Have you ever taken a brain dump?

I want to share with you how effective pen-to-paper has been for my mental health. You know how sometimes there is just so much going on in your brain? So many tasks that need to be completed, and lots of conversations you wish could have gone differently. Or perhaps ones you want to have, and you start planning them, thinking about how you want them to go. I sometimes say my brain has so many tabs open, all running at once. It can get very overwhelming. I hear you the list of things to be done can sometimes feel endless.

I wish I had learned this skill as a child as it's so simple and would have really helped me. I've called it a brain dump for years I'm sure someone said it to me once as an idea and it just stuck but I can't remember who it was to credit them so I apologise.

Get a pen and paper. It can be scrap paper, your trusty notepad, or sometimes I use old diaries I never filled in and just write over the old dates. (Makes me feel better about not filling them in at the time and not wasting them too! Lol win win!!)

Side note: this is not supposed to be pretty and organised hence the word dump!

Now just write anything and everything that is in your mind. It doesn’t even have to be legible to be honest sometimes I do it so fast I can't keep up and the writing is all over the place. This is good practice for those perfectionists too! Let it flow. You might find as you are writing things come to mind you haven’t thought of in years. Get it on there. Things might seem really minor in the grand scheme of things but if it's in your mind right now get it down on paper too. Nothing is too big or too small. Dump that brain list and all the thoughts on paper. Then take a big deep breath in through your nose, hold for a few seconds whilst you feel gratitude for yourself for taking this time to help yourself and when you feel ready slowly let your breath out and imagine just letting it all go. If you feel called to you can rip up the paper or burn it to really cement the intention of letting that shit go! But it may not feel necessary.

If you have some things that are really making you feel angry and burning paper is just not cutting it, you can try getting some old crockery and a Sharpie and write those negative thoughts on said crockery then find a safe place to smash it! It's such a tension reliever. Before smashing set your intention that you are going to put all your anger and frustration into the item and once it's smashed into pieces you release that energy. But please make sure you do this safely and clear any scraps.

Another great pen-to-paper technique is journaling, you’ve probably heard of it, I feel it’s a slightly different technique, but still with great impact. The beauty of journaling or brain dumping lies in its freedom and accessibility—it's a canvas where you can freely express your thoughts, emotions, and reflections without judgment or constraint.

So, remember no judgment here ok! Just accept what you have written and let it be. With journaling, I sometimes write in a way I can read it back, in case there are insights or if I am writing about things I want to happen and showing my gratitude for them I may look back in months to come to see how much of it has come to fruition in my life. Noticing the little wins you have helps your brain to evidence the positives in your life. Once you start doing that your brain will start to try and find more positives for you.

Sometimes questions in journaling can be quite powerful rather than the statement so for example;

·       How can I overcome this issue I have right now?

·       How can I feel more abundant?

·       How can today be amazing?

Whether you choose to explore these questions now or return to them later, is all good. There is no right or wrong way, just do what feels right to you and know that journaling is a limitless resource, ever-present to support you on your journey of self-discovery and growth.

You might randomly have an idea or an answer to one of your questions, or when you next come to put pen to paper see the last thing you wrote and think oh wow that sorted itself out perfectly, I had forgotten it was even something I was carrying around.

I love pen to paper it just feels right. We are on technology so much and yes, we can write notes on them etc but pen to paper has so much more of a magical way of helping. I feel as though you can connect more to your true self and personal growth.

I would love to hear in the comments if you have tried any of these techniques or feel inspired to do so.

Till next time xx