Journal Guides
These journal guides are designed to guide you through different emotions and feelings that we may all experience. Other journal guides are also aligned with the different seasons and cycles of life.
We often neglect to write down how we feel, either because it feels too daunting or uncomfortable. By writing down our thoughts we allow ourselves to work through the emotions that have arisen. This allows us to have clarity and a deeper understanding of what we are going through. Use these guides to navigate through your journalling practice.
Curating Boundaries
Boundaries…a term often spoken about, yet often ignored when it comes to certain people or situations in our lives. For some of us, creating boundaries with work or family seems daunting, yet it may be crucial for our over all well-being and happiness. It is also important to remember that creating boundaries should be healthy and productive for you, whilst not harming others in your life. An example of this could be to stop being so available for certain family members to call your and constantly ask for help. However, that does not mean you neglect their safety, it is more about finding a level of communication that is healthiest for you.
Often, when we have decided to try and implement boundaries in our lives, we need to express our thoughts and feelings in a safe place. Writing in our own journal provides us such a place.
Is there a person or situation that comes to mind? Spend some time writing down all that comes to mind, do not filter your thoughts.
What is driving you to want to change the situation? Are there specific emotions or feelings that are pushing this change?
What emotions arise when you are in the situation or with the person? How does this make you feel now, upon reflection?
How can you realistically create boundaries? If it is with a family member, what you you want to say to them? Write it down with no filter.
Now write down a way you think might work best, either directly telling them or creating a boundary indirectly.
Why is creating a boundary important to your mental wellbeing? Visual how it would look in your day to day life. Writing down the importance of this will provide clarity of why you are feeling this way.
Come back to this practice whenever you feel you need to more clarity and help when creating your boundaries. It might take practice to enforce boundaries, give yourself grace. Over time it may be easier, taking the first step shows how much you care about your own wellbeing.
Creating Inner Peace
Creating inner peace is a more than a simple practice, it is a mastery of one’s inner thoughts whilst navigating the noise of the outer world. We often do simple practices such as yoga or a 5 minute mediation. These practices are great tools to add into our daily routine, however alone, they will not achieve inner peace. For most of us, we need to gain control and understanding of our thoughts and feelings. To have greater understanding of our thoughts and perspectives allows us to then master any thought patterns that do not invite peace.
This is something we may need to work on for all our life, or we may truly find inner peace and calm. In such a noisy and over-stimulating society, curating inner peace will allow us to navigate the noise and constant demand that we face.
As you sit down to journal, notice any noises that are around you. Try and focus on your breathe and settle yourself.
As you think of inner peace, notice any thoughts or feelings that may prevent you from cultivating inner peace. Don’t restrain yourself, let anything that arises flow into the page.
How do these thoughts and emotions affect you daily? Write down how it affects you and why you think they have arisen.
Are there any other areas in your life that may prevent inner peace? This could be how you spend your evenings, having friends that may not align with your beliefs or even something simple such as your diet or habits.
Curating inner peace is more easily attained when we have strong foundations, building simple habits can help you create the peace you need in order to feel more aligned, emotionally stable and settled. Commit to changing two habits that you have highlighted that cause discomfort. For example, instead of using your phone as an alarm, buy an alarm clock and put your phone in a different room.
Come back to this practice after a few weeks so you can see how you have found some more peace and areas you may still need to find peace.
Navigating Heartbreak
Experiencing heartbreak is something none of us can escape, from a family or friend passing away to breaking up with your partner. This journal prompt is aimed for those who have experienced heartbreak due to relationship breakdown, however these guides can be used to navigate any situation that may bring you heartbreak. In these times of sadness and grief, we can get lost in the overwhelming and complex emotions that arise. It is important to remember that these emotions come and go much like the waves, one moment we feel as though our world has fallen apart, the next we may feel surprisingly calm. Let these guides help you navigate through the period of turmoil or sadness you may be going through.
Firstly, start by writing whatever comes to mind about the situation that happened. Often we suppress a lot of our thoughts and emotions when we are experiencing heartbreak; we try and act in a way that protects ourselves or how we may feel pressured to act. This is a safe space for you to be completely honest with yourself.
