All material on this Web site is protected by copyright, and may not be reproduced without written permission. Copyrights are held by Barbara Stahura. All rights reserved.
Journal Workshops
After Brain Injury: Telling Your Story
Journal to the Self®
After Brain Injury: Telling Your Story
Journal to the Self®
The simple act of journaling allows us to examine our beliefs, desires, and hopes; exult in our celebrations and excise our sorrows; and explore the changes we make—or don’t make—in our lives. Journaling gives us the opportunity to slow down long enough to begin the process of personal understanding and self-directed change. We constantly “talk” to ourselves in the privacy of our minds, and in times of crisis, this talk can lead us in circles or carry us away from what is most important to us, which only compounds the problem. Yet by committing our words to the page (or computer screen), we become our own compassionate listener.
As a long-time journaler, I have experienced this power first-hand and seen it in the participants in my workshops. I lead journal workshops of two very different kinds: Journal to the Self® and After Brain Injury: Telling Your Story. If I can facilitate a journal workshop for you, or if you would like more information on my workshops, please contact me. (Go here for testimonials.)
The Proven Power of Journaling
Many studies, primarily by James Pennebaker, at the University of Texas at Austin, have demonstrated how writing about emotional upheavals can improve our physical and mental health. The writing need not be extensive—in the studies, only 15 minutes a day for four consecutive days produced healthy benefits for body, mind, and spirit.
JOURNAL TO THE SELF® was created by Kathleen (Kay) Adams, an internationally-acclaimed pioneer in the field of journal therapy, to provide a powerful yet easy-to-learn method of writing for personal growth, healing, and change. She understands the transformative powers that can be available to anyone willing to write in a private journal for only a few minutes a day. Kay is also the founder of The Center for Journal Therapy and author of several journaling books, including her best-selling Journal to the Self. Thousands of people around the world have taken JOURNAL TO THE SELF® workshops led by certified instructors.
Kay says this about the power of journal writing: “Life-based writing is one of the most reliable and effective ways to heal, change and grow. Your life journal, whether it takes the form of a notebook, computer screen or blank book, creates a present centered between the past and the future. The power of writing is accessible to anyone who desires self-directed change. It requires no special talent, skills or experience—only a willingness to explore moments of ecstasy and moments of despair, critical illness and crucial life choice, psychological healing and spiritual discovery.” I agree!
My Own Journal Experiences
As a long-time journaler, I understand the power of giving myself permission to write in a private journal without fear of judgment and, as best as I can, without censoring or editing. My journaling has enabled me to keep an ongoing record of my life, with its ups and downs, joy and grief, times of growth and times of “stuckness.” I journaled through my husband’s serious accident and recovery from traumatic brain injury in 2004. Journaling became my daily refuge, where I could explore my fears and record Ken’s successes as he slowly, slowly worked to come back. When he had recovered enough to read my journals of this time—a time of which he had few to no memories—I shared them with him, and he learned what we had endured and celebrated together. I later created a journal workshop and workbook for people with brain injury (out in Sept. 2009).
Journaling is Beneficial for Writers
My earlier journals were immensely helpful when I wrote my memoir, What I Thought I Knew, in 2008. They contained a record that became the theme of my book: important times when I changed my mind and so changed my life—even though, as I journaled years before, I had no idea this book would ever exist. So, journaling can be beneficial for professional writers as well as for people who have no intention of writing for publication.
Anyone can keep a journal
You can write in a beautiful journal, an inexpensive spiral-bound notebook (my favorite), or even a three-ring binder. You can keep a journal on your computer. Should you be physically unable to write, as after a brain injury or due to a disability, you can speak a journal into a recording device or to a trusted friend or counselor who writes down your words. What is most important is that you give yourself permission.
As a long-time journaler, I have experienced this power first-hand and seen it in the participants in my workshops. I lead journal workshops of two very different kinds: Journal to the Self® and After Brain Injury: Telling Your Story. If I can facilitate a journal workshop for you, or if you would like more information on my workshops, please contact me. (Go here for testimonials.)
The Proven Power of Journaling
Many studies, primarily by James Pennebaker, at the University of Texas at Austin, have demonstrated how writing about emotional upheavals can improve our physical and mental health. The writing need not be extensive—in the studies, only 15 minutes a day for four consecutive days produced healthy benefits for body, mind, and spirit.
JOURNAL TO THE SELF® was created by Kathleen (Kay) Adams, an internationally-acclaimed pioneer in the field of journal therapy, to provide a powerful yet easy-to-learn method of writing for personal growth, healing, and change. She understands the transformative powers that can be available to anyone willing to write in a private journal for only a few minutes a day. Kay is also the founder of The Center for Journal Therapy and author of several journaling books, including her best-selling Journal to the Self. Thousands of people around the world have taken JOURNAL TO THE SELF® workshops led by certified instructors.
Kay says this about the power of journal writing: “Life-based writing is one of the most reliable and effective ways to heal, change and grow. Your life journal, whether it takes the form of a notebook, computer screen or blank book, creates a present centered between the past and the future. The power of writing is accessible to anyone who desires self-directed change. It requires no special talent, skills or experience—only a willingness to explore moments of ecstasy and moments of despair, critical illness and crucial life choice, psychological healing and spiritual discovery.” I agree!
My Own Journal Experiences
As a long-time journaler, I understand the power of giving myself permission to write in a private journal without fear of judgment and, as best as I can, without censoring or editing. My journaling has enabled me to keep an ongoing record of my life, with its ups and downs, joy and grief, times of growth and times of “stuckness.” I journaled through my husband’s serious accident and recovery from traumatic brain injury in 2004. Journaling became my daily refuge, where I could explore my fears and record Ken’s successes as he slowly, slowly worked to come back. When he had recovered enough to read my journals of this time—a time of which he had few to no memories—I shared them with him, and he learned what we had endured and celebrated together. I later created a journal workshop and workbook for people with brain injury (out in Sept. 2009).
Journaling is Beneficial for Writers
My earlier journals were immensely helpful when I wrote my memoir, What I Thought I Knew, in 2008. They contained a record that became the theme of my book: important times when I changed my mind and so changed my life—even though, as I journaled years before, I had no idea this book would ever exist. So, journaling can be beneficial for professional writers as well as for people who have no intention of writing for publication.
Anyone can keep a journal
You can write in a beautiful journal, an inexpensive spiral-bound notebook (my favorite), or even a three-ring binder. You can keep a journal on your computer. Should you be physically unable to write, as after a brain injury or due to a disability, you can speak a journal into a recording device or to a trusted friend or counselor who writes down your words. What is most important is that you give yourself permission.