We have talked about journaling before and the helpful benefits of journaling but today we want to introduce you to a different form of journaling: "Letter to your younger self" journaling. You might have written a letter to your future self in school, and then opened it later and were shocked at what you had written. This is similar to that but reversed. Instead of writing to your future, you write to your past. Writing to your past can help heal deep feelings and to let go of emotions you've held onto for a while. It helps you to realize/identify feelings and reflect on changes you have had, both positive and negative. Today we are going to teach you the basics of letter to your younger self journaling so that you can practice it and gain the benefits of it for yourself.
PRE-JOURNALING: Before we begin find a safe place to sit and ask yourself a few questions to get yourself in the journaling mindset:
1. How am I doing?
2. What is something I am proud of myself for?
3. What are three emotions I want to feel today?
Once you have finished with those questions and you are in the journaling mindset, you can begin "letter to your younger self" journaling.
STEP ONE: Pick a time or purpose to write this letter to your younger self. For some, you might pick a time where things felt impossible. For others, it might be a time that you were happiest. You might be writing this letter to heal yourself or let go of a bad time, but you could be reminding yourself of a time or of your younger self.
STEP TWO: The first step is to find an old picture of yourself. This can be from birth time to a young version of you, whichever you feel is most beneficial to you and goes along with your time and purpose you picked out. For those who don't have a specific time that would be most beneficial to them, the "normal" or average time period that is beneficial is five years ago.
STEP THREE: Write to that young version of yourself in the photo you picked out. Depending on your purpose for writing this letter, what you write will vary. To get you thinking, you could....
1. Write what you want to tell your young self
2. Write what you know now that you didn't know back then
3. Write about something you used to do that you no longer
4. Write about what your young self should look out for
5. Write advice that you wish someone would have given your young self
STEP FOUR: Re-read and re-assess. Once you have finished writing your letter to yourself, re-read that letter. See how your life has changed, let a bad time go, or take the advice you gave your young self. Appreciate the tiny or large changes in your life now, smile at the fact that you have made it to this moment no matter how your past was, or smile at the good things that will never change about yourself.
Those are the four basic steps to letter to your younger self journaling. Remember that healing is flexible and it comes in waves. It doesn't happen in one day or by doing one thing. But day by day, activity by activity, journal by journaling, you can heal yourself. Happy journaling everyone! Have a great Monday.
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