This post is part of a series called “Guys and Journaling” which will profile several men for whom journaling plays an important role in their lives.

Bruce Bair, PAC, is a Physician Assistant in urgent and emergency medicine, as well as a life coach and interviewer. He runs The Skinney Company, LLC, and maintains the blogs:

Get the Skinney , The Tribal Council Online,  Female Menopause Mentors ,

IsayUsaySpanish and The PA Path.

 

        

As you may or may not know, Create Write Now, home of Journaling for the Health of It! TM publishes Weekly Journaling Ideas on its website and Weekly Journaling Tips on its Facebook and Twitter pages.

I’ve tried to turn these Journaling Tips into Journaling TA DA Cards or an offline book of Journaling TA DA Tips. Long story short,  I’ve concluded that these products were not ready to be born and I needed a Plan B. 

Well then, my webmaster Kim informed me that we were fast approaching 50 Journaling Tips and we ought to publicize it on our homepage. So I took to the page for some questionable reflective writing sessions with my Journal Therapist and created  an eJournal called ‘51 Weekly Journaling Retreats: How to Use Your Journal to Get Healthy Now’ which guides Journalers in treating themselves to a weekly Me Time session where they perform reflective writing exercises and travel higher and deeper into their inner universe.

You can print out ‘The 51 Weekly  Retreats eJournal' all at once or one page at a time and put in a binder (we’ll provide additional journal sheets). Or you can print out one week and tape or copy it into your own preexisting Journal.  

Bonus: When you buy ‘The 51 Weekly Journaling Retreats eJournal’, you can call Mari any Tuesday (yes, I’m on Skype and we can have a video chat), to ask questions, make comments about your eJournal or get some adult supervision for your Inner Kid.

This eJournal goes on sale Easter Sunday April 4.

Here’s what some Weekly Retreats look like.  What do you think?  Send me your Journaling Ideas, and I’ll consider including them in one of the Weekly Retreats.

WEEK 22. I GOTTA BE ME
Have you stopped trying to be superperfect?  "The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." - Anna Quindlen

WEEK 27. THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM
Dream. Envision. Imagine. Create. Get to the page, great things await! In other words, start anywhere and write away.

WEEK 16. JUMPIN’ JACK FLASH
Look over your WORD program files titles. When something catches your eye, use it to jumpstart your Journal today.

        

This post is part of a series on this blog called “Guys and Journaling” which will profile several men for whom journaling plays an important role in their lives.

I began to journal in 1974, in college.  I was studying psychology, and had read about Progroff's Journal Workshop.  Being a fan of self help, I wanted to see how many of my issues I could work out by journaling. 

For about 30 years, I used 6x9 inch, spiral bound notebooks.  I have 50-75 of them, although I never reread them.  Few years ago, I started using 8x10 inch, spiral bound, the size I had used for writing articles.  I date every post like this:  2009.11.24 9p. Sometimes scratch notes to self in the margins.

For many years, I journaled almost daily, writing up to 20 pages a day.  In recent years, I use it as inspired, which of late has been maybe once or twice a week.  I have gone weeks and even months between entries, but the journal is always handy.  The format I use now comes from (Julia Cameron’s) “The Artist's Way,” a style called "morning pages."  The intent of that is a fast brain dump, to clear your head.

However, I have slowly returned to my more contemplative style, trying to clarify the forces in my life.  Over the years, I have used different journals for business ideas, inventions, my songs, dreams and even one for fictionalized reality.  In the latter, I learned to write fiction, based on painting the scenes of my life in great detail.  I have done little to develop my fiction work since, other than the 25 pages towards a novel. All the articles I write now are non-fiction.

I write mostly in the morning, in a chair, with feet up, in quiet.  I never did much like music while I journaled or worked. 

These days my content usually goes to documenting the forces in my life.  For example, in the last few weeks, more than half of my long-held, weekly rituals have been threatened or discontinued, and that has impacted me, things like where I go to church, support calls I make, consulting gigs.  I used to write up psychological constructs and design processes.  I would figure things out, sometimes getting into cosmology and psychology, or even metaphysics.  Sometimes I will sketch out a business idea or website. 

In the past, I'd write about conflicts I had with people in order to better understand what happened.  These days, I use it more for the focused intent of prayer.  I may end a post with a spiritual affirmation of what I want to be conscious of. 

I've worked through a lot in my journal, sometimes reading its content to a friend to help me finish processing.  I've moved to many new cities, been hired for great jobs, fired from others, got the beautiful girl to go out with me and got my heart broken numerous times.  All that went into it.  I have used it to try to understand my troubled childhood, and my current state of consciousness.  And I've written about the trials of writing. 

What to say to guys who think journaling is just for women?  Nothing.  They are clueless, bigoted and running scared.  On the other hand, I'd tell women to beware of the men who might utter such nonsense.

While I don't journal nearly as much as I have in the past, I know it has contributed greatly to the way that I think and act.  I simply cannot imagine how my life would have been different without journaling.


Steve LeBlanc http://sleve.wordpress.com/twitter-landing-page/ wears many hats: speaker, trainer, coach, writer, holistic healer….and journaler. Based in northern Arkansas, he does “rapid holistic healing of old, stubborn emotions for those people who say, ‘I've tried everything!’”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Guys: If you'd like to be interviewed or want to post a guest article about you and your Journaling, please leave a comment!

        

 

 

You get into bed, exhausted after a long day.  But alas, sleep does not come. Instead, you toss. You turn. You worry about how tired you’ll be the next day because you can’t sleep.

 

Sound familiar?

 

Our lives tend to be busy, often from the moment we wake up until the moment we go to sleep. And though we may not realize it, our brains need time to decompress from all the thinking we make them do during waking hours.

 

Changing your habits before bed is the key to better sleep. Tips for better sleep include replacing activities that raise your energy or increase your brainwaves with more relaxing ones. Take a bubble bath. Put on soothing music. Journal.

 

Therapeutic Journaling at the end of the day is a way to clear the mind of thoughts and worries and to frame your day positively. Writing what I call “Night Notes” in your journal will help you process what happened during the day and let it go. Here are three suggestions for clearing your mind.

 

1. Write down anything that is haunting your thoughts.
   
   

What’s on your mind? I’ll bet that you can’t do much about it now that it’s bedtime, so write it down to get it out of your head and onto the page. Documenting any loose ends allows your brain to relax instead of remembering. Whatever it is, you can deal with it tomorrow.

2. Write down your victories and gratitudes.

 

What things did you accomplish today, big and small? What are you thankful for today? Write down as many things as you can.

You might write, “Exercised for an hour” and “Weather was warm and sunny today.” Reflecting on what you did accomplish today (rather than what you didn’t), and what blessings you have (rather than those you don’t), will help you contentedly drift off to sleep. Over time, this gratitude practice will get you in the habit of framing the events of your day in a positive manner, no matter what happens.

 

3. Close your entry with reflection or prayer that expresses any blessings or wishes you have on your mind.

 

Writing a quick reflection or prayer is a ritual for closing out the day intentionally and letting it go. As you shut your journal, let a sense of closure and peace come over you. As you close your eyes, let your mind go quiet, and let your muscles relax. Know that your day is complete.

 

For menopausal women, therapeutic journaling before bed is a particularly helpful because insomnia is so common during menopause. As Physician’s Assistant Anne Vaillancourt explains in this video  on Menopause and Sleep, hot flashes and fluctuations in hormone levels typically disrupt sleep.

 

Anne shares several useful tips for sleeping better during menopause, including this one: “The brain needs time to relax. It needs time to distress. So you need to take at least an hour before you’re wanting to fall asleep to relax.”

 

For part of the hour that Anne recommends allotting to relaxation, do your Night Notes. Make them a habit. Your well-rested body and mind will thank you.

 

Anne Vaillancourt, PAC, and Life Coach Bruce Bair, PAC run the website Female Menopause Mentors which connects women in menopause with expert advice.

For more ideas on how therapeutic journaling helps your daze as well as your nights, do come visit!

        

If you’ve ever wondered whether any guys keep journals, wonder no more.

Over the next couple of weeks I’ll introduce a series called “Guys and Journaling.” I’ll share the firsthand accounts of the role journaling has played in several men’s lives.

Guys, this is your chance to get inspired to get that pen to the page by learning how your peers do it. Ladies, you’ll get a glimpse inside a few guys’ heads and learn ways to encourage the men in your lives to journal.

Brett McKay, who writes the blog The Art of Manliness, included journaling in his “30 Days to a Better Man” series, which gave men 30 tips on improving different aspects of their lives. According to Brett, it’s a good idea to keep a journal for the following reasons:


•    Your children and grandchildren will want to read it
•    It can bring you to your senses.
•    Journaling grants you immortality.
•    Journaling improves your health.

Want evidence? Brett explains that many a great man throughout the ages kept a journal:

In studying the lives of great men, I’ve noticed a common trait: they were all consistent journal writers. Now, I’m not saying that their greatness is directly attributable to their journaling … But I figure, if great men like these thought it was important to keep a journal, maybe I should, too. Heck, if it weren’t for their journals, we probably wouldn’t know much about their great lives and deeds.

Here’s a short list of great men from history who kept journals:

•    Theodore Roosevelt
•    Thomas Jefferson
•    Charles Darwin
•    Benjamin Franklin
•    Lewis and Clark
•    Andrew Carnegie
•    Ralph Waldo Emerson
•    Captain Cook
•    Winston Churchill
•    Sir Edmund Hilary
•    Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton
•    Mike Tomlin

I could go on, but I think you get the idea.

The post is followed by an impressive six pages of comments, mostly from guys who journal. You’ll meet a few more on this Journal Therapy Cures blog in the coming days.
 
Stay tuned for more of Guys and Journaling!

If you’d like to be interviewed… please post a comment here!

        

“Many want it, only a few can get it by MIDNIGHT tonight”

It has been said that the richest place on earth is the cemetery because it is where people take their unfulfilled dreams. If you would like to learn a real, practical way to accomplish your dreams NOW, then I have the perfect book for you!

Desiring to live out her dreams and overcome the abuse and tragedies that had plagued her childhood, my colleague, author Sylvia Coleman embarked on a radical life transformation to emerge into an award-winning journalist and successful entrepreneur!

Sylvia was crumbling under a façade —enabling her alcoholic boyfriend, and hiding a dysfunctional past filled with bouts of clinical depression, overeating, stints of homelessness, and haunting flashbacks of sexual abuse. And she has revealed the secret to her healing transformation in her latest book, “Creating a New Normal: Cleaning Up a Dysfunctional Life” so that you too can learn how to fulfill your dreams!

This book, which reads like a modern-day version of Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” has been garnering great press from a host of media like NPR, the Philadelphia Daily News and “Wake Up Live” in Boston, to name a few.

In “Creating A New Normal,” Sylvia approaches the concept of repair and recovery with a clever, detailed, and often humorous self-introspection that has enormous ability to inspire us all to change and engage in a reflective self-cleaning.

Remarkably, Sylvia has extraordinarily managed to sculpt a new paradigm of self, while recreating her own new normalcy in a world filled with chaos and confusion. By simply positioning the magnifying glass on herself, Sylvia shares the potential of life transformation with everyone.

Now it's her turn to help YOU realize YOUR power. If you want to learn how to “create your own new normal,” check out this gripping page turner and the great complimentary gift package Sylvia has put together for you.

Visit www.thenewnormalbook.com TODAY, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9th and purchase Sylvia's book from Amazon or BarnesandNoble.com and you will not only receive her book, but also more than $500 in FREE bonuses from some of the country’s leading self-improvement gurus to further assist you with transforming your life!

NOTE: these free bonuses are ONLY available when you invest in her book TODAY: 2/9/10.

        

 

Writer's block is a fancy term made up by whiners so they can have an excuse to drink alcohol.

 ~ Steve Martin

 

Most of us can relate staring down a blank page, whether paper or electronic, willing the words to come. The question is whether writer’s block really is just made up by whiners, or whether it’s a real affliction?

Madelyn Kearns, a columnist at the University of Maine’s “The Maine Campus,” considers the question in a recent article:

This crippling inability to put thoughts to page happens to the best of us. Even writer Ernest Hemingway, whose adventures include running with bulls and time as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War in 1937, admitted there was nothing more terrible to behold than a blank sheet of paper.

The fact that so many people face or have faced the great wall of “write me not” would appear to be a valid cause for research and investigation to discover the root to this scholars’ suffrage and expunge it once and for all. Why is it then, that we are still without our Writalin?

Kearns concludes that biology and psychology are so interrelated that they function together. Just as worrying can tie your stomach in knots, so too can it create roadblocks to your writing.

The cure? Do something to shake up your energy and give you a fresh perspective. Try out several different activities to find one that works for you. As Kearns writes:

Just as the symptoms of writer’s block differ from person to person, so does the cure. One respondent in an about.com writing forum found that setting an egg timer aided them in the unclogging of the word nozzle, while non-fiction writer and journalist Tom Wolfe discovered that writing his articles in the form of memorandums helped him fill the page just fine.

Personally, I like doing sit-ups to try to ease the affliction, but whether you take long walks on the beach, write poems in French or sleep your way through the emptiness à la Californication’s Hank Moody, it is up to you and you alone to find your fix.

Steve Martin advises people to stop complaining about writer’s block and start getting out of their rut by modeling successful writing:

Go to an already published novel and find a sentence that you absolutely adore. Copy it down in your manuscript. Usually, that sentence will lead you to another sentence, and pretty soon your own ideas will start to flow.

There. Now you have several activities to try, as well as eleven others in my post “More Writer’s Block Cures from Journaling.”

When was a time that you experienced writer’s block, and what did you do to break out of it? Leave a comment!

Get your FREE Writer's Block eBook!

        

There’s a reason that the best self-help books ask you to take out your journal periodically and work through exercises yourself. Their authors know that you can’t make lasting change in your life by sitting on the sidelines. You have to jump into the middle of the action.

 

Writing journals is a powerful tool that can help you overcome challenges in all areas of your life: health, relationships, career, or money. Use these five steps to keep you motivated, focused, and accountable.

 

1)      Clear your Mental Clutter.

 

Modern life is full of distractions, both internal and external. It’s nearly impossible to imagine new possibilities when your brain is chock-full of the here and now.

 

Productivity guru David Allen encourages his students to have “a mind like water,” calm and ready for anything. A great way to accomplish this is to get everything off your mind and into your journal: your worries, your to-do lists, or those bright ideas that pop into your head as you’re falling asleep.

 

Clearing your mental clutter makes way for your creativity to blossom. It lets you notice new opportunities that come your way and envision new possibilities instead of dwelling on what exists now.

 

Journal Prompt: “What’s on my mind right now?” Write, without taking your pen from the page, until you’ve purged your thoughts.

 

2)      Set your Intention.

 

If you don’t have a clear picture of what you want, how are you going to get it?

 

You may know that you’d like to have more money, for example. But do you know how much you personally would need in your bank account to feel comfortable? How would you like to spend that money? Close your eyes and imagine how it would feel to have the amount you envision.

 

If you can’t do this, you have some work to do. If you imagine what you want clearly and invite that thing into your life, you will probably find that it comes to you. It may be simply the Law of Attraction, or that you’re more attuned to opportunities in line with your intention, but either way you will channel more of your energy toward making that clear desire a reality.

 

Journal Prompt: If I had X in my life, I would be happy. Now write a page in your journal that describes a day in your life with X ($500,000, or a perfectly matched partner, for example) in your life, and how it makes you happy. Focus on the feeling you get knowing that you have the thing you want.

 

3)      Create SMART Goals.

 

Now that you have a crystal clear picture of what you want, you can set goals to make it happen. Your journal is the place to write down SMART goals.

 

SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Based. It’s a straightforward system, once you get the hang of it.

 

Specific: Be as clear and detailed as possible.

 

Measurable: You’ll know whether you achieved it or not.

 

Attainable: It’s within your reach, setting you up for success.

 

Relevant: This goal gives you joy, and you’ve created it by choice, not out of obligation.

 

Time-Based: Give yourself a deadline to meet it.

 

SMART goals don’t have to be complex and wordy. If you’ve used your journal to imagine yourself living a healthy lifestyle, you could write down the SMART goal “Quit smoking by the end of this February.” Go down the checklist: Is it Specific? Yes. Measurable? Yes. And so on.

 

Once you’ve written down your goals, write the next action you will take toward accomplishing each one, such as “Google Stop Smoking programs in my area.”

 

Journal Prompt: Write three SMART goals relevant to your intention from step two. Write the next action you will take toward each. Breaking them down this way will make them more achievable.

 

4)      Hold yourself Accountable.

 

Regularly check back on each of your written goals, journaling about the progress you’re making and ensuring that you’re doing what you committed to.

 

5)      Celebrate your Victories.

 

Cross off your accomplished goals. Use exclamation points and smiley faces liberally. Congratulate yourself and take a moment to see how far you’ve come.

 

Documenting your vision and goals in your journal will make them more real than if you just daydream about them vaguely. Clear your mind of distractions, clearly state your goals in writing, and revisit them frequently. You’ll be surprised at how effectively you can master challenges with the help of your writing journals.

 

 

Need some more ideas on how Journaling helps you master your life? Drop by for a visit!

 

 

 

 

 

 

        

In a world that’s only constant is change, I feel blessed and comforted to have my journal on hand to help me find peace from within. I’m Soli Goodes and I’m a Journal Junkie.

Moving into 2010 I think the effects of Climate Change are becoming increasingly obvious. As I write, it’s 43 degrees Celsius outside with strong winds and a bushfire danger rating of catastrophic. This is our 5^th or 6^th day of extreme heat. These extremes are beginning to become the norm rather than the exception.

The weather is not the only sign that things are out of balance. We have a large number of people suffering daily from the effects of stress. There are many experiencing feelings of anxiety, frustration, deep sadness or depression, feelings of hopelessness and dismay. The suffering and imbalance is wide spread.

I believe the disharmony around and within us is our highest collective consciousness trying it’s best to wake us from the fearful dream most of us call reality. The disharmony is trying to get our attention and have us ask ‘how could life be better than this?’ and ‘what part can I play in creating the change that I wish so much to see?’

This is where I believe the practise of Journal Writing is an amazing and powerful tool for transformation. Journaling offers a perfect way to turn our attention inward and ask ‘what is it I really want?’ to ask ‘what really matters most to me?’

Journaling Rebirths Personal Empowerment

Having a journal is like having a mirror for your mind. With practise you can see even deeper than the mind, you can feel clearly all the way into your personal truth and what really resides in your soul.

I believe there is a massive transformation sweeping the globe. This change is taking place one person at a time as we remember who we really are. The book and film ‘the Secret’ come to mind as sign posts of the wisdom that’s becoming main stream. The Law of Attraction. Everything is Energy. These are ideas that science is now confirming as fact.

All of this powerful new information that we’re becoming aware of assures us, we are not victims of circumstance in a random Universe. And we’re not sheep, destined to follow what we’ve been programmed to accept as true. Instead we are powerful creative beings. It is through our ability to make choices and focus our energy (our attention) that we create our life experience.

This revelation can be viewed as miraculous and terrifying. If we really are this powerful (and my gut tells me it is so), first all the excuses for being anything less than our best selves evaporate. Secondly, we have open to us an infinite supply of possible choices. How will we ever know what choices will bring our most desirable outcomes?

This is where Journal Writing again shines as a powerful tool to assist in conscious creation. Using your journal you can play with possibilities. You can write about where you are now on any subject – Relationships; Money; Work; Home; Travel; Events of the past, etc. And write about anything you feel could improve (bring more life and joy to) these areas.

Your journal is a place you can come to be completely honest with yourself. Tell it how it is. The truth is always the perfect place to start. And as you write for yourself with the intention of total honesty, you will start to see yourself as you really are.  All the layers of ‘shoulds’ can fall away. All the weight of others expectations can be checked at the door. All of the ‘have to’s’ can go get stuffed.

Living Your Life from Your Own Truth

The real power of creative and healing clarity that comes from journal writing is felt when you’re able to set aside all of the influences of what’s ‘out there’, what society says and the opinions of others in your life. The benefits come when you give yourself permission to really speak freely. No guilt, no obligations, then you can get down to the all important business of experiencing who you really are and what really matters most to you.

With practise you can connect to and stay centred in your own personal truth on a moment by moment basis. Armed with awareness of your truth you’re than able to make choices that are aligned with your hearts deep desires.  

As people become centred in the truth of who they are and what their hearts hold, one heart at a time we are quickly bringing into being a new and better reality for us all. A reality and a world full of all the things our hearts are at our core, harmonious, healthy and whole.

Being that you’re on this great site reading about Journal writing I’m sure you’re already on this path of connection to self and conscious creation. My encouragement to you is don’t delay, have a heart to heart with yourself in your journal today.  And let the truth of who you are inspire the choices that you make in creating the life of your dreams.

 

With Love, Soli xxxxx

PS you can check out my site and my very special Journal Junky Journal Gift Sets at www.journaljunky.com.au

        

 

Bruce L. Bair Physician’s Assistant and Wellness Coach, interviewed me for his radio show, “Ask an Expert Anything.” This interview aired November 4th and I’ll publish excerpts of the transcript in several parts, edited for readability.

In this segment, I explain the different resources that Create Write Now offers to help you get over your resistance and put the pen to the page.

 

B: Bruce Bair                                           M: Mari L. McCarthy

 

 

B:  Now Mari, one of the things you talk about, as we’re discussing these things here at the end, you said the words “get out of your own way.”  You also said the words “get to the page.”  So, how does someone go about getting out of their way and getting to the page?    What do they do at home to get out of their own way?

 

M:  I would like to offer a couple of avenues.  On Facebook I've set up a Create Write Now / Journaling for the Health of It! ^TM business page.  It's a community of journalers where people discuss their challenges and things like that, so sometimes reading what's going on for some other people may help the process.  I also publish Weekly Journal Writing Cures (JWC) Journaling Tips that they can find there (under the Journaling Tips tab) and there’s also Create Write Now’s inner healing journaling website.

 

On my web site I have a Journal Therapy Cures blog that talks about all different aspects of the journal writing inner healing process and dealing with issues such as “page fright” and inner critics and self-sabotage.  I think one of the more recent articles I had was “Five Steps to Start Journaling for the Health of It”. Also on the web site, I have a department called Journaling Tips that has all kinds of articles, websites, books that are available. One of those resources might help journal writers get to the page more often.

 

To answer the question of getting out of our own way, it's a lifelong challenge, but it gets better as we go along. We must work on it.

 

So I think the best thing to do is to be kind to yourself. One of the things that helps is just sitting and doing some meditating.  I mean, not heavy duty, you know, the whole process, but taking a few minutes and just really reconnecting with yourself and (asking), "Okay, what's going on?  What's happening?" in an understanding, soothing tone of voice. 

 

Another recommendation is sometimes just to get to the journal. I know a lot of people have the (intimidating) experience of a blank page, but just take the pen and just say, "Okay, I'll take this page and just write whatever."  So that's another way.  I think it's again just tuning into ourselves and just having to continually have discussions with ourselves in a lovingly compassionate way.

 

I think we're always so easy to beat ourselves up and to really trip ourselves up.  So again, it's just a relearning, a behavior change.  And it just starts with taking one step at a time and just say, "Okay, let's pick one thing," or “Let's do one page.”  That way you are meeting your fears head on and showing them who’s boss. With a lot of practice, and practice with your inner healing journal, you manage and master your fears.

What do you need to help you get to the page?

Artwork by Diviacity

        

Bruce L. Bair Physician’s Assistant and Wellness Coach, interviewed me for his radio show, “Ask an Expert Anything.” This interview aired November 4th and I’ll publish excerpts of the transcript in several parts, edited for readability.

In this segment, Bruce and I talk about how therapeutic journaling specifically benefits middle-aged women experience changes in their bodies and lifestyles.

 

B: Bruce Bair                                            M: Mari L. McCarthy

 

 

B:  You know, one of the groups of people that I'm working with right now is Women in Menopause, because there's so many things going on with them as they go through this process of physical change from, I guess, fertility to natural infertility and the body changes.  And one of the things that can change is the way they think and feel about themselves and this would be a really good way for them to deal with all these different feelings, and thoughts, and emotions, and changes.  Have you had any menopausal clients that you've worked with at all in that regard?

 

M:  I would say that the majority of my clients are, shall I say, women of a certain age.  They are ladies that are in their 50s who are going through the change and it’s, "Oh, what do I do now?  Where do I go?" and “Who am I?” so it's really a good opportunity for them to start therapeutic journaling, Journaling for the Health of It! ^TM.

 

Because with a woman, with the kids, the hormones and things like that, it's just like, "Oh, what's going on in my body?” The hot flashes and night sweats -- I mean, that's all part of the natural process.  Yes, there are some women that have very severe things that you do really need some medical attention for, but by-and-large, it's really a further understanding of your body and your mind.

 

Reconnect with your body, and your buried treasures

 

B: It just occurred to me, you know, I hadn't thought about that, but one of the problems is, is that they feel disconnected from their own bodies…

 

M:  Yes.

 

B:  … and I think some of that is that they've been so busy mothering and working, and, you know, doing and putting themselves last that they really are disconnected and all of a sudden the body starts sending them signals with, "Hey, I'm here, you know, you're living in me."  You know?  Start paying a little bit of attention. 

 

M:  And I think too, as you said earlier, the body speaks to us, and it speaks in terms of you get headaches, sinus infections, menopause.  And it's just a natural part of what the body… and it's the body's way of attempting to get our attention.  Like you say, “I'm here, I've been here X number of years.  How about that?  Let's sit down and chat and  get reacquainted with each other.”

 

B: You know, (middle-aged women are) going through more than one kind of change: physical changes and then the changes in empty nest, and they usually reach a point in their career where they're usually on top of their career, if they've been a career woman. They can see the end of the career over the horizon, so I think all those things would make journaling a very, very valuable tool for them and a valuable piece of time they would spend every day.  I need to direct some of my patients this way. 

 

M:  Well, it's just interesting.  Just today, I saw a client and her comment to me was she's been journaling now for I guess about six months.  She's probably mid 50s and she just came out, and she said, "You know, after doing all this journaling, I'm enjoying me, me, me and making my life about me, me, me and I'm not feeling guilty or bad or anything.  I'm really enjoying talking about and living my life for me."

 

Like I said, it's so exciting to reconnect and just really get back to who we were, a long time ago in a galaxy far away when we came into this world. All those talents, strength, creativity… It's all there.

 

B:  Right. You don't know what you're going to do with them, but it's never too late to awaken those things, and so they can enrich your life and so that you can feel better about yourself.  And that's what it sounds like.  That lady, you know, she doesn't sound like she was being selfish at all. It sounds like maybe up until she started journaling she didn't feel like it was okay.  Now she has permission.

 

“Self-care is the most unselfish thing you can do”

 

M: There's a line from a Broadway song that I like and the character says, "I'd be the first one to agree that I'm preoccupied with me." And that's what people are… ladies, and I do have a couple of gentleman clients, are comfortable…just to get into themselves and they say, "Oh wow! This is fun, and the idea of talking about me, me, me. It's a good, positive thing.” 

 

B:  Yeah, it is a good, positive thing.  Because one of the things I teach my clients is, is self-care is the most unselfish thing you can do.  If you take good care of yourself, you have abundance overflowing then, and you have plenty for everybody else rather than trying to conserve what you feel like can't be replaced.  You know, you have to regenerate you, and then you overflow…It sounds like these people are experiencing that for the first time in their life.

 

M:  Oh, it is. It's interesting now.  I've gotten to the point where with my clients I can tell if they have not been journaling consistently…by the tone of their voice and what they're saying or how they're saying it. It's great to see, you know, the lines are gone from the face, the headaches that they were getting, the physical pains are starting to subside. Also, in people's voice; I do a lot of clients over the phone, and just to hear, “Hmmm….your voice sounds different.  It sounds positive.  It sounds excited.  It sounds curious.”

 

So it's really enjoyable to have that experience, to have people that have these epiphanies and these a-ha situations on a fairly consistent basis. They just need to be regular with their journaling and they’ll get some surprising answers from the body's brain center. 

 

Dealing with a life challenge maybe like “The Change”? Therapeutic Journaling helps you know what’s truly going on inside your ready-to-bloom body!

 

        

What do you do to enhance your Journaling Life?  How do you get to the page? Do you have a ritual that works for you?

My Artistic Director Wendy Kipfmiller and I are creating a purse size book of Journaling TA DA Tips. I have a draft of 36 tips and need at least 4-8 more! The word count for each tip must be 40-60 words.

Send your tips to Mari@CreateWriteNow.com by Wednesday December 30. I’d love feedback on the 36 I already have too!  In addition to using your Tips in The Journaling Tips Book, I’ll publish yours in a future (JWC) Weekly Journaling Tips post on Twitter and Facebook.

1. In your Journal, write the phrase “The Cure is here…the Healing has begun” and then write, write, write away. When you're done, write how you FEEL about this journaling experience!
2. Why does _____ drive me crazy? Journal on and see what the write answer is!
3. Pick a song. Use some of its lyrics to start a new journal entry. Or choose a song you love and write your own lyrics!
4. Write: 'Oh, I Could Never...' and be aware of what's going on in your body as you write. What is your body saying to you?
5. Wander all around a bookstore or library. Pick out and open any book. Wherever your eyes land, use that phrase as a journal entry starter and write, write, write!
6. Have a ten-minute free-writing huddle with your Inner Coach. Write down his/her words of wisdom. What did you learn?
7. Pick your favorite four-letter "F" word like Fate, Fear, Feel, Food, Find, Fuel or.... Write that word down after you've dated the page, then see what your Journal has to say!
8. Make Someone Happy. Pick a person (that includes you!) and write him/her a letter extolling their virtues and expressing your gratitude for what they bring to your world.
9. Write down a question in your Journal. Then relax, take a deep breath and bring your question into a 4-5 minute meditation. Return to your Journal and write down the answers you come up with.
10.  Make a TA DA List. Note your uniqueness, your talents, your mahvelousness dahling!  Be sure you have enough journal pages…this will be a looong list!
11. Bring your Inner Kid along to your next Journaling session and ask for some advice. Take notes, draw, and doodle. Have…FUN!
12. What’s your mom or dad’s favorite saying? Use that to start today’s journal entry.
13. Select a quote you love.  Read it. Savor it. Write about it.
14. Choose a favorite quote. Meditate (sitting or moving) on it for a few then write about it in your journal. Read your entry…what’s going on in YOUR body?
15. Look over your WORD program files titles. When something catches your eye, use it to jumpstart your Journal today.
16. Happy Holidays! Take some time (you name it: one page, ten minutes...) first thing this holiday morn and give thanks for you and your gifts.
17. Listen to a 20th Century Christmas Carol and journal about its lyrics, your feelings, your memories.
18. Ho! Ho! Ho! Write in your Journal what it’s like to be an Elf and get to work with Santa 24/7/365.
19. “Buy a journal and give it to someone, let them write in it and give it back to you. This will give u a lot to write about.” Amaris Autry.
20. “I keep my journal in the same comfy spot. I leave it open to a blank page with the pen on top so that when I get home it invites me to curl up with it and write.”  Wendy (www.snixysnix.com)
21. “Challenges are Opportunities requesting Action” Mari (www.CreateWriteNow.com)
22. Visit www.CreateWriteNow.com for a Journal Jumpstart
23. Sit down with your Journal. Take several breaths. Have a conversation with your body. Let him/her write a monologue if it wants.
24. Take yourself on an Artist’s Date---visit a new place to see what journal writing ideas await!
25. "The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." - Anna Quindlen
26. “I spoil myself the most beautiful, appealing journal I can find - the one with the high quality paper (preferably with no lines). I buy colored ink cartridges for my fountain pen (helps the writing flow). I believe my inner voice deserves a beautiful stage from which to sing!” Joanna (www.wisdomwithinink.com)
27. Change partners: Use an unlined journal, another type or colored pen, write with your other hand, journal with your eyes closed, print your entry….
28. When you think you are done writing, keep going. This is where you will discover what you are looking for. The pearls are beyond what is visible to us. Shoot for the unknown. Feel fragile & be brave.  Nan (@Inspiredjournal)
29. Dream. Envision. Imagine. Create. Get to the page, great things await!
30.  Write in a Journal for 30 days. Then put the Journal away for another 30 days. After that time has passed, pull out the Journal and read it.  You will no doubt learn at least 30 things about yourself.  Things that you like and things you need to improve on! And you'll get some journaling ideas!Steph (www.diviacity.com)
31. Take a look at yourself in the mirror. What interests you? Take that curiosity to the page and write about those luscious lips, those special smiles, those Betty Davis eyes.
32. Get out your journal notebook and drain the swamp as fast as you can.  Set a timer and see how many pages you do in 10, 20 or 30 minutes. Keep the water bottle at the ready.
33.  “Penning down feelings like 'I don't feel like writing or don't know what to write'... Let your mind get rid of that block first - a gradual process but it works!”  Preet (
34.  “If I write about anything that is bothering me, as in an underlying issue, in my journal, it helps to free up my mind to write other things. Sometimes I'll write an essay or story concerning that underlying issue which is an automatic writer's block eliminator” Dawn (www.journalwriterfreelance.com)
35. Paste a picture in your journal and write down the words that you see, hear, smell, touch and taste from it.
36. What relationship would you like to improve?  Have a heart-to-heart with your Self or your Inner Critic or your Blank Page.

Maybe something you’ll find here would make for a great Journaling TA DA Tips!  

        

                                                                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                               

Journaling for the Health of It! ^TM is much, much more than just a dreary data dump. It is a way to discover your passions and pointedly pursue them. For me, daily journal writing showed me where to find my musical voice.

Growing up, I glued myself to my transistor radio and played my red-speckled phonograph incessantly over and over again. My mom introduced me to "the standards" like Cole Porter and Frank Sinatra. She taught me their lyrical melodies and we danced them in our kitchen. We had a long-running repartee about my vocal ability: "Oh, mom, I wish I could sing" I'd whine. Her response: "Oh, honey I wish you could too!"

I took piano lessons and competed in the Pittsburgh Pianorama several times at the historic Syria Mosque. Don't know why I stopped though. My guess is that Sr. Miriam Joseph's raves about my much more talented younger brother Stephen (who cleverly played by ear) strengthened my inferiority complex. What I do know, thanks to beaucoup journaling, was how St. Bernard School's Music Director permanently sealed my singing fate when I tried out for The Choraleers.  After only 5 or 6 bars, he told me that they didn't need me because I was tone deaf. What was tone deafness? A disease? Did I need a doctor? Of course, good little Catholic fourth-grade girls weren't supposed to ask for explanations or reasons why. And I didn't get any teacherly advice on how to get my voice tuned up either. I mean teachers are supposed to help kids learn, right? So my severely shy 10 year-old only performed pantomime bedtime duets with her  maroon transistor radio.

After college, Barry Manilow entered my life and reignited my musical passions. He had a song for all my seasons. But I was focusing my energies on my growing business career and was way too busy to take time for the zillion lessons a tone deaf singer would surely require.

But when I turned 50, and in a committed journal writing relationship, I finally got up the courage to revisit my vocalist.  Always the ardent goal setter I used (and still use my Journal) to help me set and get goals. One December, one of my goals was to take singing lessons. About a month later, a story about the Kingston School of Music that accepted adult students appeared in my local newspaper and I signed on.

A year later, I debuted in my school recital performing Frank Sinatra's "All the Way" (thanks for the introduction, mom). When I sang on stage, I traveled to another world that felt so…cosmic!  After, my teacher asked, "How did it go?" "Were you scared?" "No way," I answered, "When's my next performance?

Like my journal writing, singing is a form of self therapy: they both relentlessly reconnect me with my body. My body and I often dialogue about old habits like jaw clenching, shallow breathing, eye scrunching and work on turning them into healthy behavior patterns.  My muscles spend less time on tension and I spend less money on wrinkle creams.

 For 2009 one of my musical goals was to be on YouTube. For 2010 I’ll release the CD “My Favorite Sings—Then and Now”, my interpretation of my favorite Broadway melodies and I’ll remix, remaster and re-release “A Baby Boomer’s Christmas” for which I’m writing a Christmas song with the working title of “Clowning Around at Christmas”.

And my chats with my celestially located Mother go something like this “Oh, mom I know I can sing.” Her reply? "Oh, honey, I know you can too."

What are your passions? What are your goals?

Ask your Journaling Therapist and you’ll find your soul!

 

        

Bruce L. Bair Physician’s Assistant and Wellness Coach, interviewed me for his radio show, “Ask an Expert Anything.” This interview aired November 4th and I’ll publish excerpts of the transcript in several parts, edited for readability. Note: After our first webinar in October, Bruce took the plunge and started Journaling for the Health of It ™

In this segment, we discuss the connection between journaling and ancient healing arts like the Chinese Qi Gong, and how journaling’s one that everyone can practice at any time of day.

B: Bruce Bair                    M: Mari L. McCarthy


M:  One of the things (journaling helps with) is just body awareness of how under circumstances we find all of a sudden, our body talks to us:  the jaw automatically clenches, the stomach tightens, and other physical pains show up.  Isn't that fascinating?  So journaling just really gets us to understand how our body behaves unhealthily and how we can change our physical behavior by changing our thoughts and feelings. 

We're definitely all connected, so I think the fact that we're speaking in terms of health and holistic health is very good because I think the mind/body connection was the first step.  I think, okay, we're recognizing oh yes we do have a brain and we do have a body, but I think the thing is (with journal writing) we are now understanding, realizing, and appreciating that we are all physical, and all spiritual, and all mental, and all emotional beings -- as opposed to everything being so compartmentalized.

B:  You talk like a Qi Gong master.  You know, the Chinese moving meditation that becomes a martial art at the higher levels.  I took a course this summer at the National Wellness Conference where we learned a little bit of mind/body stuff to go along with things that we were thinking and saying.  And a lot of what you're describing with the journaling, it's a moving meditation.

M:  Yes.

B:  You know, it's much like a martial art.  And for you, it really was because you were learning a complete new skill on the left side of your body and that might be something that people ought to try to do.  You know, even if they only just type with their left hand, but to make it something different than what they usually do…When I listen to you, you sound just like this Qi Gong master who taught us.

M:  [Laughing] Well…

B:  Same kinds of things…journalers are doing something with words and something physical at the same time.  He and his wife did a lot of things with the hands.  It's just very interesting, how much that's connected.  You know, how much what you're teaching with journaling is connected to these Chinese martial arts that are 3,000 years old.

Journaling is more art than craft

M: Thank you for telling me this.  And that's what I really appreciate.  Really, the journal is the tool. People normally just think, "Oh, writing, well, topic sentence, and grammar."  I said, “No, no.  It's really more of the art part of writing, as opposed to just the craft.”  I think people tend towards the (left-brained) craft, but journal writing is artistry, it’s creativity. 

It’s just looking at your total self and realizing how much there is to us and just finding something totally different about yourself and your being.  It is amazing. And I have to say that you feel whole in doing it. When I started, I really felt completely disconnected and used to get headaches and all that.  I don't anymore.

Journaling helps set and clarify goals. When I first got into pursuing one of my passions, singing, everything was always tense, but the more I got into the journaling and the writing and just got the release…I think that's helping me make me who I am today as far as being positive and open. My body feels very good. 

You get to the point of appreciating the journal is your 24/7 therapist.   No matter where you are, you can just sit down and just write, and you don't have to do anything formal like a topic sentence or things.  You just do it.

As you are finding, Bruce, journaling leads you to where you need to go, or what you need to get out.  Maybe one day you just need to do a data dump. Once you get into the process and just let it go, journaling takes you where you need to go next.

Epiphanies for everyone

B:  Well, you know, like I told you, it'd fit right in with what I do, coaching…  And I realize the way you're talking about it, it's very much a moving meditation.  I hadn't thought of it that way before, but this is a very powerful tool that you can just take a few minutes a day, you know, to meditate and then to write on your meditation.

I think that you're going to break open, as they say in the writing world, and have an epiphany or epiphanies much more easily than you would without that…I think seeing those thoughts in a concrete form, you can change the way you think about them and then you are open to the subconscious mind and other parts of the nervous system to speak to you.

M:  Mm-hmm.  And I think it's a good testimonial that journaling is for young, old, male, and female.  It's for everybody, so I think the fact that guys doing it, like you Bruce, I think that's great.  I think it helps people understand that it is for everybody.  It's very easy to get out the notebook and put the pen to the page.

As we said, our biggest obstacle, biggest challenge, is ourselves, and we just have to nurture ourselves and be a good parent to ourselves and help ourselves get out of the darkness we’ve been living in and into the light of our inner world.

Learn what your body is trying to tell you. Start Journaling for the Health of It ™

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Artwork by Diviacity

        

“Ask an Expert Anything” Interview

Bruce L. Bair, Physician’s Assistant and Wellness Coach, interviewed me for his radio show, “Ask an Expert Anything.” This interview aired November 4th and I’ll publish excerpts of the transcript in several parts, edited for readability.

 

B: Bruce Bair                                                                      M: Mari L. McCarthy

 

B:  Now, you founded Create Write NOW and you have this program called “Journaling for the Health Of It ™” that we talked about a little bit last time. How does a listener or any potential client of yours make use of the program?

 

M: …It’s an opportunity for all of us to get into our inner life and understand what motivates us, what helps us, where we come from, all those types of things so that we can understand what's really going on inside of us.  Get through all the baggage and craziness that we've been carrying around with us and get to our real, true, authentic healthy self that we came into this world with. 

 

B: How have people used the program that you’ve worked with so far?

 

M:  Well, I guess I'd like to give a personal example of how I use it.  I was diagnosed, or shall I say I diagnosed myself, with shingles. I got myself to my doctor, and luckily there is a drug out there called Valtrex, so that was able to help me. I talked to my naturopathic doctor and she said basically that stress brings (shingles) on.

 

So what I decided to do was, of course, get to my journal, and what I did, for a period of about a week or so every single day, I had a dialogue with my shingles. I was able to then get into realizing all kinds of other physical behavior (that has) origins in mental and emotional things. 

 

As I said earlier, we carry around so many erroneous messages, and we just need a vehicle, a way to identify those things and work through them. 

 

I was going through a period where my business is really expanding and growing. I'm very active.  A lot of good things are happening in my life, and I'm saying, "Well, now how would that bring out the shingles? And in the process of the dialoguing with the disease, I found that there were still a whole lot of messages that I was still carrying around with me; about ‘Maybe you shouldn't be this successful, you shouldn't be drawing attention to yourself,’ and things like that. 

 

I thought, "Wow, that's really old stuff," because I was the oldest of four kids and basically I was mommy's helper and daddy's helper and just really being a good role model for my younger brothers and sisters. 

 

(Journaling) enabled me to realize I was still carrying around a lot of issues, and helped me work through it, and I was done with the shingles inside of two weeks. And not only do I, from a stress point-of-view, really feel better, but because it certainly was very nice to get rid of all the pain and the agony of the shingles.

