{"id":25677,"date":"2024-04-19T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/witanddelight.com\/?p=114251"},"modified":"2024-04-19T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T14:00:00","slug":"5-powerful-daily-journaling-prompts-for-processing-your-emotions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/?p=25677","title":{"rendered":"5 Powerful Daily Journaling Prompts for Processing Your Emotions"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo by Suruchi Avasthi<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cFeel your feelings\u201d is advice that feels like non-advice. Like, no shit, Sherlock. We\u2019re all built to feel feelings, just as we breathe and digest food and pump blood through our veins without so much as a thought. And it\u2019s true\u2014we\u2019re riding the waves of our emotions on autopilot because life is overwhelming and looking at what\u2019s bubbling beneath your subconscious can threaten the delicate balance of things. <\/p>\n

Unfortunately, research shows<\/a> decades of repressed emotions can manifest in various physical and psychological ailments\u2014from autoimmune issues to hypertension to cancer. In my twenties, my therapist told me if I didn\u2019t start managing my stress, my body would find a way to manage it for me. I could choose to feel my feelings or confront a bigger, more debilitating mess in the future. <\/p>\n

When I turned thirty-nine, those words carried more weight. My cholesterol had crept up, I felt sluggish and listless, and worst of all, I felt trapped in my habits. I was too tired to use willpower to bully my way into submission. I no longer had the energy to fight or flee. And I had no idea where to start releasing the pressure valve without blowing up my life. <\/p>\n

Processing My Big Feelings<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I did, in a way, blow up part of my life. I \u201cquit\u201d Wit & Delight<\/a> as it existed in its previous form to avoid feeling the shame of failure. In the most debilitating and disorientating moments, a little voice would tell me to write. If you can do one thing today, it\u2019s write.<\/em> <\/p>\n

Writing\u2014through these essays and my morning journaling practice<\/a>\u2014was helping me process what felt unfixable in my mind. On paper, the issues seemed smaller. I could see where I was lying to myself, unable to look the truth in the face. I could see where I simply needed to be loving and compassionate to the part of me that felt utterly terrified. When I kept it all in my head, it was easier to stay in the dark. It was easier to hate myself. When words hit the page, I was able to see my pain, have compassion for my suffering, realize that my experiences connected me to other humans, and as a result, acknowledge I was feeling what was true. <\/p>\n

I realized whenever we have a deep reaction to something\u2014be it joy, rage, envy, or disgust\u2014we\u2019re having those feelings because we care. Whatever that thing is, it matters to us. And I found that to be really beautiful. It was the first time I understood that my feelings were not something to fear, but signs pointing me home. <\/p>\n

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I realized whenever we have a deep reaction to something\u2014be it joy, rage, envy, or disgust\u2014we\u2019re having those feelings because we care. . . . It was the first time I understood that my feelings were not something to fear, but signs pointing me home. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

When I look back through old journals, I often find I wrote about the same things over and over again in circles. I was processing my thoughts without considering the feelings I was experiencing in my body as a result. <\/p>\n

Today I\u2019m writing about a more focused approach to journaling that puts feelings front and center.<\/strong> I want to share my learnings with you because they\u2019ve changed my perspective and my life. It\u2019s all because I listened to that silly piece of \u201cnon-advice\u201d and started to write what was true, not only what I could face.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re in the market for a new journal, give one of these a try:<\/h3>\n

A Feelings First Approach to Journaling<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Many journaling exercises focus on thoughts, but I\u2019ve gotten the most out of my journaling practice when I look beyond the thought to the feeling<\/em> I need to release. I\u2019ve often found myself ashamed of my emotional reaction to what happens in life, but it\u2019s the shame that keeps these feelings stuck. Journaling offers a safe place to express and process them. <\/p>\n

When I start with what\u2019s happening in my body, I get access to the information I can\u2019t reach when I\u2019m in my head. No matter what it is that\u2019s making my thoughts swirl, processing the resulting emotion and letting it move through me is what ultimately helps me move past it. <\/p>\n

My Journaling Prompts for Processing Emotions<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Start by responding to the prompt, How am I feeling right now?<\/em><\/strong> If you want to focus on a specific situation in your journaling, instead respond to the prompt, How does my body feel when I think about the thing that\u2019s bothering me?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Then ask yourself, Where in my body am I experiencing the sensation?<\/em><\/strong> Do you feel pressure in your chest? Your right shoulder? Under your collarbone? How does it feel? Like an electric current? Like a solid mass? Is it gooey or sludgy or prickly? Give the feeling a complete physical manifestation\u2014assign it attributes such as weight, color, texture, and smell. There are no wrong answers. <\/p>\n

Then answer the prompts, What is this feeling trying to tell me? What does it want me to know right now? <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Give the feeling a voice. Let it speak to you without judgment. Once you\u2019ve let it speak, thank whatever came out. Witness what it had to tell you. Don\u2019t assign it any meaning, try to fix it, or shove it away. <\/p>\n

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When I start with what\u2019s happening in my body, I get access to the information I can\u2019t reach when I\u2019m in my head.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Journaling Takes Practice<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If this process seems overwhelming, or if your emotions are difficult to unlock, remember this: Journaling takes practice. Over time, its effects become more and more profound. I encourage you to commit to the process once a day for a week, ideally in the morning (or whenever you typically feel most clearheaded). Throughout the week, if you notice something that triggers you, jot down the thought and\/or feeling while it\u2019s on your mind instead of shoving it away. Then you can come back to it later in your journaling. <\/p>\n

I hope you at least consider what you\u2019re consciously feeling to be the tip of the iceberg of what you\u2019re subconsciously experiencing. Avoiding our emotions is a form of control. It\u2019s us clinging to what hurts because changing and releasing the things that hurt us means we step into an unknown part of ourselves\u2014an unknown future where we\u2019re not sure what to expect. So give yourself some grace. It might seem like something we should easily be able to do, but most of us have been conditioned to contain the truth of our feelings. As a result, we shut out a wonderful kind of inner wisdom and deeper connection with the world around us. <\/p>\n

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Kate is the founder of Wit & Delight. She is currently learning how to play tennis and is forever testing the boundaries of her creative muscle. Follow her on Instagram at @witanddelight_<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photo by Suruchi Avasthi \u201cFeel your feelings\u201d is advice that feels like non-advice. Like, no shit, Sherlock. We\u2019re all built to feel feelings, just as we breathe and digest food and pump blood through our veins without so much as a thought. And it\u2019s true\u2014we\u2019re riding the waves of our emotions on autopilot because life is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":25678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[40],"class_list":["post-25677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","tag-health-wellness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/25678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozapp.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}