Benefits of keeping a journal (pen and paper - not digital)

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to share with everyone a therapeutic tool that I feel has been helpful for me -

Since 2007 I've kept a journal - a little notebook that I write in, sometimes every day for a few weeks, or other times when I'm feeling a bit better then it might be a few months between entries.

I know a lot of people keep online journals and there's no doubt that having a journal of any kind is a great therapeutic tool for anyone. Getting thoughts and feelings out of your head and written down can make you feel lighter. Writing lists e.g. "things that are making me feel sad" can help to manage and rationalise panicky, stressful times. Writing action plans can really make you more productive and structured.

Speaking purely from a personal perspective, I far prefer to write the old fashioned way, paper and pen. It makes everything feel more real and I feel more open - I feel like I'm being so much more honest when I can see my own familiar handwriting on a page, rather than text on a screen. I find when writing on a computer, it's too easy to copy and paste or to delete things. And also, seeing as the computer is the main way of accessing porn, any time spent away from it can't be a bad thing.

The other day I wrote "I promised myself I would commit to this but I relapsed again and now I feel awful", and the very act of writing that down and seeing it on a page and reading it back to myself really hit home and made me think "wow, this is real."

On a side note, just sitting down and writing anything, even a crossword puzzle, is quite a relaxing a therapeutic task in itself. And many people would probably rather receive a letter in the mail than a text message or email. I mean, how often do you REALLY write things down these days? It's so easy to write everything down on your phone that I think many people have barely picked up a pen or pencil since school.

Anyway, there you go, feel free to take this on board if you want to.

 

That's a very lovely idea . I'm pretty sure if you do it with your own handwriting is a million times more effective than typing it online. I'll do that too. stay strong.

 

Even though I don't have a pen and paper journal (I like the accountability aspect of an online journal on NoFap, even if no one apart from me actually reads it), I completely understand how writing on paper can be more effective in expressing your thoughts. I once started writing a random story as it was coming to my mind. I reached about 5-8 sentences in no time, and I felt I wouldn't have been able to do that when writing on a laptop.

Here's a tip that might make writing even more enjoyable: get a quality fountain pen and nice paper to write on. The sensation of writing with a fountain pen on smooth paper is one of the most enjoyable writing experiences you can have, in my opinion. I even enjoyed writing long papers for school in that way .

 

There is evidence that writing a goal in your own hand writing makes you "own it" more strongly

 

I've kept a journal for the past few years and have found it to be helpful as well.

I also think that writing with pen on paper has it's advantages over writing on a computer. When writing by hand, the pace allows for natural stream-of-consciousness thought process. With computers, your mind is often interrupted with spelling mistakes and you become hung up on using the correct words. This can also feed resistance in writing.

Still, I think any type or writing is helpful. Though if using a computer, I would recommend to turn off the spell-checker.

Cheers,