keeping a journal

[HDD]

hey everyone,

 

i am thinking about writing my thoughts on my computer in a journal or something but i dont know if it helps or what exactly to write in it. do you write pretty much anything that comes to your mind? what if it makes you cry? does it help in the long run? i am just trying to figure out ways to help me through this, some form of healthy constructive way to deal with my emotions. I am not sure whether to address the journal to myself or who. i have read online that break up period is a good time to write your thoughts out, but everytime i try to write something, it brings tears to my eyes. so i stop writing. does that eventually stop? obviously i havent done this before, so any advice would be helpful.

[Jetta]

Yes it's very healing and helpful. If you're carrying a lot of pain tears are normal. I came accross a journal of mine (kept on-line) in 2003. Initially I didn't know it was mine (wasn't sure), but I learned a lot about myself rereading it.

[Ash]

You write whatever you want to write. It will more than likely help in the long run, and it certainly can't hurt in the short term. It's also a worthwhile distraction, and sometimes it can help get anger and other feelings out that build up inside.

 

You can even private journal on this site if you want (meaning nobody else can read it).

 

You may want to write about completely different things and completely different viewpoints each time you make an entry. It doesn't have to be consistent, it's whatever you want to do at the time.

 

If your writing brings you to tears, then write about the tears if you want to. That's okay too. Don't let the tears stop you, they're part of grieving which is part of the healing process.

[Me and myself]

I never wrote a journal but always had the habit to write about my feelings and the associated events when I'm really upset. I have a lot of unsent e-mails in my draft folder, which I wrote in the past few days.

It's really helpfull to express anything you want, especially if you can't tell it directly to the one you wanted to.

And it's really interesting to re-read what you wrote a few days/months ago.

I think you should try it....

[markfromark]

I highly recommend keeping a journal. I started mine after my wife left me last year and I write about anything that feels important to me. Two weeks ago I met my ex-girlfriend (yes, I am already through my rebound ) after I have not seen her for more than two month (I am not good at NC). I spent half a day with her and felt falling in love with her again but then at night I read all my journal entries from the time we were a couple and I realized that there were many reason we should not be together. Most of the things that drove me crazy about her I had already forgotten and it was a little bit surprising to read about my feelings. And to fair, I was and still not am anywhere close to being over my wife. I now realized that this will take a while.

 

I recommend writing a private journal, paper or electronic. It should be only for your eyes.

 

remember:

 

If your life is worth living, it's worth recording

[GoSox07]

I highly recommend keeping a journal. For me, it was as simple as setting up an MS Word document (password protected, of course) that I write in each night when I get home from work. It started out as an outlet to write down what I was feeling each day, since I'm not the type of guy to burden my friends with this for more than a week or two. My goal is to be able to look back in 6 months to a year and (hopefully) look at how far I've come since then.

 

What you write is really up to you. Mine started off with everything that I wanted to tell my ex, then updates on my own moods, and now has sort of transitioned to how I'm improving my life. I find myself compiling a lot of lists and goals, sometimes not even related to my breakup. I guess that's a sign of progress! It definitely helps to get everything down on paper. Anyway, good luck!

[EvaGina]

Its very, very helpfull. There is a reason why psychologists and the like reccomend it. You dont even have to look through it afterwards if you dont want to

 

Just write whats in your head, it doesnt matter if you feel stupid becuase no one will read it

[Locke2121]

Its called catharsis. It takes all those bad feelings that you have bottled up inside and gets them out. Maybe not permenantly, but the release of tension is really helpful

[BoarHog]

Another vote here for writing about your feelings. I am in a painful situation right now, and this is one of my main avenues of relief. Not only will it help you release tension, you will also learn more about yourself as you further explore your feelings.

[aerials]

Keeping a journal is a great way to express yourself and let it out without feeling vulnerable in front of other people.

 

As far as subject matter goes...whenever I've written in a journal post break up, it's been anything from rants to letters to lists to actual accounts of my day. Some days I know I need to physically write down exactly why I'm so angry/sad/etc so I understand it better. Other days are good, so I try to focus on parts of my day that have nothing to do with him. Sometimes concentrating on something else - a distraction, something you're looking forward to -- can be as healthy as focusing on the problem at hand.

 

and you don't need to do this, but I always made my journals more like scrapbooks. sketching, poems, ticket stubs..anything I want to remember/use to express myself goes. or a word document is just as good! whatever floats your boat.

[HDD]

i started my journal today. just writing whatever comes to my mind. i feel better after writing in it. becuase no one has to read it and i can say whatever i want. we'll see how it goes. thanks for all the input on this! i really appreciate it.