You Don’t *Need* Therapy, You Need a Journal

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A lot of people today think that they NEED therapy. This is mainly due to the high-stress lives we’re living, but therapy isn’t a NEED for everyone. It’s a nice-to-have for everyone. In fact, it’s a strong nice-to-have. But is it a NEED? I doubt it is.

Now, are there cases where people do NEED therapy? Of course! 100% yes!

This voice note is not for those who do need therapy. Please, please seek the help you need from a professional. Ok?

This voice note is for the rest of us who think we need therapy.

Cool? Cool.

Also, by the way, if your primary care provider says you do need therapy but can't afford it yet, journaling can be a great first step.

Think you need therapy?

So, why do ‘the rest of us’ think we need therapy?

1. We’re stressed out!!!

2. Our mental health is lowkey falling apart…

3. We’re spiralling

4. We need to process our emotions or unpack stuff, because “what is all this?”

5. We’re stuck and want to find clarity on our next steps

6. We want a safe space to feel heard with zero judgment

If you’re nodding along to these points, this voice note is for you.

The power of journaling

The good news is that journaling can help you with all the points above. Here are 6 ways I use journaling to get similar results. Not the same, but similar.

1. Journaling for Stress Relief
   I recently learned that the stress we feel is not always due to the situation at hand. We usually feel stress because we don’t know how to cope. My husband for example is so chill when something happens because he believes most things have a solution, but my brain sees many situations as a threat to my entire existence. What journaling does is, it helps me break down my stressors and see them from a different perspective. Is my homeschool REALLY falling apart? Am I REALLY messing my kids up forever? Is the workload REALLY going to make me lose my mind? Journaling helps me talk back to the stressful situation and channel my inner chill.

2. Journaling for Mental Wellbeing
   Writing down my thoughts and feelings gives me a clearer picture of my mental state. It’s like having a conversation with myself, and sometimes, that’s all I need to feel a bit better. When I’m feeling stuck and my mental health feels kinda mental, the process of writing things out feels like someone is holding up a mirror to help me see a way out, to remind me to be grateful, to remind me to call on Allah.

3. Journaling When I’m Spiralling
   Spiraling is “a cycle of negative thought patterns that can escalate and become overwhelming”. This is my internal state a lot of the time, especially around that time of the month. Before I know it, I’m imagining worst-case scenarios for everything! So when I feel like I’m spiraling, journaling acts as a grounding tool to remind me to be here now. I write and write and write down those overwhelming thoughts, and somehow, writing them down with pen and paper helps me slow down and think more rationally. I usually end the journaling session with “Here’s what I think the problem is, and here’s a solution I could try. Ya Allah, help me…”

4. Journaling to Process Emotions
   I’m usually quiet when I get offended, but my brain does not stop! I have used journaling to unpack some deep feelings of envy, anger, hurt, rejection… We all have those moments when we feel big emotions inside and don’t know what to do with them. Journaling gives me space (and time) to analyze, step-by-step, what’s under the big feelings. A few years ago, I felt envy which I knew had no place in my heart. I was so bothered by it and started journaling. Then I realized I felt envious because there were things I wanted for myself but in reality, I wasn’t working towards those things, so I put my big girl pants on and got to work! And alhamdulillah that’s history now.

5. Journaling to Find Clarity
   Whenever I’m stuck or confused about my next steps, about a big decision, about life’s big changes… I turn to my journal. Writing helps me map out my thoughts and make more informed decisions. It slows my thoughts down enough to write out a pros and cons list and then write out the best-case scenario which gives me something to make du’a for.

6. Journaling When You Need a Safe Space
   My journal is my safe space and has been ever since I was little. It’s a place where I can be completely honest with myself, without fear of being judged. It’s like having a conversation with a non-judgmental friend. Sometimes when I write my heart out, like the deeper things, I end up ripping up the page afterwards so there’s no trace of it left, haha. Journaling is my go-to because I need safe spaces more often than any human would be comfortable giving me.

All of this to say…

If you’ve ruled out any mental health crisis where professional help is needed, but you still feel the need to work through stuff, I highly suggest you consider journaling. Therapy and journaling can accomplish similar goals: providing a safe space, being non-judgmental, giving you permission to feel, and offering space to cry.

A good therapist doesn’t give you answers or solve your problems, by the way – they believe that you have what it takes to get to the other side, and they support you as you take the steps towards that.

Journaling achieves a similar goal!

Next steps

If there’s only one thing you’re taking away from this, please give journaling a try.

Start a journaling habit and see how it works for you.

Let me know if you’d like a breakdown of HOW I journal, I would love to support you as you start or improve your journaling journey.

And hey, you know that friend who’s always stressed out and always in their feelings? I think they’ll like this voice note. Please do share it with them.

Thanks for listening! If you found this voice note helpful, please hit the heart or thumbs-up button, and don’t forget to subscribe for more Voice Notes from Maryam.

Happy journaling!

Love + Du’a
Maryam

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What I’m working on

Believe it or not friends, I’m working on putting myself out there a teeny bit more. For now, that looks like speaking on more podcasts! Cue internal screams from the introvert in me.

Do you know any cool podcasts you think I’d be a good fit for? If yes, let me know and I’ll reach out to them! Bonus points if you know the podcast host and can do the introduction :)

What I’m reading

Even though I’m not allowing myself any new books for the rest of 2024, I totally just bought Teaching From Rest because everything about the book speaks to the current state of my homeschool-mama heart.

A few days ago, I was doing sit-down work (math) with one of my Littles, and they started crying because they felt pressured! That’s a HUGE homeschool red flag for me, and that tells me it’s time to drop everything and reassess my approach to stuff. It gets hard sometimes but it showed me that I have NOT been teaching my children from a place of rest. I’m looking forward to gaining some perspective from the book inshaAllah.

I’m the type of homeschool Mama who panics about falling behind but is also 100% sure they’ll “catch up” inshaAllah. We’ll be alright. Math can wait for a bit inshaAllah.

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