Express how this situation has made you feel about yourself. It is important to highlight any negative thoughts or beliefs early on so that you can prevent them from manifesting fully.
Now spend some time thinking if these thoughts and beliefs are true. You are much stronger than you know, you are worth far more than you will ever realise. Remember that as you now write thoughts and belief that are true, and not what the heartbreak is telling you.
Spend time reflecting how this situation occurred, were there any signs or was it totally out of your control? It is important to on how this occurred so we can cultivate wisdom for the future.
Spend some time being honest with yourself; are there any behaviours or issues you need to change? Remember this is your journal, a safe space you can be honest. Be gracious to yourself whilst having the awareness that there may be behaviours you want to change for yourself and others around you.
Over the next few weeks, come back to this. Write and reflect the boundaries you will enforce in the future. The more aware of the behaviours you won’t tolerate, the stronger and more confident you will become.
Lastly, note how this heartbreak is causing you to interact with the world and others around you. It is understandable that you may withdraw, be sad or generally distraught. Remember that hurt people can hurt people- mostly unintentionally. To acknowledge and feel the emotions that arise is important, see them as passing visitors not permanent ones. Whilst navigating heartbreak, allow grace, compassion and tenacity to be your motivators to heal and grow.
I send my love and thoughts as you navigate through heartbreak x
A guide through changing seasons
The idea of change can be daunting, yet we often seek change out. To stay stagnant does not serve us, yet change can be uncomfortable and scary. Sometimes we experience change that is out of our control, other times it is something we chose, either way writing down how we feel can help us navigate the season of change. No matter how big or small, it is still important for us to have a safe space where we can work through all the thoughts and feelings that arise during this time. This guide offers prompts and guidance you may need to help overcome any fear or worries as you experience change in your life.
Start by making sure you are using a blank page in your journal, this change signifies a new beginning, so visually start with a new chapter in your journal. Create a title for this journal entry, so when you look back you can reflect on when this change happened and compare how you feel looking back to when you first wrote it.
Write down what the change is and how it has come about. This change can be anything from a new job to something smaller such as changing your night time routine. Did you choose this change or is it out of your control?
If it is out of control, how does this make you feel? What emotions have been triggered? If it is your choice, we can still feel emotions that stem from uncertainty or fear. Even if we have chosen this change, we still can feel uncomfortable emotions. This does not mean it is the wrong choice.
Now spend time assessing how you can assert some control in your life. If this is an unwanted change, how can you still take back from the sense of control that you lost?
If you have more positive emotions and thoughts about this new season, write them down. You may find thoughts and feelings flow onto the paper that may have been stuck in your subconscious.
How will this change affect your life as it is today? If it is a small change, such as waking up earlier or implementing a daily walk, how do you think this will spill into other areas of your life? If it is a bigger change, how do you see this change truly affecting your life in a month or two? If it is one you did not wish for, could you find some time to add small pockets of time for something that makes you happy?
Adjusting to this change can be difficult, it can take a few months to even a year to feel the true effects of changes in our life. Be aware that the first few months may leave you feeling a range of emotions. Spend time working through the emotions and highlighting how you can change your perspective throughout the coming weeks and months.
If this change is upsetting or challenging, allow yourself to visualise what you want your life to be like, then plan how you can work towards your goals. For example; If you are moving back into your parents home to save money, visualise and plan your goals over the next few years. How can you make each day a little easier (make sure to see friends and go out more). By making plans long and short term, it can allow us to cope with the situation. It also gives us something to focus on, allowing us to see how we do have some control even when it may feel like we don’t.
Each week continue to journal, focusing on your changing emotions and experiences during this period of time. Every month spend time reviewing on how the change has affected you, remembering to champion yourself for being resilient. Being our own cheerleader is imperative throughout change but also life, we are able to move forward with more tenacity and certainty when we believe in ourselves.
When you look back at these journal entries, you will see how you have been able to navigate through uncertainty and sorge a new way of being x
