Sorry for the dirty floor, the one with the pen on it is my current one and I just got my next two ones

…and where I write each morning. I carry an a5 TN-style cover with a daily journal, a sketchbook and a Bullet Journal. There’s also a zippered pouch with a couple of note cards and stamps in case I’m inspired to write to someone while I’m out and about.

ngl its a little crazy that first of all, the stack is DEFINITELY over 2 feet tall now (its almost eye level when im sitting on the floor) and also i can barely even fit all the journals in one image anymore lol. the next time i do this ill probably just have the last 5 journals instead of literally all of them out.

I think I was sad but these thoughts are diabolical I guess but yeah I still want this (want to become a sperm 😭 life is not very kind to me these days )

I've began journaling recently to detach from digital media, and it brings me a calm and thought-provoking headspace to write with pen and paper. Also, I over-plan, over-analyze, and second-guess constantly in everyday life. I have a pocket journal to help with that, so I don't have a dedicated plan for writing in it, but it's anything and everything... thoughts/feelings/research/planning/memories. Since I have no outline/format, I don't feel pressure to have it curated and looking nice. I like the haphazard look of my notes, sub-notes, separate notes that are squared-off up in the corner, etc.

I'm looking for anyone who only uses pocket journals and does not use it to contribute to a larger more curated journal.

How do you do it? I'm trying to avoid the perfectionism of wanting to use those thoughts to put into a "nice" journal. I'm really just doing this for myself right now, and it'll likely stay that way, but who knows.

Right now I just date my entry and write whatever content I want.. philosophical explorations, random thoughts/ideas, to-do list, jotting down memories as I recall them, song lyrics, prayers, bible passages and my thoughts on them... I'm thinking of adding some habit-tracking charts as well. But mainly I might add an index that starts at the back of the journal and works towards the front (flipping the journal upside-down for this) so that the index and my content will inevitably meet, then I will start the next journal.

I'm curious if anyone else here writes only in a pocket journal that goes everywhere with them, and how do you organize/notate?

EDIT: expanding upon how I use it right now:
- use icons next to each entry to categorize whether it's a philosophical exploration, an idea, Bible-related, to-do, summarizing a conversation I want to remember, childhood memories
- periodically go back through my journal (maybe upon starting a new one) and copy over to the new one what I want to keep in the forefront of my mind

The title states my problem. I'm not sure what to do. I need to hide them. Somewhere they CAN'T find. I don't have room to bring them all. But my siblings are already in my room reading them as I'm packing and keep using the key to unlocky door and come back in. My mom and sister especially will be so nosy once I'm gone. I need a place to hide them WELL. I only have tonight to hide them. Please, please help me.

I used to journal every single day and then a major trauma happened, I found my roommate passed away who i was very close to. I couldn’t pick up my journal after that. At first, it was like if I wrote it down it would finalize it. And then it got away from me, and now it’s been 3 years and I feel like I would have to play catch up with the last 3 years of my life and that just seems daunting. Anyone else or am I just odd? lol.

August 27, 2025

So what happened was I was heading out to meet a close friend today. I got a bus from Hennur Cross and reached Shivaji Nagar. From Shivaji Nagar, I walked towards Brigade Road, hoping to get a bus to Koramangala. I waited at one stop, none of the buses stopped. Walked to the next stop, still no bus stopped at the bus stop, they just kept moving. Walked again to another stop, again none of the buses stopped.

So I downloaded Rapido. I didn’t know they had brought bike rides back in Bangalore, since they were banned before for sometime. I booked a bike even though there were signs of rain. Pretty stupid, I know. The rider’s name was Joe Padikkal, probably a Malayali. He was really polite and nice, gave me a helmet and even a raincoat when it started pouring. He wore one too, and thanks to him, at least my phone and bag were a little safe. He dropped me safely at my destination, and honestly, despite the crazy rain, it was a nice ride to Koramangala.

I called my friend, she came with an umbrella and took me to the café. We went to this Café in Koramangala. Inside, I tried to dry myself, but I was so drenched that I was literally making the whole floor wet. Even my friend got a little wet, and I felt bad since she already had a cold.

We ordered pesto pasta, French fries, and drinks, I had hot chocolate, and she had a cappuccino. We spent some time talking, then left. She got an auto, and I walked to a main junction before booking another Rapido bike. The second rider who picked me up was also really good, he dropped me at MG Road, and that ride was awesome it was smooth and pleasant and the weather was toooo good, the post rain weather, it was so f awesome!!!

From MG Road, I walked towards Shivaji Nagar. On the way, I stopped at Atty’s for a cream cheese bun with tea, perfect in that weather. After that, I headed towards the signal near the old-style building at the other end of MG Road, close to Shivaji Nagar. While crossing, I had to stop midway at the divider because the other side had a green signal and vehicles were passing.

Just then, an auto came by with a girl inside. She was pretty. The auto was taking a U-turn, so for a moment, I was blocking the road. I kept looking at the signal, then at the auto, then down at the road. I got a little nervous, “What am I doing? I’m blocking the way for the auto” When I looked back at the auto, she looked at me and smiled.

