Self Forgiveness Journal Prompts: 32 Exercises to Let Go

This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you sign up or purchase products or services mentioned. Read the full disclosure here.

Last Updated on September 16, 2022

When we struggle to forgive ourselves (or others), we are holding onto pain in the process. These feelings can really weigh on you and make it hard to free yourself of the shame, guilt, and blame associated with whatever it is that may have happened.

The journey to self forgiveness is usually never easy, nor is it always linear. You may have ups and downs, and a whole lot of tough emotions along the way. These self forgiveness journal prompts will help you work through the difficulties and break the habits that keep you stuck in a cycle of self judgment.

This post is organized into:

Journal Prompts to Forgive Yourself
Journal Prompts to Forgive Others
Journal Prompts to Understand Forgiveness

Table of Contents

This post is all about self forgiveness journal prompts.

Forgiveness for Self Growth

Growth does not happen out of shame. Beating yourself up, obsessing over your faults, and scrutinizing your mistakes does not create the foundation for healthy self growth. Holding onto these things will only weigh you down.

Instead, growth is born out of self forgiveness and acceptance. It’s embracing every part of you, even the parts that aren’t so perfect. When you meet yourself where you’re already at, you’ll be in a much better position to nurture your self growth.

We are what we believe. If you believe you can’t ever get anything right or don’t deserve good things, that mindset will trap you into staying in a negative place. If you believe that it’s okay to make mistakes, and that you do deserve to thrive and flourish, this support will make it much easier to improve!

How to practice self forgiveness

Self forgiveness can feel like a battle. It won’t happen overnight. But the more you practice letting go of guilt, shame, and blame, the closer you can get to achieving self forgiveness.

First, you need to acknowledge that none of us (that includes you!) are perfect. We all make mistakes. I’m sure you’ve heard this saying time and time again, but you need to really believe it, because it’s 100% true.

It’s all about shifting your mindset toward self love. Or at the very least, being able to sit with yourself without passing any judgment.

A few different ways you can specifically practice self forgiveness include:

Speaking and/or writing positive affirmations that reinforce self forgiveness
Using self forgiveness journal prompts, like the ones in this post
Reframing any negative thoughts about perfectionism or self-shame into more positive or rational thoughts
Exercising kindness and going easy on yourself when you do make mistakes

Why is it so hard to forgive yourself?

Do you find it easier to forgive others than it is to forgive yourself? This is pretty common because we’re always our own worst critic.

We tend to hold ourselves to higher (often unrealistic!) standards which only cause more harm than good. Just imagine how much better you’d feel if you forgave yourself the way you forgive your best friend when he/she makes a mistake!

The thing is, you deserve forgiveness just as much as anyone else. Working through the patterns and habits you’ve fallen into that prevent you from self-forgiveness is a process. These self forgiveness journal prompts are here to help you shift your mindset on this.

How do you start a forgiveness journal?

Starting a forgiveness journal requires nothing more than a nice journal, a good pen, and some self forgiveness journal prompts! I am a real big fan of the Erin Condren notebooks, which you can grab below! Having a fresh new notebook always helps me stay focused and excited to journal.

GET THIS NOTEBOOK

In addition, consider the following as you practice your self forgiveness journal prompts:

Come to the agreement with yourself that you are going to work toward self forgiveness
Keep an open mind and be open and honest
Reflect on what holds you back from fully forgiving yourself
Be patient with yourself

32 Self Forgiveness Journal Prompts to Exercise Letting Go

Are you ready to meet yourself with acceptance? These self forgiveness journal prompts will help you let go of the difficult emotions that hold you back from true forgiveness.

Journal Prompts to Forgive Yourself

As your own worst critic, forgiving yourself can be extra challenging. These self forgiveness journal prompts focus on forgiving the person who needs the most care: you.

What is the number one thing you need to forgive yourself for?
What are 3 ways you can be gentler to yourself in the moment when you’ve made a mistake?
How can you start grounding yourself in the present without fixating on the past?
What are 3 ways you can move forward from your past mistakes?
How can you separate yourself and your identity from your mistakes?
How have you grown and changed from a really negative past mistake?
What sort of freedom would forgiving yourself give you?
What about self forgiveness is so difficult for you?
Think of a time where you felt regret for something you said or did. How did you deal with the feeling of regret?
Did you grow up being reprimanded for your mistakes and learning that mistakes weren’t okay to make? How can you overcome this now?
Do you think self forgiveness is necessary for healing childhood trauma?

Want a guided journal to improve your mental health?

If you wish you had guided journal prompts conveniently bundled just for you to help with tough thoughts and emotions, you’ve got to check out my printable mental health journal!

It’s jam-packed with 33 pages of writing prompts and mental activities for understanding your emotions, overcoming unhelpful behaviors, and reframing negative thoughts. A must-have tool for your self forgiveness journey.

BUY THE MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL

Journal Prompts to Forgive Others

While self forgiveness can be super hard, sometimes it can be hard to forgive others that have wronged us too. These journal prompts will help you work toward forgiving and accepting others so you can let go of grudges and bitterness.

What does forgiving someone else consist of?
Who is someone you need to forgive the most?
How is holding onto the pain of unforgiveness impacting you?
Do you think it’s harder to forgive others or yourself? Why?
How have you dealt with anger over the years? Is there a better way of dealing with it?
Do you ever become angry when you think of your parents’ mistakes? Reflect on what these are and why you’re angry.
Is there someone you don’t think you could ever fully forgive? Why?
How did you respond to being treated unfairly as a child? (By parents, teachers, friends, etc.)
When was a time where you felt betrayed by someone in your life? How can you accept and move on from what happened?
Think of someone who has let you down. What was the reasoning behind what happened?

Journaling is super useful for working through your emotions, but you’ll find the most benefit if you pair it with therapy. Talking to an online therapist can really help you out. It’s helped me tremendously! I always recommend Online Therapy because it’s a comprehensive, effective online therapy toolkit at an affordable monthly cost. Get 20% off your first month with the link below!

FIND AN ONLINE THERAPIST

Journal Prompts to Understand Forgiveness

Forgiveness can involve a lot of complex emotions and hang ups. These self forgiveness journal prompts will help you understand how to approach it and the steps you might need to take.

Does forgiving mean letting go of your anger? What do you think?
Is it easy for you to forgive?
What do you think are the benefits of forgiving someone?
What are the benefits of forgiving yourself?
Think of a time where you were a bully in some way. What motivated you to do what you did?
Think of a time when you were bullied. What do you think motivated the person to treat you that way?
Are you ever able to see the positive qualities in people who have hurt you?
Have you ever felt pressured to forgive someone? How did that pressure make you feel?
Do you think there is a difference between letting go and forgiveness? Why or why not?
What core beliefs are you challenging when you practice self forgiveness?
What things need to be in place for you to feel ready to forgive yourself?

Benefits of Forgiveness

As I’m sure you might already know, self forgiveness isn’t easy. But with patience and consistency, the benefits of forgiveness are so freeing.

Self forgiveness brings benefits like:

Improved mental health
Lower blood pressure
Better self-esteem
Reduced anxiety
Even lower mortality rates

This clearly shows that being hard on yourself is not the answer. Practicing self forgiveness and being gentle with yourself really is the solution to overall improved wellbeing. It’s definitely worth prioritizing!