Meditative journaling is considered one of the best tools to keep your mind calm and quiet, instead of abandoning the thoughts that arise in your mind, you can write them down. Staying calm and quiet is a real challenge, and if you practice journaling then you can achieve it easily. Even though there are various methods to practice meditation, still if you think about why you need to practice mindfulness writing exercises, then it helps to overcome the self-judgment. You will write everything in the journal whether it is your fear or strength, whatever it is. Even meditative journaling will help you in many ways as it will improve your overall health, reduce your stress level, and it will bring clarity to your life. You will get to know yourself fully, so whenever you face any problems you will know the solution.
Should you journal before meditating?
Anything will work; you can journal before or after the meditation. If you meditate first, then start journaling, which will help you to concentrate on writing without any distraction. Or, you can journal first which will help you to meditate better. You can write the journaling anytime but all you need to do is write until you feel complete. Also, observe the thoughts and feelings that arise while writing journaling.
How do you meditate with journaling?
Meditation is all about living in the present moment, when you are writing the journal it help us with all those areas of awareness, and it will helps us to stay in the moment. Writing a journal is also a kind of meditation where you will write down all your emotions that strike your mind at that time, by clearing your mind and staying focused. Even there is guided journaling meditation and it will provide the direction in writing content, and this is for those who don’t know where to start.
Is journaling the same as meditating?
You need to know that journaling is meditation and you must recognize that the journal you write is for you. Some people struggle to practice meditation and for those kinds of people, meditative journaling will help them to stay quiet and calm. Rather than simply writing the content, you should keep that as your goal. The journal and meditation are considered two different activities, but writing down a journal about you can become meditation itself.
Can you meditate through writing?
Yes, you can meditate while writing, as writing, is a kind of meditation that will help you to stay focused on deliberate writing, and encourage creativity and Mindful concentration. Journaling will become the natural process of meditating and here you will put down your thoughts on paper so you can aware of yourself. Also, it helps to gain perspective on any situation.
Is journaling better than meditation?
When it comes to journaling vs meditation, both try to improve our overall well-being and try to keep away from negative thoughts. Many research studies have found that when you write down your past or traumatic events it will improve your physical and psychological well-being. Journaling will bring the same effect as meditation, and a few Mindful journaling benefits boost your mood, enhance your sense of well-being, reduce the symptoms of depression, improve working memory, and decrease depressive symptoms.
Does journaling count as mindfulness?
Journaling is considered a very powerful tool and it is often used as part of mindfulness interventions. Also, even if you can’t practice mindfulness, you can easily practice journaling, as it is simple to implement, and can be performed by anyone and anywhere. Just make journaling your routine, and you will start seeing the changes.
7 must-try tips for meditative journaling:
Use writing prompts
The journal prompts for being present are an excellent way to start writing, and there are many journals with prompts like three things that brought me a smile this week, unconditional love looks like this, list ways you practice being calm, and so many others.
Find the heart of your writing
In most cases, you will experience writer’s block where it is impossible for you to write. This is due to a cluttered mind, and if too much going on in your head then you need a quick restart. Go for a walk, or take a break, and do whatever but make sure while writing you need to be at the moment.
Let go of the need to do things perfectly
Only meditation can teach you that you don’t have to perfect all the time. Take a breath and pay attention, and just look at the surroundings and start writing, tell yourself that you can do it.
Commit to the amount of time
Meditation is a perfect balance between structured and unstructured energy, and even if you are busy take a few minutes of time to write and say you achieved your goal. To experience the major benefits, you need to practice a meditative journaling routine, and daily set 5 to 10 minutes, and commit to it.
Practice it consistently
Meditative journaling can be done in many ways, and you need to find the best way that works for you and stick with it. You need to make this a habit to make you aware and present.
Accept your thoughts without any judgment
As you write down all your thoughts, in which some thoughts may bring anger, embarrassment, shame, or tension. Never judge or punish those thoughts, and acknowledge every thought without assigning any value to it.
Read what you have written
Read out the thoughts which you have written as it will bring self-awareness and self-acceptance. This is not something you will be sharing, as it is for your eyes only.
Bottom Line:
Once you started practicing meditative journaling, you will become more complex and dimensional as you will be writing down all the thoughts in the journal which will make you see the new version of yourself. If you don’t see the results even practicing tips and ideas, then not to worry as in some it will take time, but definitely benefit you in many ways.
Also read:
Best Mindfulness Podcasts To Discover Yourself
