If you’ve been around here for a while, you already know how much we love journaling. We’ve written about why it matters and how to get started if you’re new to it. The short version: your journal doesn’t judge you, it doesn’t get tired of your thoughts, and it’s there for you every time you need to get those unstructured, messy thoughts out of your head and onto a page. They are not meant to be shared, posted on Instagram, or even re-read.
Today’s prompts are for something specific.
They’re for the divorcée who is in-between.
That quiet, disorienting space where your old life is gone, and your new one hasn’t formed yet. Where you don’t quite recognize yourself, and you’re not sure who you’re becoming. It’s uncomfortable because it’s unfamiliar, not because something’s wrong with you.
These journaling prompts are a place to start. Grab whatever you prefer to write in — a fancy notebook, a scrap piece of paper, the back of an overdue bill — set a timer for 20 minutes, if that helps, and let your pen go where it wants to go.
Whatever you write is for you only. The key is to keep your pen moving. And if you get stuck, write, “I don’t know what to write here…” and keep going. That’s a trick that works for me.
Journaling prompts
Choose one and begin:
- What does a good day look like right now? Or one small moment that feels okay?
- Who were you before this relationship? What did she like? What did she care about? What did she do on a Saturday afternoon?
- What beliefs, habits, or things are you holding onto that aren’t yours to carry anymore?
- What would you tell a close friend who was where you are right now?
- What does “feeling like yourself” mean to you? When did you last feel even a little bit of that?
- When you think about the future, what are you most afraid of? What are you secretly a little excited about? List them all out, even if they don’t make sense.
- Is there anything you’ve stopped doing that you actually miss? i.e., a hobby, a habit, a ritual, etc.
- What do you need more of right now that has nothing to do with anyone else?
- Where in your body do you feel grief most? What does it need from you today?
- What’s one thing you used to know about yourself that you want to find your way back to?
You don’t have to answer all of these in one sitting (or in 10, for that matter). There is no finish line. There is no grade or gold star at the end. Choose one and write until you feel empty. Then, take a step away and maybe come back to another prompt on another day.
And if you need a playlist to help you focus, here’s one I like to listen to these days:
