Life can be a bit much sometimes, and that’s okay, we all feel worry, anger and stress. In times like this, an outlet to air our frustrations is highly beneficial.
When it comes to our self-care rituals, we focus on our physical bodies a lot with pampering and bubble baths galore, but we often ignore our mental wellbeing. Our mental health is equally as important to care for and if you’re someone that struggles to look after yourself, a guided journal is a great way to start taking care of your mind and body.
Adding a journal into your self-care routine can help clear your mind and encourage you to be more present in the moment.
Keeping a journal allows you to clarify your feelings and thoughts while aiding you through possible solutions, prompting you to become more in touch with yourself. Understanding your emotions allows you to develop a greater awareness of your mental wellbeing.
Seven ways to journal for wellbeing
Experts on journaling, Papier, make starting your wellbeing journal easy. On top of creating beautiful journals and planners, their inspiration section highlights everything you need to get started. Here are seven ways you can begin to journal for your wellbeing:
1. Letter writing journaling - you can write to yourself in the future or past. Try describing what you’re hopeful for, what you’re proud of or what you’d love to tell your younger self.
2. Journaling for artistic expression - your journal can act as a judgement-free space for artistic experimentation.
3. Imaginative journaling - try testing your imagination with some creative writing.
4. Organisational journaling - use your journal as a space to get organised. You could try setting goals for the day, week or year.
5. Morning pages - to start your day with a moment of reflection, try writing morning pages.
6. Gratitude journaling - taking time to note what you’re grateful for can make you feel more positive and remind you of how much you already have.
7. Describe your day journaling - going through your day and writing down the highlights, lowlights and everything in between can help you recognise patterns in your behaviour.
Guided journals for mental health can come in a variety of forms, depending on what your goals are. From general wellbeing to gratitude, whatever you’re looking to work on this year, there’s a journal to help you on your journey.
Here are our favourite journals for mental health to get you started on your journey of wellbeing.
SHOP: The best journals for mental health
Guided journals for mental wellbeing
1 of 9Rise and Shine Wellness Journal
Dedicate time for yourself every day with the Papier Daily Wellness Journal. The journal features plenty of prompts to keep you engaged throughout, starting with a wellness map and pages for personal intentions. This pick from Papier is a great journal for improving mental health, prompting you to start each day with a fresh mindset and checking in on your wellbeing regularly. Plus, it comes in a multitude of gorgeous prints and colours for a bright boost when you need it. Highlights: • Undated 12-week overview.• Space for daily check-ins.• Pages for noting thoughts, feelings, habits and the things you're grateful for.• Get a month's free subscription to the mindfulness and meditation app Headspace when you order a Papier wellness journal.• 50p from every wellness journal sold goes to YoungMinds –the charity that helps young people get the mental health support they need.
2 of 9Stay Grounded Gratitude Journal
Another great pick from Papier, this guided Gratitude Journal focuses on putting your appreciation to paper. The Papier Gratitude Journal is filled with daily prompts for morning and evening, encouraging you to reflect on all that you're grateful for. Use the journal to create a meaningful ritual with monthly check-ins, mindful activities and inspiring mottos.Highlights: • Daily gratitude prompts and mindful activities.• Inspiring affirmations and mottos.• Undated pages to fill out at your own pace.• Get a month's free subscription to the mindfulness and meditation app Headspace.• 50p from every gratitude journal sold goes to YoungMinds.
3 of 9The Calm & Mindful Notebook – Guided Self Care Journal
The Calm & Mindful Notebook will help you to identify the anxiety-inducing aspects of daily life and put them into perspective with your many good fortunes. With inspiration and small activities throughout, this planner pushes you to awaken your mind. It includes monitoring water intake, reducing screen time and acknowledging good deeds and gratitudes. These encourage you to make appreciation a daily habit, rather than an afterthought. Highlights:• Undated and designed to be used over a 12-week period.• Includes weekly mindful exercises like self-care, self-kindness, gratitude, stress and meditation. • Highlights relaxing and mindful tasks such as colouring in, blank creative space and opportunities to delve deep into your inner self.
4 of 9The Positive Wellness Journal
The Positive Wellness Journal is a beautiful three-month journal dedicated to nourishing your mind, body and soul through creativity, movement and writing. A top pick if you're looking to take a more holistic approach to your self-care, focusing in on both your physical and mental health. It's designed as a 12-week course, but you can dip in and out as you need, adding in the date yourself when you work in it.Highlights:• Undated 12-week programme divided into three sections - mind, body and soul.• Space for daily intentions, reflections, gratitudes and mood-checking.• Includes many practices and activities such as breathing exercises, stretching, yoga and art therapy.
5 of 9Uplifting Journal
The Uplifting Journal is created as a tool to help with general mood, positive thinking and motivation. The pages are filled with positivity exercises, mindfulness activities and many CBT activities to try. This journal is perfect for all of those going through a tough time. Importantly, to help get you out of the dark and remind you that there is so much light and positivity in the world!Highlights: • Undated 14-weeks of daily journaling.• Includes positivity exercises, daily gratitude, motivational quotes, mindfulness activities and cognitive-behavioural worksheets.
6 of 9Two Minute Mornings: A Journal to Win Your Day Every Day
The choices made in the morning can have a huge impact all day long: Utilizing a gratitude journal can encourage you to "win the day" in just a few minutes each morning. This written exercise helps facilitate mindfulness and assists in the creation of a constructive daily focus – the right track to forming a permanent positive mindset.Highlights:• Features simple, quick prompts that focus on gratitude, letting go of stress, and setting daily intentions.• A clean, yet effective page set up provides space to reflect on three daily questions: I will let go of, I am grateful for, and I will focus on.
7 of 9'Press Pause' Mindfulness Journal
PAUSE is a mindfulness journal inviting you to take time out every week to think, reflect, appreciate, feel and celebrate life, every minute of it. The journal is a call for you to take 20 minutes a week to curl up in your fave spot and re-calibrate; to just think, feel, remember, explore, appreciate and celebrate life. Filled with fun questions, thought-provoking prompts, inspiring stories and 52 weekly journaling pages, it's a place to explore ideas & desires, celebrate the highs, reflect on the lows; jot down your thoughts, feelings & experiences to keep forever.Highlights:• Undated 52 weekly journaling pages.• Filled with fun questions, thought-provoking prompts, inspiring stories.• Places to explore ideas & desires, celebrate the highs, reflect on the lows; jot down your thoughts, feelings and experiences. • Beautifully bound with a durable latte-coloured cover, elastic to keep it closed and two bookmark ribbons.
8 of 9I Am Here Now: A creative mindfulness guide and journal
I am here now will inspire you to explore your world with greater curiosity and find moments of mindfulness in everyday life while unleashing your creativity along the way. Be present now with exercises to challenge your powers of observation, investigation and cultivation and bring new awareness to your senses, thoughts and emotions. Highlights: • Includes an interactive introduction, over 80 creative activities, insights and instructions, and a meditation 'field notes' section for journaling.• The authors of this book, Alexandra Frey and Autumn Totton are the founders of The Mindfulness Project.
9 of 9The Anxiety Journal
Practical, supportive and uplifting, this is a journal for anyone who struggles with anxiety, whether in the form of phobias, social anxiety, generalized anxiety (GAD) or day-to-day worrying. Beautifully illustrated, The Anxiety Journal encourages you to use CBT techniques and mindfulness exercises to help you better understand your anxiety and help you to achieve peace and calm.Highlights: • Inspiring quotes and advice for when you need a quick calming fix.• Prompts grounded in cognitive behavioural therapy to help identify the causes of your anxiety for long-term peace of mind.• Soothing mindfulness exercises.• Pages to record your thoughts and keep track of progress.
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Tips for keeping a journal to benefit your mental health
• Start small - at first you may only feel comfortable writing a few words, and that’s OK. Start with the basics, like understanding why you chose to begin a wellness journal in the first place.
• Set goals – little or big.
• Make writing in your journal a habit – sit down every morning or reflect at the end of the day.
• Get to know yourself – write down your thoughts, feelings, meals and activities and look for patterns or inconsistencies.
• Be honest with yourself - being honest with yourself is the only way a wellness planner can work to your advantage.