 

B:  Well, they're very painful, and it's interesting that what you've brought up.  I interviewed some people who have a cooperative of, I guess alternative medical healers, sort of like naturopathy and chiropractors. I interviewed a couple of women who work in energy healing, and they make the same contention that you do -- that if you have a physical symptom, you had an energy system problem for a long time before that manifested physically. 

 

And they kind of contend the same thing that you have to clean up your energy. Different practitioners have different ways of doing that, and your way is to work on the energy in the brain and get thoughts, feelings, emotions, and underlying premises out on paper where you can see them and make them physical, so that's a very interesting way to approach that.

 

M:  Yes, and I think that when things manifest themselves in the form of diseases, it's also an indication from your body that you're disconnected from your body.  I think we're all so experienced in living in our heads and thinking things through, and all that type of thing, that I really believe that physical disease gives us an opportunity to see it's like a wake-up call from our body.  "Hey, it's time to get back into your (body), spend some quality time with yourself, and take a look at some other areas of you.” 

 

We have our own whole inner world that has just been sitting there for years, and years, and years, and it's just like, "Oh my goodness, I'm still thinking that."

 

One of the things that came up in my journaling around the shingles was (that) when you're a young, impressionable, human being with a developing immune system, you're sucking all that stuff in. And it really literally gets stuck, like you're saying, in our energy systems, ourselves, our body somehow.

 

And the great thing about it is, with the journaling as with the energy work and other holistic forms of medicine, is that it focuses back at how much power, strength, and everything we have. It's just really a question of turning our heads around and doing some things to improve our thought process and get us focused on us, and we can manage the process.  And then by doing that, then we can use the appropriate healthcare resources to help us heal ourselves.

 

B:  You know those are great concepts, really great concepts, and in my coaching I kind of teach clients the same thing.  The power is in you.  You're perfectly whole, but you may not be connected to the whole.  You have to connect yourself to the whole, and then, you can be resourced.  You may not have all the information that you need, but you're perfect and whole and don't need anything else to be that way other than just to connect.  And this journaling is a way to begin to connect all those points together and pay attention to them.

Learn more about  Journaling for theHealth of It ™ private writing session.

        

As an 18 year old sophomore at the University of Texas at Austin I took a Creative Writing class and we were required to begin keeping a journal.

At the end of the semester, the other students each brought in a lovely journal to show the professor they’d fulfilled the requirements. I brought in a large box containing more than twenty volumes overflowing with the entire history of my life up until that point in time!

In the many years since then I have rarely missed even a day of journaling.

I spend anywhere from fifteen minutes to an hour or more writing in my journal each day. Just as swimmers put in their daily “miles” to build and maintain a foundation for swimming just a few laps in competition, I’ve often viewed daily journaling as my “miles” and these “miles” have provided a solid foundation for all the creative/healing work I’ve done since then.

Because I am so accustomed to translating my thoughts, ideas and feelings into written words every single day, words never scare or daunt me in any way. I have written novels, feature-length screenplays and even been a professional comedy writer for a popular, long-running comedy troupe here in Austin, TX—and never once in my life have I experienced Writer’s Block or anything remotely like it!

(I mean, why would I experience Writer’s Block?! I already write down all sorts of words every single day. Anything deliberately Creative I might do is simply more words…and no big deal!)

Sometimes I write about the most mundane things in the world, such as what I want for my birthday or which girl I should ask out on a date. Sometimes I write about the most profound things in the world, such as my spiritual beliefs and the ultimate goal in life. But always I write about anything and I write about everything.

I routinely use my journals to write about my creative projects before I really begin working on them. My journal is the place where the original ideas are born and shaped and changed before they begin emerging into the world in a more polished form.

For a long period in my life I did all my “creative writing” directly on a computer. But because of my tendency to continuously go back and rewrite and edit and polish what I’m working on before I even reach the end, about a decade ago I set aside the computer and I now write the complete First Draft of anything I am creating directly on paper, in a separate journal.

So, when I’m actively creating something, I carry around two journals. In one I write about what I’m writing. (“Hey, what if I changed the Hero in my story to a Heroine…that would totally shake the entire story up, right?”! “What if I incorporated even more cellular biology into my smoking-cessation program?”) and in the other journal I actually write whatever I am writing. (“It was a dark and stormy night…”)

Only once I’ve completely finished the First Draft of my project do I type it all into a computer, creating a Second Draft as I go along.

Another great value of writing the First Draft of anything in a journal is the physicality of it. Writing with a real pen on real paper—leaving a trail of ink behind you—forges a connection between you and the world that is sadly missing in our increasingly digital age.

At a certain point in my life I made a long, slow transition from being primarily a creative artist who, frankly, didn’t earn enough to survive and into the next chapter of my life as a healer and Hypnotist. That transition came about entirely because of my journal—for it was there, on paper, that I explored where I’d gone in my life and where I wanted to go. For weeks and months and longer I considered various plans, ideas and options about how and what I wanted to contribute to the world.

Because it was my own personal journal, no career option was too crazy. (“Wouldn’t it be cool to make XXX adult movies of Shakespeare’s plays that weren’t modernizations but used the original language?!” “What’s the maximum age to join the Astronaut Training Program?”)

As I began to realize that what I really wanted was to change the world…one person at a time, my destination became increasingly obvious. I had already trained, years earlier, in Hypnosis and the related art of NeuroLinguistic Programming, but never really did anything with that knowledge until I began exploring it again in my journals.

As I got back into hypnosis and expanded my research and training in areas related to the mind and body, I increasingly came to understand that we manifest our problems in the world by telling stories about them.

It’s not so much that we smoke cigarettes, but that we constantly tell ourselves a Story about how we are Smokers and cannot quit.

It’s not so much the chronic Hip/Neck/Back pain…but the Story we tell ourselves (and, perhaps more importantly, the Story we tell others!)about our Hip/Neck/Back pain!

Ultimately I came to believe that the Story we tell ourselves about our problems IS the problem!

In my hypnosis work, a large part of what I do is simply helping people imagine a completely different Story in their life…and/or help them vividly imagine a Happy Ending to their current story.

By keeping a journal, YOU have the same opportunity, every time you pickup a pen, to change and rewrite the story of your life! As Aristotle said, “Art shouldn’t be about what is, but what could be or what should be.”

In the same way, while it’s certainly therapeutic to use your journal for an Info Dump where you can let go of all the petty annoyances of the day, it is also a unique forum for you to imagine what you really want in your life and to write and even rewrite the story of your life in any way you desire!

------------------

This article's author is John McLean. Based in Austin, TX, John is a hypnotist, healer and daily journaler. He is the creator of the Last Smoke Break smoking-cessation program, as well as a revolutionary new approach to physical healing called Neuro-Sexual Healing. You can learn more about John McLean @ www.LastSmokeBreak.com.

Artwork by Diviacity

        

What is known as writer’s block—not knowing what to write—generally boils down to two challenges: personal obstacles and lack of inspiration. Fortunately, your journal is a powerful tool to take care of both. Here are 10 ways you can use it to cure writer’s block.

1.    Clear the crazycrap out of your brain.

Your mind is probably so cluttered with thoughts and worries that you’re not sure what you really want to say. In your journal, write down whatever comes to mind. Write in stream of consciousness style for five minutes, without taking your pen from the page.

2.    Collect inspiration.

Write down as many inspiring things as you can that have happened in your life this week. Did you see an uplifting story in the news, or experience an exciting milestone? Look around the room, watch a movie, read the news, or take a walk around the neighborhood, and don’t think about writing. You’re likely to come back to the page with several exciting ideas to move your writing forward.

3.    Practice the art of description.

Bring your journal to a public place—a restaurant, hospital lobby, or park—and write down every descriptive detail you can. Subtly watch the people who walk by and describe in detail what you observe. Who are they? What are they wearing, doing, and saying? You’ll be writing so quickly that you won’t have time to judge your phrasing, and you’ll generate material to use in the future.

4.    Get to the root of your writer’s block.

For many of us, writer’s block boils down to lack of confidence in ourselves. We don’t think that we really have anything interesting to say. Who do we think we are, trying to write? In detail, write down your worst fears about writing—what exactly might happen if you do it? Take a moment to reflect on how silly those fears actually are when you see them in print.

5.    Ask your journal questions, and let the answers marinate.

Questions open up possibilities. Write down whatever questions pop into your mind. What was the name of my kindergarten teacher? Why are reality TV shows so popular? Why is my neighbor so cranky all the time? Put your journal down for a bit and go do something else. Come back to your journal and see if any answers have emerged.

6.    Make lists.

Lists are fun, easy, and will spark your creativity. Write down your top five favorite albums of all time, foods that make you happy, or ten places in the world that you want to see before you die.

