How Keeping a Journal Influences Your Health

Journaling isn't just for teens anymore. Science has shown that keeping a daily log of your day has a lot more benefits to it than merely creating a place to dump your deepest thoughts in private.

You don’t need to be a writer or even want to become one to start journaling, but you might just want to run out and buy a cute notebook after you read these benefits journaling can have for you.

Beneficial reasons to start journaling, if you aren't already...

• Boosts creativity
  

It’s one of the more obvious benefits, but you’ll find that you become more creative when you just let it flow in your journal. It’s a stream of consciousness process that allows you to go where your mind takes you, and much like dreams, that’s pretty exciting.

• Restores mindfulness
  

Happiness is directly linked to mindfulness. When you’re writing in your journal, your frustrations and anxieties ebb away, and you’re left to unite with your thoughts completely.  Sometimes simply having a place to dump all of your feelings, disappointments and thoughts also gives you a way to let them out and walk away from them.  This release helps you to feel your feelings, sort through them via pen and paper, and move along in a healthy manner.  It's quite powerful.

• Brings you closer to achieving goals
  

When we journal, we often write about the things we wish we could accomplish. That café we dream of opening or that dream vacation we've had on our minds for years. No matter what it is, writing it down helps your brain focus on those goals and find ways to bring it to fruition. Essentially, it means you’re more likely to achieve those goals if you simply write about them first.

• Improved memory
  

Writing things down not only serves to prevent you from forgetting them but using a pen and paper forces your brain to engage with it cognitively. That means even when you’re not writing something down in the moment, like say at a social event when a new contact tells you their name, you won’t space out and forget it if you journal.

• Better communication skills
  

Keeping a journal is a way to help vocalize your thoughts. Interestingly though, it also benefits the way you speak, since it naturally forces you to build your vocabulary and put your thoughts in order. You’ll find that when you’re out in the world engaging with others, your journaling will have served you well for this purpose.

Do you keep a journal?
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