KEEPING A JOURNAL
Opening up is the first step to owing your emotions. However it is not easy to become vulnerable in the eyes of others. I don't like to feel vulnerable but yet I hate keeping things to myself. When you keep things under the radar, the bomb will explode.
So what do you do? Do you keep a journal?
The act of keeping a journal associates with women. However it shouldn't, so if you prefer we can call it `keeping a notebook’. Jokes apart, there are men that write. They don't have to necessarily write in a physical leather journal, they can do so in their phone. There are plenty of apps nowadays that allows you to keep conversations with your better self completely private.
I use Momento, and I love it. It is free, but it's not going anywhere. So please keep reading and download it after.
Opening up is one of the greatest ways to keep your emotions from running around the room with no direction. When you write things down, your emotions don't fade away; however they remain present and structured — at least for that precise moment in time.
When you are emotional, the one thing you need to pull you back to the real world is the present time. So when you write, your main focus is the pen in your hand sliding away in that piece of paper.
It works for me. I am very emotional but yet hate feeling vulnerable. So I write. I write a lot. And some times, if I am being brutally honest with you guys, I write with no order or structure. With this I mean that, I might have 7 journals at home. I may start with one at the beginning of the season, forget pack it for the next trip, and buy another one on the following one. Eventually I will forget that last one and will switch back to the one before.
My NO structure comes in a different shape. Not writing your thoughts in the same journal might have a pass. However, I used to have phases. Phases where I will write every day, including multiple times a day. And then stop writing for weeks. I guess that could be OK too as you write when you truly need so. But I look at journaling a different way.
I don't want to keep a journal of my biggest F*cked up times or most stressful moments in my life. I like to re-read my writings, and when I do, I don't want to intoxicate from them. I want them to portray the reality, what I felt that moment. But I want it to be written with an assertive voice and a positive language. I want to instruct myself on things, and support my decisions with inspiring conviction.
I found myself writing too emotionally, which is the key, to write when you are emotional. But I was always stating the worst things in that moment, without pushing myself to believe or feel bigger about things. And I believe that is why I wasn't consistent at writing.
However, now; I have changed the language. I write down how I feel about things, even if I am embarrassed about it. But I don't judge. I respect myself for owning up to those feelings and I find the possible reason behind it. I understand those feelings are normal because I am a human being. But I make myself understand that in life, we have options. And that we are NOT born feeling like that. We can change how we think, how we feel, how we talk to ourselves. And that is what I do. Or at least try, as I believe we are never done at this job of trying to become better.
Once you learn how to do that, you will feel as if you are 5 pounds lighter. You might not feel great right away, but you damn sure know you are trying. Trying to change is always positive. And we can grasp on to that feeling.
I wasn't born knowing this, someone very special to me taught me. Also my own experiences taught me. There are no mistakes, just actions that serve as learning experiences.
Are you comfortable admitting your write your emotions and thoughts down? Do you agree on the positive language when writing? Have you gone down that path of writing just horrible things?
Escribir tus sentimientos es el prime paso a afrontar quién eres, como te sientes y aceptar que eres humano. Todos nosotros tenemos sentimientos, alguno más que otro. Pero es complicado mostrarse vulnerable a las personas, por muy cercana que sean. Por ende, compartir lo que uno siente puede volverse complicado.
A la misma vez, guardárselo no solo se vuelve más complicado todavía, si no que puede ser catastrófico. No solo para tí, si no para la gente alrededor tuya. Por ello, escribir es la mejor terapia.
Estoy de acuerdo que escribir en un diario puede reflejar una actitud femenina. Por lo menos suena femenina, pero si supiéseis la de hombres que escriben... Pero no tienes por que escribir en un diario. Puedes escribir en el teléfono. Hay muchísimas aplicaciones que te dejan mantener conversaciones con tu YO 'echao palante' sin que nadie lo sepa. Completamente privado.
Yo uso Momento. Es gratis, y no se va a ir a ningún lado. Así que por favor, sigue disfrutando de la lectura, y descárgatelo cuando acabes.
Cuando escribes también estás de alguna manera organizando tus pensamientos. No solo organizas tus pensamientos, si no que aprendes a ubicarte en el ahora. Y durante estos momentos de debilidad, la mente circula a una velocidad tan rápida, que cuando escribes, eres capaz de ralentizar todo a tu alrededor y centrarte solo en ese preciso momento.
Esto es una de las cosas que mas me gusta acerca de escribir. Pero he de decir que para poder escribir de manera constante y victoriosa, hay que entender que existe un lenguaje de escritura. La voz en la que describes como te sientes tiene que ser racional y asertiva. Tienes que ser capaz de escribir lo que estas sintiendo, sin juzgarte. Cuando seas capaz de no juzgarte y de entender que lo que sientes, por muy miserable que sea, es normal; sentirás como si te hubieran quitado un gorila de los hombros. Entonces comprenderás que el escribir tiene efectos positivos.
El lenguaje y la voz son muy importantes también para poder conseguir ser constante en la escritura. La idea no es sólo escribir en momentos de debilidad. Es vital poder leer lo que sentías en Enero 15 y ver lo diferente que te sientes al respecto. Por ello, es necesario que la voz sea instructiva y positiva. Lo importante es que cuando lo vuelvas a leer, no te infectes de pensamientos y emociones negativas. Quieres poder escribir lo más real posible, pero amándote y respetándote siempre por lo que sientes. Encontrar acciones positivas que hacer para hacerle frente a aquello que tanto odias sobre ti. De esa manera podrás crecer y ver como evolucionas.
O por lo menos así lo hago yo. Y no nací sabiendo eso, lo aprendí de alguien muy importante para mí. Y de mis propias experiencias.
Lleváis un diario? Os ha pasado que cuando volvéis a leer vuestras entradas en el diario, os asustáis de el tono tan desesperado y negativo? Sentís que os podéis contagiar de ese humor?