How writing can save you from anxiety

Busy schedules, impending deadlines, yesterday’s work piling up, tomorrow’s meetings, today’s errands—it all gets the best of us sometimes. Anxiety is a very common problem facing millions of people today. Whether it’s a mild case that’s soon to pass once your exams are over or your big work project has gotten the green light, or especially if it’s an on-going struggle caused by never-ending work and worries piling up, there is one surefire way to help you power through any anxiety you may be facing: write.

Writing is like therapy…

Studies have proven time and time again that there is just something about picking up a pen and holding it to paper that helps us overcome our worries. In fact, using pen and paper over a keyboard or diction can help you increase your creativity and brainstorm new ideas. And, if you’re interested in using this method to help fight your anxiety, there are plenty of approaches you can take.

• Go for it: You can take a very direct approach to overcoming your anxiety about something through writing by actually writing about what is causing the anxiety to begin with. As you’ve likely heard, writing out your problems clearly defines the issue and it makes it seem that much easier to tackle. If you are facing an issue in your life that’s making you anxious, write about it. Include your thoughts and feelings on the matter, and you might even start seeing it from a new perspective. Getting it onto paper helps lift a huge burden off your mind.
• Get away from it: Alternatively, writing can also be a way to help you escape the stress altogether. By writing about something else, you transport yourself to a calmed state of mind where your worry simply doesn’t exist. When you return to your day-to-day tasks where the anxiety lies, you’re likely to find you have a better grip on the situation than before as you’ve taken some time and stepped away from it.

No matter which method you choose, the great thing about a pen is that you’re only limited by how much paper you have at your disposal!

Doodling & Journaling

You’ve surely noticed the up-and-coming trend of adult coloring books to relieve stress, and there is definitely something to it. Whether you’re coloring in the lines or doodling your very own creation on paper, picking up a pen can completely turn your day around. It gives you a few minutes to simply sit down and be with yourself. Making a habit of this—whether you choose to doodle or journal—is a huge step in overcoming your anxiety.

If you’re at a loss for what to journal about, you should first commit to 10-15 minutes each day just sitting down with your book and pen so you can think about it. You might end up just doodling while you come up with an idea, or you might completely lose yourself—either way, you’re helping yourself calm down and return to the relaxed state of mind you so badly need to be in.

However, if you’re committed to journaling, there are plenty of places where you can find inspiration. Again, you can take a straightforward approach and write about the problem itself, or you can write about life in general. Additionally, you can also take the creative route and use your journaling time as an outlet to make up a story or, as many psychologists recommend, a character (or alter-ego) through which you can begin exploring some very interesting aspects about your life and your desires.

• Write about your problem.
• Write about your day.
• Write about a memory.
• Write about a goal.
• Write about a dream.
• Write about a fictional character.
• Write about a person you know.
• Write about a thing you like.
• Write about something you want to do.
• Write about something you have overcome.
• Write about something you wish you had.
• Write about something you used to do.

You can do any one of the above or all of the above. If you’re putting pen to paper, you’re taking a conscious step to calm down and beat your anxiety.

The important thing to remember is that journaling is something very personal, and it can be approached in an endless amount of ways. For instance, one day you might use a random prompt to tell a story while the next you just need to vent about something that happened to you on your way to the store. Tomorrow, you might wish to use it as a sounding board for your goals, ideas, and dreams while the next day you choose to reminisce on something special that has happened in your life.

There are no rules. Any sort of writing you are doing, whether it is about the anxiety you’re facing or completely off subject, is going to help you deal with your anxiety—that’s the magic of journaling!

Anxiety Management

Writing is a very effective, and fun, way to manage your anxiety. Again, there are no rules. You can write about any thing you wish and you can choose to keep it, hide it, throw it away, or share it when you’re finished. You might spend an hour writing one evening and just five minutes writing the next morning. It is completely up to you and what you need and are able to do. Don’t fret over the details: the idea is for writing to be your calming, relaxing outlet where you can think anything you want and say whatever you need to say.

As a final tip, and a teaser to the next blog post, writing can also be used as a type of stress management by letting you get things that you want to say off your chest. For instance, you can write a “letter” to someone in your journal. It’s like writing an email to someone and not clicking the “send” button, without having to worry about accidentally clicking the “send” button.