And it wasn’t a casual smile, it felt different. Almost like the kind of smile you give when you actually like someone, or find them cute. It was so precious to me. It reminded me of the way people smile at kids sometimes, pure, genuine.

That small moment really touched me. Lately, I’d been feeling sad, thinking love wasn’t for me, that maybe I’d just end up being the “cool uncle,” single forever. I even told an online friend yesterday that I’d accepted it. But then, this girl shows up in an auto and gives me that smile. My whole world felt at peace for a second.

I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again. She was wearing a bluish-green top, not “gorgeous” in the conventional sense, but definitely very cute. And I’m not saying this just because she was pretty and smiled at me, there was something awesome or precious in that moment, and that smile, it meant the world, it made my day so much better, from good day it became a day I'll remember.

On the way back from Koramangala to MG Road, the weather itself felt magical. After the heavy rain, Bangalore had that perfect dreamy vibe, cool, clean, almost like living inside a film. And that’s how my day went.

I kept seeing "start journaling" on my soc med algorithm so I bought a journal yesterday. I am someone who talks to myself a lot. I self therapize a lot. I started writing today and my mind and hand were just vibing and I couldnt stop. I could see myself writing down my thought endlessly. I think its good and therapeutic but I'm thinking whos gonna read it? Just write stuff and like keep it? Wouldnt it be a waste of paper and effort and energy? Whats happens when you finished a whole journal? Throw it away? Keep it?

I like to make solo journaling games. I know this community is about journaling but thought id share some fun ideas.

This game is about moving i to a new cottage in the woods and joirnaling about your strange findings.

I’ve been journaling faithfully for 13 years and sporadically before then. I used to try to do an index for my journals but it was so time-consuming that I gave up on it. But I’d still like to find a way to index from here on out as I go. So what I’m thinking is color coding. For example, in one entry I might cover 2 or 3 topics, sometimes more. So I’d have a separate color for work, travel, big purchases, holidays, events, deep thoughts, etc. I would either bracket on the edge of the page in colored pens, or use big colored dots, stars, or some other way of denoting roughly where on the page the topic appears. So after each time I write, I would mark the entry with the colors (however I decided to do it), and have an index either in back or front of the journal, with an alphabetical list of topics (one or two letters per page). Have any of you done something like this? Do you have a more streamlined way of doing it? I find it very useful to go back in my journal to read about an event, or something I bought, and if I had an easier way of finding it, it would be super. Looking forward to your clever ideas.

Hey, so I have attempted Journaling for a few years and just give up adter a month out of pure frustration. My mind just goes blank, I cant get words to paper , cant tell how I feel and the block just stays there. When I can try I then am questioning if that is my thoughts or what im sapose to put, feel shameful of them if I cam figure what to write or I ruminate after because I can usually obly write the same feeling down mainly. I dpnt know if its not for me maybe. I have a sever problem with trying to expresse my thoughts or even know what to write down. They say it helps you get over feeling vulnerable and open up but its like doing thr opposite Idk if im just doing it wrong or maybe this is just not the right course for me

Habit is the key to everything. You will not feel stress even in a toxic environment once you get habituated to it! The struggle is only till you get used to it and find a coping mechanism.

WELP

this might not be the best example, 90% of my entries start with the best handwriting and it ends up so sloppy when my mind is filled with stuff to get down. Everyone’s handwriting on here is so neat lmao, and i love reading everyone’s entries as someone who’s nosey so I shall be more active on this subreddit :-)

Just a few pages.

I have been consistently journaling since 2020, and it has been an amazing time. Usually I use 3-4 journals per year. But since last 5 months, I do not get the urge to write in my physical journal so much. Instead I end up writing in a Google Doc. But I don't want this, I want to be writing in my physical journal.

Has anyone faced this issue?

What did you do? Did you leave journaling for the time being or altogether?

Should I go with the flow and use Google docs for now? I don't like it. :(

Are there ways I can get myself interested in physical journaling again?

It is one of the few things I genuinely enjoy and it makes me feel very sad that I am not enjoying it as much.

Please give some suggestions or share your personal experiences. Thanks.

my journaling is mainly mental health stuff n notes for my future self. I just feel the needed to journal so my future self can come back and read it one day, to reflect how much of pain I’m currently in.. part of me want her to know that I’m journaling to her bc I know she’ll will want to read one day truly..

I’ve been trying to mood journal for the past month because my therapist says u should keep track of how I’m feeling.

I’m not very emotional and so I find it difficult Not sure I’m doing it correctly. I’ve just been writing a couple of words about how I feel before I go to bed. I have forgotten some days hence the lines.

I’ve got to show her tomorrow and I’m worried it’s not what she wanted.

an additional rant:

but it’s like the damage is already done ffs and my parents want to complain that I don’t like hanging around them. god they’re so dumb I hate people who cannot look at their own actions wonder

also sorry that i have terrible handwriting my pen was acting weird