Talking and Writing - Stress Off-loaders!

I find it incredibly helpful to talk about the things I struggle with. Since starting this blog, I think I have improved the way I am because I am talking about the things I find difficult. I am writing about ideas to help stop stress and anxiety, and this is making me really think about, and formulate workable techniques that everyone can use.

Before I started the blog though, I was fortunate because I had (and I still have) a network of people around me - friends and family - that I could talk to. However, I know I have said it before and I'll say it again, but it is very hard to open up to someone about everything. Generally though, I did talk about my biggest problems, but it was my thoughts and feelings about those problems that I struggled to disclose. I guess this was because I thought that people will always judge, even if they say they won't - its automatic. I read somewhere that judging things/people/situations is an automatic survival instinct.

So as well as talking to people as much as I could bring myself to, I also did a lot of writing. I really love writing, so maybe this is easier for me than it will be for others. I tried to write a diary everyday, but I found that this was extremely time consuming and hard to keep up. I did manage to do it for a year but there were huge chunks missing! This year I tried to do it again, but I got to March and haven't written any more since! I think if you are able to do it, diary writing is a good idea because you are able to keep track of everything that is happening in your life as it happens and you are keeping a constant record of your feelings, so you can see how they develop and change. This can help you to make informed decisions in future if you come across a similar situation as you have the details of exactly how you felt.

Another thing I like to do is throughout the year I will collect little notes about things or objects that act as memory-triggers. I collect them up and keep them in a box, then at the end of each year I write an 'overview of my year'. I started this four years ago and have managed to do it every year since. My 'overviews' started off brief but have gradually got longer as I like to keep a more in-depth record of things. The only problem with using this technique is that I can only write about the events that happened, I won't always remember my exact thoughts and feelings, but I still find it very interesting to write and remember important happenings. At the end of each year, after I have written my 'overview', I read last years one to see how my life has improved/changed. I think that doing this has helped me to develop as a person, and even if I feel like I have had a really rubbish year I will always find many positive things that happened too and this helps me to realise that it wasn't so bad after all. Often we tend to remember the bad experiences over the good, but using this technique helps you to think about and remember them all!

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