Journaling - Grief Benefit

In the earliest days of my grief, I was unable to formulate a great many of words as to how I felt. I was in such a deep state of shock and disbelief; attempting to hold myself to any normal sense of function and ability to communicate effectively was out of the question. I could sit and write, however, for hours. I didn't care how jumbled or disruptive my writing was; as it was my own.

I progressed through journaling in ways I never thought possible. As time went on, I was able to spend twenty to thirty minutes at a time writing intently on what I was experiencing and the challenges I faced in any given day as a result of being dead brain (shock, sadness, inability to function.) My biggest downfall was finding the ambition to continue journaling on a daily basis. I learned through experience in writing and seeing the benefit in my life, a continued journal would have prompted great strides in my own mourning.

Without the aid of a professional counselor; journaling has been my greatest tool in coping with and understanding the loss I have endured. I suggest that every person, young and old, find a way to journal. It doesn't matter how you journal - through writing, drawing, painting or scribbling. The key to journaling is allowing everything you feel and recognize to be released. The feeling of relief becomes more and more welcomed as journaling continues.