20 ways journaling supports healing 

By Sarah Cannata

Wondering how journaling supports healing? Let’s be real: healing is no walk in the park. It often isn’t ‘sexy’, linear or social media worthy. If you’re anything like me, you’ll go through patches where you question everything – especially why you chose to explore this work to begin with.

One of the most powerful, accessible and often overlooked tools at your fingertips is journaling. Not the “Dear Diary” kind (unless that’s your vibe), but the kind that helps you breathe deeper, feel safer, and reconnect with you. Whether you’re knee-deep in all the midlife feels like myself or simply craving space to think and feel without censorship again, this is your sign to pick up the pen.

Still not convinced? Here are 20 ways journaling has supported my healing journey. Best of all, I’ve seen the same patterns in my clients. 

20 ways journaling supports healing

Journaling:

  1. Helps to calm a fried and frazzled nervous system
  2. Becomes a sacred practice that’s just for you
  3. Reminds you who you are regardless of what’s going on in the external world
  4. Helps you process what your body’s been holding
  5. Allows you to reconnect with your intuition
  6. Holds your truth, even when it’s inconvenient or unwanted
  7. Keeps your inner critic (aka your inner mean girl/guy) in check
  8. Offers perspective and the opportunity to see things differently with time and space
  9. Builds emotional resilience
  10. Feeds and nourishes self-trust
  11. Interrupts auto-pilot mode
  12. Forces the racing mind to slow down through handwriting
  13. Allows you to feel without fixing
  14. Releases tension you didn’t realise you were holding and carrying in your body
  15. Invites you to question the validity and truth of what’s surfacing
  16. Encourages you to express yourself without censoring yourself
  17. Helps you move through and process significant life transitions
  18. Supports boundary-setting
  19. Raises your awareness levels
  20. Asks nothing of you. The blank page is there for you whenever it’s needed, and you are ready

You don’t need a 5-step plan or a perfect morning routine to begin journaling to support your healing journey. You just need a blank page and a tiny sliver of willingness, open-mindedness and curiosity. Journaling meets you where you are, even if you are messy, tired, overthinking and frustrated with everything and everyone.

I don’t expect you to take my word for it. I want you to try journaling for yourself with my free 7-day Guided Journal Prompts for Self-Care trial. Learn more via this web page. This is a safe space to land if you’re done with putting yourself last. After the 7-day trial ends, you’ll pay AU$11 monthly. If you’re like the average woman I speak with, I bet you spend more on coffee in a typical week (or other vices) to try and calm your nerves.

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