7.    Think of your first draft as clay to be sculpted.

Think of writing your first draft as generating a lump of clay. In order to sculpt a work of art, you’ll first need the raw material. It never looks beautiful in the beginning, does it? Write your draft without stopping to look things up or correct your spelling. Highlight these places to remind yourself to fill in the gaps later. Know that you’ll come back later and polish. But not now.

8.    Journal on a schedule.

Journaling is like meditation: To reap its maximum benefits, it’s important to practice it every day. It doesn’t matter if you feel like it or not. You just do it anyway. If you write regularly enough, writing will become second nature to you, and you’ll find that your writer’s block simply isn’t there anymore.

9.    Keep an ongoing list of ideas in your journal.

Dedicate a section in your journal, perhaps the last few pages for easy access, to an ongoing list of possible writing topics. Whenever one strikes your fancy, write it down. Then when you can’t think of anything to write, you’ll have a whole lot of options that get your blood pumping.

10.    Just keep writing.

If there’s one piece of advice that writers give again and again, it’s this: Writers write. Don’t let writer’s block stop you from writing, even if you write, “I don’t know what to write” over and over again. If you keep at it, something will eventually emerge.

11.     Invent Your Own Journaling Cure!

With a little help from your friends at Create Write NOW.


Artwork provided by my BFF Dominic Devitt, part of my Journaling Shingles Cure in 2 1/2 weeks process! Ask me about it... Mari@CreateWriteNOW.com

        

These days, a lot of us journalers keep blogs as well. You may find yourself journaling less frequently when you’re blogging regularly, because you think journaling and blogging are pretty much the same thing. Don’t make that mistake.

Journaling and blogging are two different animals. While they might be distant relatives, they’re not from the same species. Here are five reasons why.

1.    Journaling is private, and blogging is public.

Even if you’re comfortable sharing the most intimate details with strangers, what you write on your blog will differ from what you write in your journal. When you blog, you know that other people can read what you write, from your crazy ex to your conservative grandmother. What you publish on a blog takes on a life of its own.

With journaling, there’s no need to edit yourself.  You can dissect your deepest insecurities or sing your own praises. You can share anything completely honestly, even if it sounds ludicrous and you change your mind the next instant. No one but you has to know.

2.    Journal entries can take any shape, whereas blog posts are generally organized.

When you write for an audience, you have to articulate your thoughts in a way that someone else will understand. You use complete sentences, proper punctuation, and thematic paragraphs. You write a catchy headline to sum up your main idea.

When you write for yourself, on the other hand, you can throw organization and clarity out the window. You can use as many curse words as you like or make references that only you will understand. You can make lists or sketches, jump from one topic to another, or even write in stream of consciousness style.

3.    What comes out when you let your ink flow on the page is different than what you type on a screen.

Have you ever typed a letter to someone and felt as if you were writing a book report instead? I’ll bet that your words come out more polished and professional when you type them onto a computer screen than when you jot them onto paper.

For journal entries, as for letters and poems, only handwriting will do. There’s something about putting the pen to the page that’s akin to an ancient ritual. Handwriting entries trigger subconscious thoughts and memories in a way that typing does not.

4.    Journaling is much more straightforward than blogging.

Blogging requires some degree of technical knowledge. They often feature images, hyperlinks, categories, tags, and SEO optimized content. It’s no wonder that some bloggers find it difficult to post regularly -- there are a lot of factors to worry about.

A pen and a blank sheet of paper, on the other hand, is all you need to start journaling. What emerges onto the page may be complex, but the act of journaling couldn’t be simpler.

5.    Journaling is strictly non-competitive and non-commercial.

When you blog, you are probably hoping to attract readers. You want to write something that will stand out among the literally millions of blogs on the web today. You may also structure your writing around a product or service that you feature.

With journaling, there is no one to impress and no one to outdo. You don’t need to put a shiny spin on anything, because you’re the only customer that you need to satisfy.

While blogging can get you in the habit of regular written reflection, it is absolutely no substitute for journaling. Even if you keep a blog, make sure that you’re taking the time to journal and connect with your most loyal reader: you.

        

Journaling with Your Inner Kid

by Jill Schoenberg

 

 

 

Inviting your inner kid to join you in your journaling has many powerful benefits.  I should know because over the past few months I have worked with a short, simple inner kid meditation and an exhilarating journaling activity that included my inner kid aspect. 

 

Oh the wondrous results I’ve seen just from this simple yet profound activity! Let me tell you more…

 

Consider This:  When our inner kid is hurting we often experience a sense of disempowerment and our authentic voices are very often suppressed or even silenced altogether. Moreover, we tend to be driven by what we “should” say or how we“should” act or behave rather than from our heart’s true desires. 

 

On the other hand, when our inner kid is happy we often experience playfulness,increased energy and more laughter.  We feel empowered, alive, energetic, creative and expressive.  In other words we feel more like our real,authentic selves. You agree that sounds exciting, right?  Well it is and I want to tell you more so please keep reading!

 

Benefits of Journaling with Your Inner Kid

 

Through a very simply and enjoyable journaling process (which I describe in detail below) my inner child aspect went from being hurt and lonely to happy and joyous.  This shift occurred in a very short amount of time using an activity that was easy to fit into my busy life. 

 

And,even more exciting is that this shift has had profound, positive affect on the quality of my daily life.  Here is a listing of just a few of the awesome benefits I experienced since I began journaling with my inner kid:

 

- Greater playfulness

- More honesty and truth

- Increased innocence

- Insightful imagination

- More joy in my day

 

You,too, can experience these same benefits by journaling with your inner kid.  Improve the quality of your daily life by tuning in to and heeding the voice of your inner kid.

 

Now,let us explore the details of this exciting journaling activity.

 

JOURNALING WITH YOUR INNER KID ACTIVITY

 

I would like to share with you the journaling process I used to work with my inner kid.  It’s made up of a simple two-step process.

 

Step One:  Simple Mediation (2-5 minutes)

 

·        Close your eyes and see yourself in your mind’s eye as the age you are now. (This is your adult-self aspect)

 

·        See your adult self in one of your favorite places.  For me this happens to be an open clearing next to a densely wooded area of mostly red oak tress with a pond nearby.

 

·        Take 3 deep breaths and feel yourself very present in your favorite place. Notice details to make the image more vivid.  For me I hear the sweet sounds of birds chirping and wind blowing trough the leaves in the trees. 

 

·        Call forth your inner kid aspect and ask her to join you in your favorite place.  Tell her that she is safe in every way possible when with you.

 

·        Welcome your inner kid and thank him/her for joining you.

 

·        Here is the heart of this meditation: Ask your inner kid what she needs from you and how you may help her.Here are some specific questions you may wish to ask your inner kid:

 

How do you feel?

 

What are you thinking?

 

How may I help you right now to feel better, happier, more secure?

 

What would you like to tell me today? What would you like to share with me? What would you like to show me?

 

What do you want me to know?

 

Why do you not want to share with me? Are you afraid? If so, why?

 

Why are you feeling happy, sad, scared, afraid, lonely, stuck …?

 

 

·        Thank your inner kid again for joining you and invite her to joinyou again next time.  When you are ready,say goodbye to your inner kid.

 

 

Step Two: Reflection with Journaling

 

·        In your journal, describe your favorite place in detail.

 

·        Describe your inner kid in detail, include her age, posture, voice quality, gate/walk, and any other details you can recall.

 

·        Write about how you and your inner kid connected.  Was it an easeful connection or an awkward one?  Did you feel distant or very close?

 

·        Record the message(s) you inner kids gave to you when you asked her what she needed from you and how you could help her.

 

·        Did your inner kid tell you her feelings and thoughts?  Did her message surprise you? What did you learn from her?

 

·        How did you and your inner child part ways?  Was there a loving connection or a distant respect?  Did you wave goodbye only or did you also hug? 

 

 

I suggest that you repeat this inner kid journaling activity at least 21 times over the next 30 days.  You will be amazed at all that you’ll learn and how your relationship with your inner kid will shift, change and grow.  Oh, and each time you repeat this activity please allow room and flexibility for the appearance of your inner kid to change and adjust. 

 

I suggest also that you return to the same favorite location each time as this affords a sense of security and predictability, which helps your inner kid aspect to feel safe and secure. 

 

Hereare a few easy-to-following tips I suggest you use during your inner kid journaling exercise:

 

Tip #1 – Do not push or force this process… rather do go easy with this and allow your inner kid aspect to reveal herself to you on her terms.

 

Tip #2 – Do not analyze… rather do explore, learn and discover.

 

Tip #3 – Do not look down to your child… rather do meet your child at her eye level.  This evens out the power exchange between your adult and your inner kid aspects. 

 

If you stick with this exciting and powerful journal activity I know that you’ll begin to re-discover the natural joyous nature of your inner kid.  For some this joy will be evident right way,while for others it may take much longer. For me the joyous nature of inner kid fully appeared to me about 14 days into the process. 

