of your brain, which means you have access to your full brainpower and can grow even more.
How do you keep a diary or journal? It's simple. Pick up a notebook and start journaling — you can start writing weekly or even get right to journaling daily. The point is that you start putting pen to paper.
Of course, journaling doesn't just come naturally to everyone — especially non-writers. But there are different journaling techniques that you can use to start writing a journal.
There's no one right way to journal, as different techniques work better for different people with different goals and results they want out of journaling. That said, here are five journaling techniques that you might be interested in giving a shot.
You can try out different techniques to find out which one works best for you, or you can combine techniques. Decide what you want to get out of your journaling, and get writing.
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AnnaMarie Houlis is a feminist, a freelance journalist and an adventure aficionado with an affinity for impulsive solo travel. She spends her days writing about women’s empowerment from around the world. You can follow her work on her blog, HerReport.org, and follow her journeys on Instagram @her_report, Twitter @herreportand Facebook.
© 2022 Fairygodboss
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