Document Your Journey

As caregivers, our lives are so busy and consumed with meeting the needs of others that we seldom find time to look back and analyze what happened, why it happened, and what other options might have been available. We also tend to sweep aside our emotional reactions to difficult situations.
 
If this sounds like you, I have a suggestion: Start keeping a journal.
 
Journaling is a form of self-reflection and self-discovery that helps us explore our thoughts and feelings about daily life, and maybe even do it in a creative way (which fits into our Creative theme of the past few weeks).
 
Your journal is a safe place to keep all of those challenging thoughts, uncomfortable feelings, and overwhelming situations that appear unmanageable. By writing about these things, you can dissect, analyze, and reframe them into something that makes better sense or presents new opportunities. You gain perspective, insight, and understanding of yourself and others.
 
Think of journaling as a way to develop increased self-awareness, discover something new about yourself, or hold yourself accountable to a goal towards self-improvement. You’re sharing your thoughts and feelings with yourself – and no one else – to help you make sense of your life and influence future behavior.
 
But don’t think of it as something you have to do every day. A lot of people start a journal and think they absolutely have to write something new every day, but that can just add more stress to their lives. You can begin slowly, spending maybe 10 to 15 minutes twice a week writing about something that happened and your response. It can be handwritten on paper or typed into your computer or phone. Just make sure it’s secure and others can’t access it. The privacy aspect of journaling is what makes it such a powerful tool. 
 
Here’s a great article on how keeping a journal can benefit self-care. And remember, there’s no such thing as a perfect journal. If you start a journal, just be sure to incorporate it as part of your overall focus on self-care and your commitment to YOU.

Caring together,

Kristi