Journaling
April 26, 2019 / Reid M. Jacobs, APHSW-C, MSW
Grief can bring up a world of emotion that can be difficult to express. You may find yourself withdrawing or trying to put on a happy face for those around you. Sometimes we don’t have anyone to talk to or who we feel comfortable sharing the intimate feelings that often come along with grief. Keeping these feelings bottled-up inside can become an unhealthy coping mechanism though. To paraphrase Shakespeare, grief that does not speak builds up to break the heart. Journaling helps release these emotions so that they don’t build up and over time. Journaling can also help us better understand our experiences and make sense of what we go through after losing someone important to us. You can also look back over the journals to see how you develop and grow over time. There may be times that you feel stuck in your grief, but reading over old journal entries may allow you to see how your thoughts and emotions have changed over time.
Here are a few journaling tips to get you started.
1. Keep it brief. Write for only 10-15 minutes, or something that is more comfortable for you so that it doesn’t feel like an overwhelming chore.
2. Don’t worry about spelling or grammar. Your middle school English teacher won’t be checking this. It’s just for you. And I’ll tell the grammar police to give you a pass if they happen to show up.
3. Write what is on your mind or use journaling prompts to get started. You can find journaling books full of prompts or your can do a quick internet search of “grief journaling prompts.” Here are few to get you started:
4. Try using pen and paper. There is something about writing out your journal by hand that helps process more. You’ll also be less likely to get bogged down by autocorrect or email alerts. You can even get a special notebook and pen just for journaling. That being said, don’t feel like you must use pen and paper. If writing on a computer or mobile device works better for you, use that instead.
5. Keep your journal with you so that you can write if inspiration or emotion hits you while you’re away from home. Consider using an app like Journey or Day One if you’re concerned about misplacing your journal or worried about someone else reading your private thoughts.
If you are looking for something structured to guide your journaling, I recommend, The Understanding Your Grief Journal: Exploring the Ten Essential Touchstones, by Dr. Alan D. Wolfelt, a researcher, teacher, and grief counseling who is renowned for his work in grief and bereavement.
Faith and Hope Hospice
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This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.
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Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:
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Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs. There may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to