In our current era, our lives are intertwined with social networks, and nothing disrupts our mental focus like the constant obsession with checking social media. Have we ever considered the impact of this obsession on our minds and lives? The Times published a report in 2017 on a study that examined Instagram's effects on the minds of 1,500 young people. These individuals suffered from high levels of anxiety, depression, and fear of missing out. While avoiding social networks is impossible in our lives, writing, journaling, and controlling screen time can significantly reduce this anxiety.
Journaling: The Unrivaled Solution for Stress Control
The New York Times describes journaling as "the most effective and cheapest method for mental health care" and a powerful tool for stress control. When it becomes a habit, it yields the best results. Harvard Medical School explains that stress, trauma, and unexpected life changes can emotionally distress us, and writing about thoughts and feelings from a traumatic or stressful experience may help some cope with the emotional fallout. However, writing seems more effective for those facing ongoing or severe emotional challenges like depression.
Dr. Pennebaker, the director of the Center for Psychological Studies at the University of Texas (a pioneer in writing therapy), and his colleagues found that "thinking" about an experience and expressing emotions is crucial. Writing helps us organize thoughts and give "meaning" to a traumatic experience, freeing us from rumination. The writing process can enable us to manage our emotions. Writing about a topic can foster a "thought process" that increases the likelihood of discussing it with others. Timing is vital in the effectiveness of writing. Studies show that those who write immediately after a traumatic event may feel worse afterward, likely because they are not yet ready to face it and need a month or two to express such feelings.
Pocket Notebooks: Small Keepers
Having a pocket notebook, which can always be with us, is very effective in reducing scattered and intrusive thoughts. Pocket notebooks help us stay more focused. Regardless of our profession, they allow us to record ideas that come to mind throughout the day. Whether it's a business idea, a draft of an artistic creation, a report, a note from a moment or experience we want to remember, or intrusive thoughts we want to clear from our minds. We can write daily lists like shopping lists, tasks we must remember, or monthly or weekly plans in them. They are with us so that we can refer to our notes and sketches whenever and wherever we need them.
How to Use a Pocket Notebook?
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If you are one of those who get all the great ideas and thoughts when you go to bed or remember everything you need to decide on, having a small notebook with a pen by your side allows you to write down all these thoughts to decide on them tomorrow.
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If you love reading, you can note down parts of a poem or text you like in your pocket notebook and enjoy revisiting and reading them.
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"Mobiles" have taken the burden of remembering phone numbers and essential information from us. However, we all have faced situations at least once where we needed help and guidance in an emergency, and our mobile was off, and we didn't have a charger. In such cases, having some of this information and essential contacts in our pocket notebook can be very helpful.
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If you love writing, you might get an idea for continuing your work while walking or at a party. Nothing can help you more than having a pocket notebook with you.
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If you are thinking about creating an artwork, pocket notebooks can serve as a small, compact "Artist book" that allows you to work on your ideas and projects under any circumstances.
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If you plan to travel or need to attend a meeting where you must bring documents and notes, you can write everything you need to remember in your pocket notebook.
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Information that you may have in your mind, but writing them down can help free your mind from constantly thinking about them, allowing you to think more precisely: planning short-term and long-term goals, class and course schedules, friends' and acquaintances' birthdays, meeting dates and times, financial management and savings...
For each of us, depending on our personality and life circumstances, priorities and goals, and what concerns us or we enjoy, these items can be diverse and varied. We can use different methods for writing in our pocket notebooks. Pocket notebooks are keepers of our moments of anxiety, loneliness, and busy times and can effectively organize our minds, thoughts, and decisions more simply and closely than anyone else.
Footnote:
Dr. James W. Pennebaker