Keeping a journal can be therapeutic for many aspects of mental health. In fact, writing is one of the things that helps manage the most complicated Behavioral Personality Disorders. Writing down our thoughts and emotions has proven to be a valuable tool in terms of helping to process, understand, and healthily release our feelings.
BPD Journal Prompts
There are various methods to journal, but you’ll find that the prompts focused on specific facets of your BPD are the most useful. You might, for instance, write about a stressful incident, a strong emotion, or a poor coping strategy.
You may gain a new perspective on these issues, gain insight into why you are feeling them, and discover better coping mechanisms by writing about them. I recommend giving journaling a shot if you have BPD.
What do I think?
What should I do if I experience this?
How are my activities assisting me?
What harm do my acts cause me?
Do I believe that, overall, these answers will be beneficial to me in the long run?
What could I do to serve my interests better?
Is there anything I want to discuss?
Can I blog about them or discuss them with a friend, professional, or family member?
Specify them below:
Why am I so focused?
What damaging behaviors do I have? Make a list of them and include at least one brand-new healthy coping technique for each.
What set off my triggers? Is there anything in my life that triggers me on a regular basis that I could modify or let go of?
Make a list of everything that makes you happy. Consider it a list of justifications for living.
What was the event that set off a strong emotional response?
What feelings do I now experience, and why do I think I’m sharing them?
Describe an instance when you employed a dysfunctional coping technique. What was my current state of mind? What more could I have done?
Does my explanation of ___ or advice on how to handle it originates from someone else? (Or, to put it another way, am I replicating the cognitive distortions that I was taught? For instance, “I’m useless, so I can’t modify my conduct.” Nothing matters; therefore, it doesn’t matter how I handle it.
Am I worried about how my actions are influenced or overlooked?
What would be the best method for me to deal with ____ directly?
Did my friends or other family members also experience this?
Can I somehow discuss this with them?
What would I like to talk about with them, if so?
Is there a specific object, piece of media, or location that makes me think of?
When dealing with ____, do I split?
When I’m dealing with ____, does another part of me take over, front, or become active?
When I divide, which half of me is in motion? For instance, my self-defense mechanism, my inner kid, etc.?
What historical connections does this aspect of me have that might be causing me pain right now?
Is it a particular person, circumstance, subject, setting, fear, phobia, or trigger?
For instance, because my inner child hates abandonment, dealing with the loss of someone essential to me (such as a BPD “favorite person”) may trigger my inner child. This is true even if the abandonment was unintentional, such as in the case of death. Ex. 2 I’m aware that whenever I feel the need to protect myself, my headmate from my adolescent years frequently appears. In some circumstances like these, I can tell when my headmate is there because of their extreme polarity and negativity, cruelty and passive-aggression, and obsessive conduct. A lot of these are reactions that I formed as a result of several experiences when I had to defend myself.
How can I know if I’m breaking up over?
What does the part of me that is proactive want to do about it?
How do I wish to handle ____, according to the “rational” portion of me?
Is there a reason why I shouldn’t or shouldn’t want to do what my active self wants to do?
Why haven’t I already implemented the “logical” solution?
What can I do to give my active self a sense of voice and respect?
What is a helpful, exciting diversion for me to pursue after speaking with my active part and giving myself space to feel?
What are ten things you may say or do to yourself to calm yourself when your anxiety is at its highest? As an illustration, what aspects of this circumstance are under your control and what are not?
Write about an instance when someone helped to brighten your day. as well as an instance where you brightened someone else’s day.
Make a list of five activities you do every day and five things you’d want to do every day. What is preventing you? What small changes can you start making this week, this month, or this year?
Identify four areas in which you are harsh with yourself. How can you support yourself a little bit more?
When you get up in the morning, how do you want to feel?
List five positive aspects of the present.
Did you experience tension or worry today? If so, what set off that emotion, and how did you deal with it?
What one change to your morning routine would you wish to make?
What one change to your evening routine would you wish to make?
“What if everything goes right?” and “This is my ideal outcome in this circumstance.”
Writing the phrase “Breathe in. Breath out.” or “I am safe.” frequently in your diary might be comforting if you are writing when you are feeling particularly tense and worried.
What would occur if I moved forward? The advantages and disadvantages should be listed.
What am I most frightened of? Why?
Where in my body am I experiencing anxiety?
What do I currently require?
Can I provide what I need by myself, or do I require help?
What did I do today that terrified me or made me nervous?
What can I do to lessen the effects of my anxiety?
How would life be different if I felt like I had control over my anxiety rather than constantly feeling like it had me in its grip?
Consider what caused the fear while being curious and uncritical.
Consider whether your anxiety may be attempting to assist you in some way. Be open-minded and kind about this possibility. For instance, anxiety stems from a fear of failing over fumbling a job presentation.
Honor the anxiety: Try to understand how it is trying to help you and see if there is a way to appreciate that. Contrast this with attempting to talk ourselves out of or push away anxious feelings. The majority of the time, when we fight a sensation we don’t like, it just becomes worse. Honoring the intelligence of our emotions might encourage them to mellow and provide comfort.
