For many people, it’s very helpful to get feelings down on paper. For those wondering how to deal with stressful emotions, processing your emotions in a journal by writing about what you’re feeling and why, and then brainstorming solutions has been shown to have many positive health benefits. (Read about the
benefits of journaling here.) This is probably because the process of journaling in this way helps in letting go of negative emotions, can feel empowering, and can help us figure out how to deal with stress more efficiently. It’s not about wallowing in negative feelings; it’s about being able to identify what your feelings are and where they are coming from, and addressing the problem with some viable solutions.
In working through how to deal with challenges, once you’ve calmed your body and attended to your emotions, processing it all on paper can really help. However, as you’re processing your feelings, you may be more pessimistic about things; your view of your life may be more negative than normal. It’s important to be aware of pessimistic thoughts and cognitive distortions, and work on seeing things in a more optimistic light before coming up with solutions.
Read more about the traits of optimistic thinking and how to be an optimist.
