50 Therapeutic Journal Prompts for Healing

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Last Updated on March 6, 2023

Let’s face it, processing painful memories and tough emotions can really suck. It can be hard to do much of anything when we’re feeling stuck in a rut. But as hard as it can be, I do know that staying proactive and using powerful coping tools like journaling can make a difference.

Even if you don’t feel like it at first, journaling can be a BIG help on bad mental health days. I know I almost always feel a little better after doing so. These therapeutic journal prompts for healing can be another powerful tool to add to your toolbox!

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Why journal prompts are essential when you’re healing

Healing takes a lot of work and can be draining at times, making it challenging to sit down and stare at a blank journal page and get reflecting.

This is especially true when you’re not sure what to write about and don’t have anything to guide your thought processes. That’s why it’s helpful to have a list of journal prompts for healing to refer to when you’re struggling.

On your toughest days, let these journal prompts guide you through identifying, processing, and healing what you’re feeling.

This post is all about journal prompts for healing.

What is a journal prompt?

A journal prompt is a thought-provoking starting point to guide your writing. It can be a phrase, question, or idea that gets your thoughts flowing.

Journal prompts serve as the main focus for a journal response, which can provide support and guidance when you’re not sure what to write about.

And with something as intense as working through emotional healing, these journal prompts for healing are a huge help in assisting you through diving into the important topics. Journal prompts help us consider ideas we might not have arrived at on our own!

You can also reuse specific journal prompts that are specifically helpful to you. For example, many people make it a habit to write down three things they’re grateful for each morning. They are using the same prompt and have incorporated it into their routine.

Why should you start journaling?

Journaling is a powerful tool for your emotional healing because it lets you deep-dive into the thoughts, emotions, and behavioral patterns you might be facing. Journaling is one of the most direct approaches to coping with stressors because you get to tackle them head on.

Reasons to start journaling include:

Providing yourself an outlet
Having a quick pick-me-up on hard days
Relieves mental clutter when you feel like there’s too much on your mind
Allows you to work through your dark thoughts
Can help you shift your mindset from negative to optimistic
Immensely useful for unpacking trauma

I started journaling for several of these reasons myself. Of all the coping strategies suggested to us, journaling just makes the most sense to me. Rather than doing something that acts as a form of distraction, I’m doing something that helps me productively release and assess my negative thoughts!

Benefits of journal prompts for healing

Depression and trauma can really drag you down and make your head clouded with dark thoughts. But getting these thoughts out of your head and onto paper can act as a useful release and help you make sense of your thoughts.

I know I almost always find new insight and revelations when I put my thoughts into a more organized format, like on paper. These journal prompts for healing can help me organize what’s going through my mind, as well as uncover new realizations about myself and my healing process.

Benefits of journaling include:

Reduced anxious and depressive thoughts
Clearer mind
Improved mood
Better understanding of yourself
Can improve your relationship with others and interpersonal skills
Builds emotion regulation
Helps you organize and analyze thoughts and problems

{RELATED POST: 33 Best Therapy Worksheets for Teens & Adults}

Here are 50 therapeutic journal prompts for healing

Journal Prompts for Emotional Healing

Discuss something you’re dreading
Do you have any regrets in life? If so, what?
How can you accept and come to terms with the past or the things you regret?
What is the “biggest” negative thought or belief you currently have? How can you reframe it to be more rational or positive? (you can grab more problem-solving based prompts like this one in my printable mental health journal!)
Do you think emotional trauma/depression can be overcome?
Where do you feel the most safe? Why?
What is the most difficult thing you’ve successfully overcome?
When things are tough, I want to remember ______.
Do you struggle with self doubt? If so, in which areas? (here’s journal prompts for challenging your limiting beliefs.)
What was your happiest childhood memory?
What was your most difficult childhood memory? Do you think it shaped who you are today?
What negative messages did you receive growing up that still affect you today?
Discuss your most difficult challenge in the last year.
Who can you go to for support about your emotional healing? (advice on going to therapy.)
Write a letter to your younger self. What did they need to hear from you?
On a scale of 1-10, where would you rate your current mental health? Has there been a time where it was better or worse?

Journal Prompts for Emotional Awareness

Name 5 things that trigger your negative thoughts the most.
What can you do to avoid or lessen these triggers?
If you could change anything about your life, what would it be?
If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?
Do you feel like a perfectionist? In what ways do you struggle with perfectionism?
Name 3 things you can do to alleviate your mental health symptoms.

FIND AN ONLINE THERAPIST

What is your biggest fear?
Write down any negative thoughts you’ve been feeling lately. How much do you truly believe each thought is true/accurate, and why?
What are 5 things you’re happy with about yourself?
What habits would be necessary for you to do to create your ideal life?
What area of your life are you most unhappy with? (Career, home life, relationships, family, etc.)
What can you do to make changes in that area?
Who in your life gives off negative energy? Why do you spend time with them?
Are you happy with where you live? If not, where do you wish you could move to?
Do you have a “dream career”? If not, what type of career do you think jives best with your personality? (office job away from people, a sales role interacting with people, a nonprofit, etc.)

