Life can be overwhelming, especially when burnout or depression take hold. In those tough moments, it’s easy to forget our own strength—the power to heal, grow, and rediscover ourselves.
But fear not, because, if you’re familiar with journal writing … I’m going to help you get started the healing process, by using the journaling prompts for self-discovery.
Today, I’m sharing with you my favorite journaling prompts from the Journaling Prompts Digital Planner — these are powerful questions or affirmations that can uplift your mood, ease your burden, and reignite your inner fire. So, take your pen and paper to get ready. Once you put pen to paper and let your thoughts flow, magic happens.
What are Journal Prompts?
Journal prompts, also known as writing prompts or journaling prompts, are thought-provoking questions or statements designed to inspire you to write and explore your thoughts and emotions in your digital journal (or paper diary).
However, starting with journaling is easy to say than do.
Listen… If you find yourself wanting to write but don’t know where to start, journaling prompts can help get your creative juices flowing. These prompts give you specific ideas and directions to start writing about, like …
Chat with your other self. Ask about the feelings and struggles you’ve experienced in the past month.
… making it easier for you to express yourself and find clarity. You can use the power of journal prompts to dive into self-reflection, spark creativity, or simply find a therapeutic outlet to lessen the day to day burden.
How to use journal prompts
Using inspiring journal prompts is as easy as a breeze on a sunny day! All you need to do is to make a list of journal prompts (or just grab this digital planner with prompts), find a cozy spot, and let the prompts work their magic.
Here’s some tips:
- When you come across a journaling prompt that catches your eye, take a moment to reflect on it. Let it sink in and allow your thoughts to flow freely.
- Don’t worry about perfection—just write from your heart and let the words spill onto the page.
- Treat it as a personal conversation with yourself, where you can explore your emotions, dreams, and memories.
- Remember, there are no right or wrong answers. Embrace the journey, let the prompts guide you, and watch as your inner world unfolds on the pages of your journal.
Benefits of journaling with prompts
Oh my! If you decide to keep a journal prompts to help with burnout, anxiety or depression, you’ll do yourself massive good!
These prompts are like gentle nudges that help you explore the depths of your thoughts and emotions.
Three things you’ll get by using mindfulness journaling prompts:
- find clarity, unleash creativity, gain a deeper understanding of yourself
- you’ll spark aha moments, ignite inspiration
- and even provide a therapeutic release
So, get ready to uncover hidden insights, nurture your mental well-being, and embark on a fulfilling journey of self-discovery with the wonderful world of journaling prompts.
Find journaling prompts
Well, my friend, with one search over the internet you’ll find an amazing collection of journaling prompts.
So choose the ones that speak to you personally and ignite that spark of curiosity within.
These prompts for self-discovery could be:
- thought-provoking questions about your dreams, memories, or values
- encouraging you to explore your emotions, set intentions, or express gratitude
- prompting you to imagine alternate realities or reflect on their daily experiences
Don’t be afraid to experiment and find what resonates with your beautiful soul. Try different types of journaling prompts until you discover the ones that make your pen dance across the page and bring you closer to self-discovery.
27 Journal prompts to explore
Now, let’s get you inspired to start writing by using journal prompts as your creative springboard! I’m about to share 27 of my favorite journal prompts to boost mental health while journaling about anxiety and heavy emotions. Ready?
- Celebrate one thing that brought you tremendous joy this year.
- Describe a place where you felt happiest in the past month.
- Share a recent fear, and how you react to it. How did you feel during and after facing it?
- What do you love and cherish about your unique body? How does all this make you feel?
- Feeling pain in your body? Write a caring message to the painful parts of the body.
- Reflect on your favorite space in nature and why it makes you feel safe.
- Chat with your other self. Ask about the feelings and struggles you’ve experienced recently.
- Write a loving letter to your body.
- What are you grateful for in your relationships with your family?
- Reflect on a situation you’re unhappy with, and explore how to improve things.
- What makes you feel sexy? Celebrate that!
- At what moment through the year do you feel happiest? Why?
- What things you’re happily doing now but were reluctant to do 10-20 years back?
- Describe and celebrate the place you go to when you feel down or stressed.
- How do your mind and body feel right now?
- Reflect on your current daily routine. What is one thing you can change for the better?
- What is one habit you are proud of?
- What do you do for self-care every week and day?
- What action makes you feel better when you are overwhelmed or burnout?
- How does praying or meditating make you feel? Share a favorite prayer or meditation.
- What is one experience you enjoyed on your last vacation?
- Talk about the most recent positive experience at work/at home. Why are you joyful about it?
- Who is your favorite person in your phone book? Why?
- What did you do when you were most stressed out this past year? What can you learn from it?
- Reflect on your current daily routine. What is one thing you deeply enjoy that helps you focus?
- What is one change you made in your routine that saved you precious time?
- When was the last time you felt sad/depressed? How did you overcome it?
Start a journal for beginners
New to journaling?
Well, for one, you need to start with a notebook, a pen and a list of prompts.
You can use the list I just gave you, or you can grab this digital planner (PDF) with 100 journaling prompts already added to the pages. Just add it to Goodnotes or print it on paper to start taking notes. Make sure you schedule a couple of journaling sessions through the week, to see the benefits unfold.
5 Inspirational Notebooks
Whether you decide to go digital and use a goodnotes planner PDF, or are looking for a printed notebook, here are some ideas to look for.
1 | Cute Blooming Floral Notebooks (Pack of 3)
These EOOUT hardcover spiral journals are A5 size spiral notebooks (8.25*5.75in/ 21*14cm) with 7mm lined paper (made of 100gsm thick paper), strong twin-wire binding and elastic support to make your notebook more durable. Back pocket to help put small cards or memos.
2 | Journal Notebook for Women “Blessed Is She Who Believes“
This large notebook is spiral-bound notebook with gold wire and foiled writing on the cover. The notebook contains 192 lined pages (beautifully designed) for journaling or note-taking, giving you plenty of space for your journal prompt writing. The durable cover protects the notebook’s pages and prevents any bending or damage, keeping all your thoughts or emotions safe.
3 | RIFLE PAPER CO. Marguerite Stitched Notebook Set of 3
Rifle Paper Co. Marguerite Stitched Notebook Set (size 8.5″x 6″), comes with 3 notebooks with 64 ruled pages with gold ink. Apart from the perfect construction, ease of laying flat to write, and perfect size to take on the go, you’ll LOVE all their patterns!! Each cover has it’s own unique hand-painted floral design coming in a variety of colors. These journals are gorgeous, and a wonderful size for carrying around in shoulder bags and backpacks.
4 | Butterfly Embossed Hardcover Journal
You will be impressed with the cover design of this Butterfly Embossed Journal. The beautiful and magical butterfly has a perfect 3d embossed effect that sparkles in the light, to uplift and encourage you to write every day. Plus, the 192 pages (80gsm lined paper – lines width 7mm), resisting ghosting and ink bleeding will offer enough space for your journal prompt writing.
5 | 100 Journaling Prompts Digital Notebook for Goodnotes
If you decide to ditch the paper and use your iPad for digital notes, install a note-taking app like Goodnotes 5, Noteshelf or Notability, download a digital journal prompts PDF and import it into your app. Each page has a built-in prompt so all you have to do is find a moment of quiet and start writing.
So… Which one do you choose?
Once you start writing you’ll began to see the importance of writing down thoughts and feelings and things you’ve have learned.
