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Positive psychology is becoming an increasingly popular branch of psychology. Positive psychology is the ‘scientific study of what makes life worth living’. It focuses on factors which encourage individuals to cultivate positive emotions, acknowledge and use their character strengths, establish positive relationships and develop a sense of meaning. Positive psychology offers evidence-based techniques and tools to enable individuals to cope with stress, adversity and challenging times.
Life is full of ups and downs, stressful times and challenges which test our mental strength, our ability to cope and persevere to endure when times get tough. Everyone feels stressed from time to time, it is inevitable. However, stress can have a negative effect on our overall well-being and how we feel on a day to day basis. Long term stress may affect our thoughts, feelings and behaviours. This form of stress isn’t good, too much stress can affect poorly and in particular it can affect our well-being.
Positive Psychology and Stress: Journaling
Positive psychology has identified several writing techniques which contribute to promote higher resiliency and encourage positive well-being when stressed. Psychologists have promoted journaling as a simple and effective tool for stress management. Journaling is a powerful tool to examine and shift our attention to relieve stress by helping you work through your feelings of stress, anxiety and uncertainty.
All you need is a pen and a small notepad to start. Here are some simple tips:
- A Gratitude Journal: Keeping a gratitude journal can be a beneficial tool to focus on everything you have in your life already. It facilitates towards creating a positive mood, and buffers against stress and worry. Writing down what you are grateful for has been shown to build long-term resilience. Start by writing down three things everyday which you are grateful for in your life.
- Five a Day Journal: Writing things down can keep your mind calm, decluttered and help you to remember what’s important to you. Writing down what you want to achieve each day is an effective tool to help you feel more organised and balanced. Every day, write down five things you wish to achieve. They can be work, personal or family related. Make sure to keep your five daily goals; achievable and realistic. Make sure to always tick your goals off every time you accomplish one.
- Expressing Writing: Writing down every day how you feel can be an effective learning tool to relieve anxiety and stress. Writing about your daily experiences, recording how you feel, and reflecting at the end of every day is a great way to hope cope through the good and bad times. Try writing a short diary entry every day, recording what events happened throughout your day and how you felt.
Applying these principles to your life is a great step for effective stress management. Journaling is a simple strategy which adds pleasures to your life, it helps to achieve our goals, live mindfully and promotes positive well-being when feeling stressed. Stay tuned for more positive psychology and well-being tips and techniques for coping with stress.
Categories: Well-Being, Positive Psychology, Stress Management, Journaling.
References
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Duncan, E., & Sheffield, D. (2008). Diary keeping and well-being. Psychological Reports, 103(2), 619–621. https://doi.org/10.2466/PR0.103.2.619-621
Henderson, L. W., Knight, T., & Richardson, B. (2013). An exploration of the well-being benefits of hedonic and eudaimonic behaviour. Journal of Positive Psychology, 8(4), 322–336. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.803596
Kern, M. L., Waters, L. E., Adler, A., & White, M. A. (2015). A multidimensional approach to measuring well-being in students: Application of the PERMA framework. Journal of Positive Psychology, 10(3), 262–271. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2014.936962
Owens, R. L., & Patterson, M. M. (2013). Positive psychological interventions for children: A comparison of gratitude and best possible selves approaches. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 174(4), 403–428. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221325.2012.697496
Rose, T., Joe, S., Williams, A., Harris, R., Betz, G., & Stewart-Brown, S. (2017). Measuring Mental Wellbeing Among Adolescents: A Systematic Review of Instruments. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(9), 2349–2362. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0754-0
Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: empirical validation of interventions. The American Psychologist, 60(5), 410–421. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.60.5.410
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