Bullet journaling was invented by Ryder Carroll and was originally simple and minimal in design. There was a single 'key' used throughout the whole journal and all that's needed to create a bujo is a pen and a notebook. Thats it. Over the years bullet journaling has developed into a creative outlet and a unique way for people to express themselves. In this post I will be talking about the different spreads that can be used to suit your personal needs when it comes to mental health. These can all be altered to be more effective for each person, so don't worry about having to keep everything perfect.
Cover pages:
These bright and colourful pages are great for grounding and staying present. They are completely custom and unique with not 'right' way to be executed. They are also a nice was to calm down after something stressful has happened or a flashback has occurred. Bright colours can be therapeutic to use and look at.
Monthly Spreads:
When you have mental illnesses it can be difficult to remember all appointments, assignments, meetings and work hours. Monthly spreads can give a quick and easy overview of the whole month and help in remembering important dates. They can be in any format: calendar, list, grid boxes, a bubble for each day, random notes or a giant to-do list. I personally opt for a list or calendar but it is all up to you.
Future log:
Much like the monthly spread this layout is versatile and can be different for everyone. Future logs are like huge to-do lists for a long period of time. they can be used for assignments, holidays, future mental health appointments, birthdays and just general events that need to be remembered. You can spread this over as many pages as you want. in the picture I have to show you, I used 3 pages with 4 months per page.
Weekly Spreads:
This is a more detailed monthly spread and is where the typical journaling comes into play. you can create your own 'key' and assign certain symbols to different types of 'events'. I use triangles for birthdays, love hearts for dates, circles for appointments, '!' for work, etc. You can doodle, colour and decorate the weekly pages as another grounding activity.
Mood Tracker:
This is an important spread for anyone dealing with mental health related problems. You assign a colour to a certain mood or emotion and on that day you colour a small section in with your average emotion. you can do this as a graph, grid, picture, calendar or anything else you can imagine. When I began using this method of journaling I noticed that I wasn't having as many bad days as I thought u was and this is because when you have a mental illness you can struggle to see the positives, but this helped me do just that.
Habit Tracker:
Much like the mood tracker I have found this very helpful with mental illnesses. You can keep a recored of you exercise, sleep, water intake, meditation/yoga, meds, school work, driving and even brushing your teeth. Highlight the days that you did whatever it is that you want to track and look back at the end of the month.
Little things:
I created this idea myself when I was going through a period of not feeling like I was accomplishing anything and feeling bad about everything. In this spread you can reflect on what you did at the end of the month and write down some little things that you are proud of. This is great for improving confidence and self pride.
System Journal:
This is something new that I am trying and is for DID/OSDD systems. At the back of your bullet journal section off, two additional parts, this can be done with sticky notes, tabs or bookmarks. Your book will now be in three sections, Bullet journal, system diary, and therapy notes. Use the above spreads in the bujo, then use the system diary as a safe place for alters to communicate and write to each other. The last section for therapy notes if for general things you need to remember for therapy and discuss as a system.
I have no images of this part as it is a private thing.
So, I hope that you enjoyed this post and that it was helpful in some way. All images used do belong to me so please do not use without my permission. (contact @diaryofapsycho1 on instagram).
Let me know if this works or you use any of the ideas :)
Jen xx
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