5 things you can gain from Journalling as a Muslimah….

We’ve all been there, right? That feeling of a racing mind, or cloudy thoughts. Feeling like our affairs are way out of order and our feet are not quite touching the floor.

Chances are, you’ve heard journaling being thrown around in the self-help space, but like most things, does it actually yield results, or is it some soft practice- all fluff and no results?

Below is a Muslimah’s take on 5 benefits, which I’ve experienced from Journaling, to level up your personal and spiritual growth as a Muslim insha’Allah.

1. Self-reflection/ Introspection

The very nature of Journaling involved taking what is inside, out. So, it forces us to look inward and take a deep look and assess the way we are, in a compassionate way with the intention of growth.

We can only improve if we see our state of affairs, and what clearer way then to read them on plain paper? You see it as it is, funnelled through your mind and pen, to the paper.

Self-development is cornerstone to every Muslim life, especially in regards to increasing our rank with Allah swt. Tazkiyah Tul Nafs, overcoming the lower self and purifying ourselves from spiritual diseases, is crucial in helping us to feel and draw closer to Allah.

2.Slowing down

In my experience journaling has helped with a racing mind. Makes sense right? Because writing forces your brain to slow down and draw out one word at a time. Hence, it forces a greater degree of order and coherence, whereas, in the mind, thoughts may be circling round and take various tangents when left to it.

3.Eloquence & articulation

From writing I’ve experienced more clarity with my thoughts, ideas, and feelings. I think this is in large, down to the process of organising, developing, and critiquing as I write and new insights are drawn out.

With some practice, I think that writing has facilitated me when in a position to express my PoV. This is because the act of journaling is exercising the process of what is inside being drawn out in a coherent and digestible way. Hence, you will be more familiar with this process of accessing your thoughts, feelings and ideas.

Of course, there are other factors to developing good speaking and expressing yourself verbally, nonetheless in my opinion journaling puts you in a better position to access this reservoir of insight inside of you.

I also think that eloquence and beautiful speech is something which we should harness and treasure, after all, Allah taught man eloquence as mentioned in Surah Ar-Rahman (55:4), and Prophet Muhammad ﷺ loved beautiful and eloquent speech. Surely developing our speech and being able to communicate beautifully and effectively helps us get closer to becoming well-rounded Muslimah’s?

4.Critical thinking

It’s much easier to develop this with yourself when your thoughts are out on paper, as oppose to crashing around in your head. This way, you view it, assess, ask questions, reflect, look at pros and cons etc. The whole purpose behind journaling is to be used as a tool to help better ourselves as human beings. By developing our critical thinking, this enables us to think for ourselves in a logical way. I think it's also because, you get better at questioning, which adds a buffer between you and the influence of others. I think this is crucial in the information age where it’s so easy to be influenced amidst information overload. I do also think that some understanding of logical fallacies and reading has also helped here.

5.Managing challenges and processing emotions

Daily life comes with all of its many challenges. Journaling has been expressed by many as a healthy outlet to process emotions and I’ve experienced the benefits of this, Alhamdullilah. When you write, you have a level of detachment to the emotional experience when on paper. This enables you to assess it, helps you to accept it, and approach the emotion which you’ve written on the paper with a compassionate and growth-orientated persona; as you reflect on it and draw out the lessons made available to you by Allah swt. In this way journaling is a means which could help you to get closer to Allah, because you give yourself the time to stop and contemplate on your situation and on Allah, what the wisdom behind your struggle is, and what would please Allah, amongst other musings.

That’s 5 benefits of Journaling from my perspective! I merely scratched the surface of the innumerable blessings which are seen and unseen to me. I pray you found it useful insha'Allah and I'm curious to know what you think?

Follow Muslimah Growth and Reflection board on Pinterest for a dose of Muslimah motivation and inspiration for self-growth and reflection, with our eternity in sight.