Writing as a Stress Relief
Stress is everywhere. Whether you’re a farmer looming over the harsh weather or a financial analyst working for a Fortune 500 company, you just can’t escape stress.
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People cope with stress differently. Some went to alcohol, which only makes matters worse. Others go with the lesser evil such as eating lots of junk food. On second thought, obesity and heart problems don’t seem like the lesser evil at all.
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Is there a healthier option to relieve stress? Well, of course there is. Writing is one of them.
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“Wait, hold up! Writing?!”
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Yes, writing. Writing as a stress reliever is not something new. There are two ways you can use writing to relieve yourself of stress. One is simply recreational writing and the other is called journaling.
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Recreational writing as a stress relief
Sometimes at the end of a tough day, you just need to escape from reality. Alcohol can help you with that but the cost on your physical and mental health is too great.
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Recreational writing gives you an alternative way to escape reality and create your own imaginary world. You don’t even need to write anything coherent. Just write whatever it is that you want and that’s that.
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For instance, on your way home, you saw a child playing with a kitten. Write about that and feel free to add whatever your imagination tells you to. Can’t write a whole paragraph? Then write just one sentence. No one’s going to judge you.
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Want to step it up a bit?
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Create a fanfiction of your favorite story incorporating all the things that stressed you out in your day. It could be about Harry Potter dealing with congestion in London rush hour or Mario and Luigi dealing with the ever-leaking faucet in your home. Really, you could write just about anything.
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When you’re feeling comfortable about it. Put your writing for others to read. You may have a knack to become a good fanfiction writer. However, do check your writing for any grammar mistakes first. It’s only proper to do that.
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Journaling as a stress relief
Journaling is all about writing about your emotions. It is a great way to ease stress. Many therapists recommend journaling as a stress reliever these days. Writing a journal helps with anxiety too.
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“How does journaling help in relieving stress?”
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As you express your feelings through writing a journal, it lets you sort out your feelings, emotions, and thoughts. It also allows you to review the things that stressed you out and see them in a different light. You begin to understand how and why you react the way you did.
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Reading through your journal, you will think, “Hmm, if I had done this instead of that, perhaps things would turn out differently.” You can sort out your thought process easier when it’s laid bare in front of your eyes.
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Whenever your mind is filled with negative thoughts, writing them out allows those thoughts to disappear. Writing about them actually allows your brain to move on. It has almost the same effect as talking about your problems.
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So, when you have no one to trust about your problems, just write those problems out in a journal. It helps.
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Not everyone is blessed with a trusty companion to whom you can confide all your worries. If that sounds like you, start journaling.