Journal Prompts for Spiritual Healing

What can you change in your life to align more closely with your values?
What is your own personal definition of spirituality?
Do you think you’ve discovered the core of who you really are? If not, how do you think you can achieve this some day?
What has been your experience with spirituality?
How has your personal definition of spirituality changed over the years?
What does your belief system currently look like?
Have you ever had a negative or traumatic experience with spirituality?
What activities do you do to practice spirituality?
Do you think there is something out there that’s bigger than yourself? Explain.
In what ways have you found meaning in your life?
Where are you still searching for meaning in your life?
What goals are you currently pursuing that provide meaning to your life?
Do you feel you can trust your intuition? Why or why not?
Have you ever experienced spiritual awakening?
How can you show yourself more self love and self compassion?
In what ways have you grown greater self-awareness in the last few years?
What has been giving you the ultimate sense of gratitude lately?
What makes the world a better place?
Do you believe in actively seeking out your purpose, or that your purpose will find you?

My must-have tool for emotional healing journaling

After analyzing my thoughts and making better sense of them, it also makes it easier for me to reframe my thoughts into something more positive.

In fact, I offer a printable mental health journal that guides you through the proper process for reframing negative thoughts into rational ones, as well as plenty of writing prompts for understanding your emotions and overcoming unhelpful behaviors.

I highly recommend checking it out below! Many of the writing prompts and exercises in the journal relate specifically to emotional healing. As someone who has struggled with mental health myself, I know exactly what a resource like this needs to be useful to you!

It’s definitely a must-have tool to pair with the journal prompts for healing in this post. Go see for yourself and let me know how I can support you!

BUY THE MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL

How to start journaling

When it comes to the frequency, I like to aim for journaling in a prompt format like this twice a week. Think of it as a “check in” with yourself. I often find that when I journal, things come up that I didn’t realize I was repressing throughout my busy day or week.

So don’t leave things unchecked for too long!

Aim to make it a habit or part of your routine. Are mornings better for you? Or is before bed better for you? Is there a day of the week that makes the most sense for you to journal? Mark it on your calendar!

I think Mondays and Fridays are great days to journal. On Monday, you can see how you feel about the week ahead and on Friday you can reflect on how the week went and how it left you feeling.

You also don’t need to write an essay or anything too lengthy when you’re first starting off. Even just using journal prompts for healing for 5 minutes at a time can be enough to clear your mind and be effective!

How to use journal prompts for healing

Whether you’re currently going through a big challenge or you have trauma in your past that you’d like to heal from, these journal prompts for healing can serve as support and reflection.

When you answer a prompt, observe your current unfiltered thought process and emotions surrounding the subject. Fully work through your feelings to discover how your experiences have manifested in you. Are there pent up emotions? Do you still feel “stuck” on an event?

As you journal your thoughts, be sure to take note of anything that comes up as this will strengthen your self-awareness.

What do you write in a healing journal?

As you crack open your journal, remember that emotional healing is always possible. You are fully capable of adapting and healing from the things you’ve been through! These journal prompts for healing will guide you in what to write during your healing process.

When you respond to each prompt, keep an open mind to any negative thoughts and memories that creep up. You will likely uncover something you didn’t realize or had suppressed in some way. Take note of that if it happens! Your mind might be guiding you to a certain thought or memory for a reason. Journaling can give us an outlet to unpack some of our trauma through our writing.

Does journaling help with trauma?

Trauma has everything to do with the lasting emotional response from our distressing lived experiences.

As you reflect on these journal prompts for healing, you may come across some unpleasant memories or realizations about the past. Making connections to your present behaviors and where they stemmed from is a core component of processing trauma.

Journaling is one of the most powerful self care tools for deep-diving into the roots of your trauma. This makes it immensely beneficial for anyone trying to answer questions like why they suffer from anxiety or why they feel so triggered over “the little things.”

Inner child journaling in particular can be a great form of trauma-focused journaling, especially if you feel like you may have experienced negative childhood experiences.

This aspect of your inner child is worth exploring, which is why I’ve made an entire inner child healing workbook to help you better-understand how to heal yourself from within. Go check it out below!

Feeling out of touch with your inner child? Been through a traumatic experience? My printable inner child journal PDF can help you give your inner child the love they deserve but didn’t get.

This workbook will help you:

Overcome negative feelings like fear, self-blame, insecurity, and a harsh inner critic.
Discover the link between your adult behaviors and the childhood roots they stem from.
Re-parent your inner child as you get back in touch with fun, play, and a solid self care plan.

GET THE INNER CHILD WORKBOOK

I hope these journal prompts for healing gave you the inspiration and guidance you need to put the pen to the paper and get those thoughts out there.

Acts of self care and self maintenance like this are a great way to be proactive about your mental health. I know it’s hard, but if you’re reading this and wanting to take this step I’m SO proud of you!

Take care.