Want To Use Your Journal For Self-Discovery? Be Sure To Read It

Sometimes, the only thing that's harder than writing in your journal is reading your journal.

Before getting started with this exercise, you'll want to grab a pen or highlighter, as you'll be marking up the text.

As you read back over your old entries, Welsh recommends circling, underlining, or highlighting any time you exaggerated, put yourself down, or got caught in a negative thought loop.

You can do this as frequently or infrequently as you like. Some might find value in doing it weekly or monthly, while others might choose to wait until they're further removed from the subject matter. If you find that the practice makes it harder for you to write freely and openly, you might want to do it less frequently or stop altogether.

Whenever and whatever you're reviewing—be it a gratitude journal, mindfulness journal, or even a dream journal—you'll probably notice certain themes starting to come up.

Keep a close eye out for ruminative thoughts—those sticky ones that you keep repeating without getting anywhere. For example, you might spend multiple entries beating yourself up for the same mistake or wishing a certain experience wasn't happening.

Since exaggerated and repetitive emotions are often rooted in something else, any question that helps you uncover their deeper meaning will be helpful. "It's less about what the question is and more about considering how you can move forward past this circular process and understand it better," she says.

Welsh says this unique process can help you "notice, and thus start to shift, unhelpful habits you might have." It can also serve as a valuable reminder that all thoughts and experiences—even the ones that feel monumental at the time—will eventually pass and make way for something new.

And even if you don't feel like you're getting any helpful nuggets out of this practice, remember that setting aside time for self-reflection is always valuable. Welsh says that this is part of what makes therapy so impactful: It's a commitment to checking in with yourself and processing what's been going on in your life.

While you certainly don't have to read through old entries to reap the benefits of journaling, doing so can add another layer to the process.