It may sound simplistic, but it does really work. It gives me a chance to acknowledge the sad, stressful or annoying situations of the day while still remembering that every day has something good, no matter how tiny it is. It’s also a chance to be productive. To analyse what went wrong and what you can do to make it better and who you can turn to for help.

It’s also a very interesting thought experiment. Sitting down with my page of good and bad, problems and solutions, my brain often doesn’t go where I think it’s going to. We tend to think that it’s the big events in our day that cause us concern, but I find that it’s usually the smallest things that come to head when I really ask myself what I’m stressed about. Sometimes that can be rectified there and then, such as sending a text if I’m feeling like a bad friend for not checking in on someone. Other times, the ‘ah ha’ moment highlights underlying problems that seem so small but are stopping me from being creative a work, impacting my mood or adding unnecessary stress into my day.

Johanna explains that the reason this all works for me is that, rather than “staying passive, ruminating about things in the past and blaming oneself”, I am finding active solutions “by putting energy into doing something that can help you move out of the place of stress and anxiety”.

I’m thinking of ways to make it sound more glamorous, exciting or tempting enough for you to do it. Unfortunately, I can’t. But brain dumping has allowed me to leave my problems on the paper, rather than in my brain.

How journaling can reduce night time anxiety and help you sleep