Journaling for Wellness

The oldest diary I have dates back to fifth grade, when most of my scrawled entries mention the forts I built with my friends or how much I wished I could stay home from school. Sometimes, though, I also turned to those diary pages to pour out my woes, and so I learned young about the healing effects of writing.

Experience tells us these healing benefits are real, and lately, scientific studies as well show that journaling can have actual physical effects. Certain writing techniques can lower blood pressure and improve the body's immune function, for instance, and there are other benefits, too. What's called "expressive writing" is now often used to help people heal from emotional trauma.

Expressive writing is among the things we'll talk about in the class I'm leading, "Journaling for Wellness," this Wednesday at the Jutila Center in Hancock. We'll cover how to practice this kind of writing to benefit your own health. We'll also delve into using affirmative writing to support wellness, and using journals to help reach various wellness goals.

I'm adding a couple of topics that are new since I presented this class last summer. Because people have asked for more information about Dietrich Klinghardt's Five Levels of Healing, I'll say a few things about that and about how journaling fits in with the five levels. I'll also talk about how dream journaling can support health and healing, and how journaling can be combined with meridian tapping techniques -- such as Mental Field Technique (MFT) or Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) -- for increased effects.

You're invited to bring your pens and paper to join us this Wednesday, November 4, at 6:30 p.m. at Room 324 in the Jutila Center. That's located at 200 Michigan Street (the old hospital building) in Hancock. The class will run for about an hour; cost is $10 at the door. Hope to see you there!