What would you change if you could wave a magic wand and all of your worry vanished? What are you going to start or quit doing? What are you going to do more or less? How are you going to treat both yourself and others?
When and where do anxiety attacks occur? What causes it? What are the repercussions? If ever, when does it not exist? What does that even mean?
What happens next when your anxious thoughts capture you? How is your conduct altering?
How does anxiety appear? What size is it? What sounds like it? Where in the universe is it located?
What would you call it if all of your nervous sensations and thoughts were collected into a book or film labeled “the something story”? “The concern spiral narrative,” for instance.
List all of your fearful ideas.
Determine the issue that has been causing you to worry. List every approach you have taken to solve the issue (distraction, avoidance, worrying, etc.). Do these actions have long-term or only temporary effects?
List all of your concerns. Do they come from inside or without? Real or hypothetical
How has anxiety previously benefited you? What have you learned from your stress?
How can you be gentle to yourself when you are experiencing a worrying thought?
In which of the past, present, or future do I most often find myself?
What would I do differently if I were confident that nothing could go wrong? How would I think differently if I was satisfied that I could manage whatever that came my way?
What am I losing out on since I’m stuck in a different moment right now?
What do I dread the most? What supporting data do I have? What proof is there right now that this worry is unfounded?
What emotion do I like experiencing the most when I feel comfortable and safe? What triggers that feeling in me?
An excellent tool for reducing anxiety is a gratitude notebook. If five things are too many, start with two. Initially, make a list of five things for which you are thankful. You’d be surprised at how viewing the good aspects of your life might help you feel less anxious.
Make a list of your top 5 accomplishments. What are your qualifications and assets? If five items are still too many, start with two.
Compile a list of all your worries. You may release your anxieties from your mind and make room for more optimistic thoughts by writing them down.
Consider the folks who genuinely stand by you. Send each of them a note detailing how they make you shine. You are free to retain those letters or to give them to the crucial individuals in your life. Also, don’t forget to draught a letter to yourself in the future.
Describe what makes you uneasy. Is your anxiety attempting to communicate with you? Is there anything you’re keeping from yourself? Sometimes the secret to controlling our worry is to listen to it.
Learn about your anxiousness. How does it appear? Do you feel? One of the best ways to deal with worry is to understand it. After all, you cannot defeat that which you do not comprehend.
Use affirmations that are uplifting to start your day. Your brain will be rewired to think positively and to take in positive signals all day long as a result of this.
The last time I had anxiety, ______________ was taking place.
The last time I had anxiety, I… Did it assist?
What are three coping mechanisms you may employ the next time you encounter anxiety?
Address your anxiety as if it were a personality or an aspect of you. You’ll be able to be more unbiased, less judgemental, and more discerning as a result. Describe anxiety, including the way it looks, feels, and manifests. When appropriate, use metaphors.
What does anxiety feel like the inside of you? An illustration Anxiety can cause tingling or chilly hands, a faster heartbeat, and racing thoughts.
The idea that one should not trust one’s racing thoughts is one that anxiety holds. I can’t talk in front of others, my anxiety claims, or I’ll never be ready, it claims. What does anxiety hold as true?
How much does anxiety cost, and what are the costs involved?
For what is my anxiousness attempting to get me ready?
Tell us about a time when anxiety overcame you. What were the possible consequences you were worried might occur? Were the fears, presumptions, and beliefs reasonable, practical, and helpful?
Make a list of the self-talk you use daily that makes you anxious. For instance, “You’re going to fail.” Nobody adores you. Then, refute those claims using the information you believe to be accurate. Examples: “The professor is eager to help, and I have never failed before.” “I have friends and relatives who tell me they love me on a regular basis.”
Describe as precisely as you can the patterns that lead to anxiety or panic episodes in your writing.
Locations, tastes, sounds, people, seasons, particular days of the week, sleep patterns, dietary preferences, etc. The better you are at minimizing or eliminating your anxiety, the more you will understand the factors that lead to it.
When have you been apprehensive but still achieved success?
Each day, identify at least one personality trait you consider to be true. Then, pick a different one every day.
What tales, beliefs, and messages do I have about the occurrence or circumstance that makes me anxious?
Where and from whom did these messages, assumptions, and narratives come?
Are these messages, ideas, and narratives ultimately accurate? *Most of your unfavorable assumptions are incorrect.
Whom do I need to forgive for indoctrinating me with these messages, convictions, and tales? * Send letters of apology to each of the persons mentioned.
What new encouraging messages, notions, and narratives do I wish to hold about myself?
Compose an affirmation that supports this new belief. Post the new conviction and affirmation in places where people may see it.
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“Mindfulness, meditation, and positivity – these three words describe me the best. I founded “BeHappyHuman” blog dedicated to spreading happiness and inner peace through mindfulness and meditation techniques. As a self-taught practitioner, I have been exploring these practices for the past decade and my passion lies in sharing their benefits with others. My mission is to help individuals achieve greater happiness.