How Should You Journal?

One of the best ways to fight stress, anger, or depression is with a gratitude journal. You don't have to go on and on in sentences and paragraphs--unless you want to. A gratitude journal can consist of a specific number (like five) of things for which you are grateful that day. Even if they seem like small things at the time, when you look back over it in a week, or even a decade, those little things will make you smile.

This type of journaling is a lot of fun and is so easy to do! Grab a journal or notebook--or just whatever--and every day, paste in one picture. If you run out of film, take a digital pic and print it or tear something out of a magazine. The pictures you take can be of anything from your big toe to a butterfly--whatever captures your attention that day.

A planning journal can be as formal or informal as you want it to be, but informal may be more useful and more fun to do. The idea is that when you wake up in the morning, you jot down ideas, feelings, wants, hopes, etc. Just write freely and out of your hazy morning mind. Maybe even write down what you hope to accomplish that week. Later in the day, or the week, or the month, you can go back through it and see what you've accomplished, what ideas you still like, and form plans on how to accomplish the things you haven't yet done.

Keeping a prayer/meditation/spiritual journal can help create greater balance in your life and keep you connected to the root of your spirituality. By honestly writing down your hopes and fears, areas in your life that need clarification, and especially the things you are grateful for, it will give you peace of mind and a clear way forward.

Sometimes called a smash journal, this type of journal is perfect for the sentimental, the pack-rattish, and the artist. It's simple: You just add to it whatever scraps you want to remember--newspaper clippings, matchbooks, concert wristbands, flowers, etc. On each page, you can write your thoughts about that item. Search Internet images to see just how cool these are!

If you need an outlet, this is certainly it. While these are commercially available with prewritten prompts, you can do one on your own according to your own needs. The idea is to make this your 'crazy' space. Rip one page, splatter paint on another, scribble on the next one, melt crayons on the one after that, and so on!