 

Speaking of the joyous nature of kids, I suggest that you get creative and expand on your usual ways of keeping a journal when journaling with the help of your inner kid.  To help you gain new journal techniques and ideas I invite you to visit Journal Buddies to view a listing of twenty five innovative and creative journaling ideas and prompts.  I highly recommend that you use some of these ideas while completing this journaling activity to give your inner kid a more powerful voice and presence in your journal keeping.

 

It is my hope and intention to inspire you to integrate this inner kid activity into your journal keeping.  It is also my hope to inspire you to expand your journal keeping adventures to include more playful, creative and expressive journaling techniques.

 

May your journaling adventure with your inner kid be a joyous journey of discovery and self-discovery and self-expression. Savor and enjoy, heal and grow, discover and explore, but most all go easily and let the wisdom of your inner kid flow effortlessly from your mind and heart onto the page of your journal.

 

Happy journaling…

 

~~~

Jill Schoenberg is the author of the awardwinning books Journal Buddies: A Girl’s Journal for Sharing and Celebrating Magnificence and Journal Buddies: A Boys Journal for Discovering and Sharing Excellence.

Please visit www.journalbuddies.com for more information about Jill and her books.

 

 

 

 

        

Journaling for Life

By Melia Dicker

 

            Since I was around five years old, my journal has been my closest confidant. I was still getting used to holding a pencil at the time when someone gave me a little hardback journal with a metal lock and key. Even though my secrets weren’t any juicier than “I went to Disneyland. It was fun,” the important thing was that I had a place to keep them.

            As I grew older, my journals changed along with me. In middle school and high school, I used thick 8 ½ by 11 college-ruled Mead notebooks. As a preteen, I filled them with boy gossip and inevitably ended entries with “I heart so-and-so forever.”Often, I listed two or three names of boys that I loved deeply. In high school, I documented my teenage emotional highs and lows, my severe school stress, and the rare fights with my best friend. My journal let me vent and cry, even when I had no one else to talk to.

            I kept a travel journal when I went to Europe for the first time in college, describing the beauty of London, Paris, and Madrid. I began to paste mementos into the pages with a glue stick—postcards of the places I’d visited, snippets of brochures from art museums, and concert ticket stubs.

            While I was studying in Spain for a semester in 2000, I bought my first Miquelrius journal in a little papelería, an office supply store. I haven’t used another kind since. The spiral-bound journals have sturdy but flexible vinyl covers and come with or without lines. They’re 6 x 8inches and perfectly portable.

I got into the habit of gluing keepsakes not only into the pages of my journal, but also onto the front covers, so I could distinguish one journal from the other by the period in my life it represents. Every inch of the covers of my current journal, which I began on April 3, 2008, are covered with items like an Apple sticker on it to commemorate my first Mac computer and address labels from my old apartment in San Francisco.

Within the pages of my current journal, I wrote about falling in love with my partner, Darren, leaving the organization I co-founded, and eventually moving to Mississippi. Even though I talked about all of these things with my friends, the experience of telling them to my journal was different. I could be as completely honest, incoherent, enraged, immature, jealous, goofy, insecure, or despairing as I felt in that moment. I could share my thoughts and feelings freely, without worrying about how someone else would react to them.

I love looking back through my old journals and reading over the colorful adventures I’ve had, and the struggles I’ve survived. Just as much, I love looking at the blank pages of a new journal and wondering what events will fill those pages—tomorrow, next week, or next year. I expect that by the time I’m into my golden years, my friends will have come and gone, but my journal—my unwavering source of strength and solace—will still be at my side.   

 

Melia Dicker is a freelance writer based in Jackson, Mississippi, who has kept a journal for nearly 25 years. She blogs about lifelong education and personal transformation at www.reschoolyourself.com.

 

        

If your depression is minor and not bordering on severe, you could try therapeutic journaling as a natural aid to help overcome depression symptoms. Journaling is highly recommended by therapists for those suffering from mental illness and it can be an important tool in fighting depression. Journaling can release pent-up thoughts and feelings and enable you to understand your emotions and therefore becomes a therapeutic way to work through those thoughts that lead to your depression.

Your journal could include writing, drawing, painting, and/or creating collages to depict your thoughts and feelings. Use it as a safe space to release negative energy and feelings as you work through problems or bad thoughts. A journal enables you to dump these things out, while not feeling bad about doing so or being judged for what you say or feel. You can also engage in this activity at any time, rather than waiting for a scheduled therapy session. However, never allow any negativity to come through in your journaling; focusing on the negatives will make this exercise lose its effect.

You should journal every day in a quiet place for at least an hour and write about your feelings to help lift your spirits and soothe your soul, regardless of what tools you use, such as a traditional notebook, blog account, word document, etc. Daily, you should write about five things you are grateful for. Even though it may not be easy to begin, simple things such as the weather, food, or a supportive friend could suffice.

Also, try communicating five positive things that occurred each day. Writing or expressing your accomplishments in life and your thoughts on them will help you stay proud and happy. Perhaps you learned a foreign language, graduated from high school or college, learned a new skill, raised a nice family, etc. Writing down both a short and long-term goal every day can give you something to work towards. This constant reminder can give you the motivation to start moving in the morning, get out of the house, or work on an assignment or project in order to bring yourself closer to your goals. You can also list all the major moods you went through that day, their approximate times, and respective triggers for further self-analysis. Rating your emotions on a scale from one to five, in regards to how manageable they were, can help you numerically chart your progress every few days.


This guest article was written by Christine Howell who frequently writes about online degrees and college related topics for OnlineCollege Guru, a directory of accredited online degrees.

Artwork provided by Master Journaler and Artist Steph Jordan of Diviacity.

        

 

 

For most of us, there’s a lot more going on inside our minds and bodies than we let on. We may carry ourselves with the utmost confidence,when in reality we feel like a mess. There’s a lot we haven’t processed,perhaps because we don’t know how or simply don’t want to.

When we bottle up negative thoughts and feelings for too long, we get sick. This negativity may manifest itself in something as minor as a common cold, or even in something as serious as a chronic illness.

 

To get healthy and stay that way, we have to get to the root of our repressed feelings and release them. One of the simplest ways to do this is through journal therapy. It’s free, and it’s accessible 24 hours a day. The most challenging part is getting started. These five steps will make it as easy as possible for you to get to the page.

 

1. Decide Why You Want to Get Healthy.

 

Think for a second about the greatest obstacle to your health. Close your eyes and imagine how your mind,body, and spirit will feel if that burden were gone. As your body relaxes,you’ll probably feel yourself smiling.

 

As you open your eyes, remind yourself that you can feel that way. Whatever it is that’s getting in the way of your health, journaling will help you fix it. Journal writing therapy helps you chip away at all the pieces of yourself that don’t serve you. It gets you back to the person you truly are—and even better, it helps you to become who you want to be.

2. Gear Up to Start Journaling.

 

Pick out your materials with care,and make it fun. This is a chance to customize your personal journaling experience. Do you prefer a spiral notebook or yellow pad? A rollerball pen or ballpoint? You might even choose crayons and binder paper if you’re feeling playful. It’ll all up to you.

 

The same goes for space. Choose a space that suits you, one where you can be alone and quiet. Perhaps it’s a hammock in the backyard, or your cleared desk in your home office.

 

Pick a time of day when you can dedicate10-15 minutes to journaling. You might schedule the 10-15 minutes before yourkids wake up in the morning, or the 10-15 before you go to bed at night. Makean appointment with yourself and put it on your calendar.

 

3. Show Up.

 

Your mind will come up with all kinds of excuses not to. One of the most common is, “I’m too busy today. I’ll start tomorrow.” Would you blow off one of your clients or friends this way?Show yourself the respect you’d show them.

 

4. Push Through Page Fright.
   
   

When you sit down in front of the blank page, I can almost guarantee that you’ll encounter resistance. You’ll remember that you have to do laundry, or read that newspaper article. You’ll tell yourself that you don’t have anything to write about. You might call this resistance “writer’s block.” I call it page fright.

 

Our busy lives allow us to repress our issues, so we can avoid them instead of processing them. Bottom line, it’s scary to face your fears. Congratulate yourself for getting this far in the process. Tell your inner critic, “Thank you for sharing,” and put your pen to the page. 

 

5. Write, Write, Write.

 

Write freely, without censoring yourself. Keep the pen moving without stopping, even if you write, “I don’t know what to write.” Write whatever’s on your mind; get it out of your head and onto the page. Be honest, because no one has to read this. Be grateful for the rare opportunity to express yourself without hesitation.

 

Remember that getting started with a healing journal is the hardest part. Once you understand why you’ve decided to journal, prepare yourself properly, and push through your resistance, you’ll experience how liberating it is to journal. And once you get started, you may not want to stop.

 

More  Journaling Tips.