Andrea Hunter Studio

Journaling for Better Sleep

An image depicting journaling for better sleep. A top down view of stationery on a wood surface. On the left there's a small houseplant with large green leaves. In the centre there's an open traveler's notebook showing a blank week. The pages are decorated with a coffee press sticker on the left and a strip of collage style washi tape down the right edge. A Pilot G2 pen is laid on the right page. To the right of the notebook is a tombow brush marker. In the top right a large white mug of tea, and stamped with the word Imagine sits on a white macrame coaster.

In our busy, anxious lives, there are so many obstacles to excellent sleep. But our physical health and mental health rely on it. Also, proper sleep is one of the ten factors contributing to the maintenance of a healthy brain. What can we do to help ourselves improve our sleep on a regular basis?

It turns out that journaling for even five minutes at the end of the day can improve sleep in significant ways. Five minutes! But if you’re not sure what to write in those five minutes, here are a few ideas:

When I sit down with my notebook, when I start scribbling words across the page, I find out what I’m feeling.

Dani Shapiro

TYPES OF JOURNALING FOR Better SLEEP

Gratitude journaling can shift our mindset in a positive direction and away from worry. Apparently it can lengthen the time we sleep by up to thirty minutes. The old adage of counting your blessings turns out to be true. Good for sleep and for your brain.

Make a to-do list. If you’re thinking about the things that need to happen tomorrow, write them down as a list and you’ll probably fall asleep more quickly. Some refer to this as a brain-dump. Or maybe it’s just a good way of being organized and ready to start the day tomorrow. Either way, our brains will thank us for the extra bit of sleep.

Writing down immediate problems and worries and an action plan to tackle them is a beneficial tool to improve sleep.

Smita Patel, Integrative Sleep Medicine

Journaling supplies

A notebook and pen(cil) are all you need. Find something that you’ll look forward to using. Do you like pre-dated? Lined? Completely blank? Maybe, like me, a few stickers inside would make it more enjoyable. Or writing with a coloured pen? It’s your notebook, do whatever makes you happy.

sources

  1. Gratitude journaling study.
  2. To-do list study.
  3. Integrative Sleep Medicine, chapter 8: Sleep Hygiene
  4. My notes from an interview with Christine Lay, MD, FAHS at the Migraine World Summit 2022.

stationery in the photo

P.S. Diana Krall’s gorgeous Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep is always relevant, not just at Christmas and Thanksgiving.

EDIT: After writing the post How I Journal for Racing Thoughts, it occurred to me that this post would have been more accurately titled How I Journal for Better Sleep. Hope that helps …

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