Therapy journal prompts can be positive way to combat stress, negative emotions, and anxious thoughts. If you’re currently going through a tough time or past experiences are leaving you feeling drained, journaling could help in a positive way to work through your problems.
Recent studies have found journal writing to be linked to many therapeutic benefits including mental health benefits and a positive link to physical health.
Adding journaling practice first thing in the morning or before bed is a great way to get your internal thoughts out in a safe space. With that said, it can be daunting to stare at a blank page the first time.
This is why a list of journal prompts can be so helpful! We hope the writing prompts below give you new ideas each day and help you discover new insights about yourself.
Journaling prompts can help you work through a difficult situation and also offer you peace and creativity.
While you may write very personal, important things in some entries, other entries may be a record of your daily experiences or even light hearted with small things that made you smile.
There is no wrong way to journal!
How to Use Self Care Journal Prompts
Journaling for self care is a great way to help improve your self esteem and relieve stress. But whether you’re just starting out or have been journaling for a while, finding things to write about each day can be hard!
If you want to take your journaling beyond simply writing about your day, using journal prompts is a great idea.
Self care journal prompts are short sentences or topic ideas that help you dig deeper into your own emotions to uncover things you never knew about yourself.
You can use prompts to work through recent issues, develop new positive habits, or to start incorporating more positive self talk into your daily routine.
One of the things I love about journaling as a habit is that I can look back over my life and see how I got through a hard time in the past, any trends or patterns I have, and also how much I’ve grown.
When should you use journal prompts?
Journal prompts are helpful when you’re struggling to get out your internal thoughts or are having a hard time coming up with a topic.
A writing prompt can help trigger your mind in a healthy way and offer a starting point to start writing.
These journal prompts are designed to be answered thoughtfully so that you aren’t just writing a sentence or two and marking it off your list.
We recommend setting aside 20 minutes a day to write.
The best time of day to this is the time of day you’ll be less likely to be interrupted. For us, the perfect time is in the morning or right after work before going into family-time. Your time may be different though, and it’s okay to play with the time for a few days to find when you’re most able to write.
We also use daily affirmations as part of our morning routine that you might like.
63 Therapy Journal Prompts
These thought-provoking therapy journal prompts will help you look deeper into yourself to work through your mental health issues. Use these therapy journal prompts to guide your journaling toward self-discovery and improvement.
- I love _____ about myself because…
- I can improve these five things in my life by…
- My happiest memory is…
- My biggest fear is…
- I feel most myself when…
- My scariest memory is… I dealt with it by…
- I want my future self to know…
- The last time I laughed really hard was because…
- The last time I cried was because…
- If I could write a letter to my parents, I would tell them…
- My perfect day would include…
- The person who most positively impacted my life is… because…
- The person who most negatively impacted my life is… because…
- The most difficult choice I ever had to make was…
- I cope with stress by…
- My most helpful coping mechanism is… because…
- My worst coping mechanism is… because…
- I forgive myself for…
- To me, love means…
- My favorite song is…
- During a stressful time, I can remember this…
- I trust _____ the most because…
- I want my children (or future children) to learn this from me…
- The biggest risk I could take in my life right now is…
- Right now, I feel…
- I get angry because…
- I feel the most spiritual when…
- I get frustrated when…
- I find comfort in…
- If I could go anywhere in the world right now, I would go…
- I smiled today because…
- My life would be incomplete without…
- I would feel better tomorrow if I could…
- The most important value I have in life is…
- I could live more according to my values by…
- I am most motivated by…
- If I could build my dream house, it would have…
- I think the worst thing I’ve ever done was…
- The best thing I’ve ever done is…
- My dream career would be…because…
- That last time I did something for someone else was…
- The last time I did something just for myself was…
- My biggest secret is…
- I was so surprised when…
- The most difficult emotion for me to feel is…
- I looked so amazing when I…
- If I could overcome my fear, I would…
- My teenage self taught me…
- I forgive _____ for causing me pain because…
- Write a letter of forgiveness to family member(s)
- My favorite part of my personality is…
- I’m beginning to question… because…
- My favorite memory from this year has been….
- I could rethink my position on… because…
- The most stressful part of my day is… because…
- When I feel upset or sad, I can always talk to…
- I could be more present in my daily life by…
- What little things made me happy today?
- What kind of things could I do to be more generous with my time, talents, and energy?
- If I could offer advice to my younger self, I’d tell her…
- Social media makes me feel….
- What are my long-term goals?
- I’m looking forward to the future because…
We also have a whole guide to future self journaling if the last prompt is something you want to dig into deeper.
Therapy Journaling Tips
Just because you have some great journal ideas to get you started doesn’t mean the writing process will be easy!
Therapeutic journaling sometimes requires you to look back at hard times or work through difficult emotions, which means putting words on the page may be difficult.
If you’re struggling to get started, try these 3 simple therapy journaling tips:
1. Write in a quiet place.
The key to making the most of your daily journaling is to focus solely on what you’re writing. Sitting in a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted is the key to staying focused as you write.
2. Make it a habit.
Getting started can be difficult, but once you get into the habit of writing in your journal, the writing process will become easier.
Start by setting aside a few minutes at the same time each day to dedicate to writing. After a few weeks, journaling will become second nature.
3. Don’t worry about making it perfect.
Journaling is all about putting your thoughts on paper. That means your writing doesn’t need to be perfect to be effective. As you’re writing in your journal, don’t worry about grammar, spelling, or proper punctuation.
If those things concern you, you can always go back and edit your writing after you’ve finished your thought process.
Where can you get a therapeutic journal?
Any new journal can work as your therapeutic journal. We’ve found some really cute ones at Target and Amazon. We recommend just finding one you think is pretty and functional.
You may also like these bullet journal pens for your daily entries as well because they don’t bleed!
If you’d like more journal prompts, we have a list of 30 Days of Gratitude Journal Prompts to Boost Happiness, as well as, 365 Mindfulness Journal Prompts for Adults that you may like!
We also love to read personal development books and journal about them. A few of our favorite authors are Andy Andrews and Henry Cloud.
Do you use therapy journal prompts?
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